Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 11 No. 5 | May 2019

32 Inside Hokie Sports MFPs I Document Management I Managed Print Services I Production Print Roanoke • New River Valley • Lynchburg • Charlottesville Richmond • Hampton Roads • Shenandoah Valley VAbusinesssystems.com • 540-362-3300 Our Fast Forward Document Solutions are a Home Run! Providing Teamwork and Fast Forward Document Technology to Virginia Tech Athletics ... and your company! Bud Foster spent much of this past fall in pain. Some of that stemmed from a balky knee that throbbed relentlessly and ultimately forced him into a knee replacement surgery. The rest of it came from watching a young, unproven defense struggle mightily, particularly down the stretch. But both the coordinator and the defense appeared to be in much better health at the conclusion of spring practice, and much of that was because of the improved play at Foster’s two linebacker positions. Foster—who not only serves as the coordinator, but also the linebackers coach—came out of spring practice feeling good about the situation. His bunch looks built for both short-term success, with returning starters like Rayshard Ashby, Dax Hollifield and Dylan Rivers, and long-term sustainability thanks to an impressive group of younger players. Ashby leads the way after a season in which he started pretty much every game at mike linebacker. Now a rising junior, he not only anchors the two linebacker spots, but also serves as the leader of the defense. He played with much more confidence this spring, spending nearly all of his reps playing and not thinking. “He continues to get better,” Foster said. “He has a really good understanding of the position and the scheme. He really has taken a leadership role, just being very vocal on top of just playing more consistent. He just knows things and knows what to expect, and he’s playing a little more anticipatory football. He’s a step quicker, and all that just comes with experience.” Beside Ashby, both Hollifield and Rivers started games at backer this past fall. Rivers started the first part of the season, but an ankle injury forced him to the sideline, and he never looked quite the same—hemissed three games. With Rivers out, Hollifield received six starts as a true freshman, finishing with 62 tackles. Hollifield attacked the strength and conditioning program this past winter, losing 16 pounds of what Foster termed as baby fat. He also played fast and with borderline reckless energy, but now at 228 pounds, he looks even faster. “He really leaned his body up,” Foster said. “He needed to. He wanted to get a little faster, and I think it’s helped him. He’s not going to be a Tremaine Edmunds as far as speed goes—not many guys are—but he’s like Rayshard. He loves the game and has tremendous energy. He’s a contagious guy—guys feed off of him, and it’s neat to see that. He got a lot better, just knowing the position and knowing the scheme.” Rivers got himself healthy, and he, too, looks faster. According to Foster, all three need to get stronger and continue to improve the use of their hands. “You’re really splitting hairs when you talk about all three of those guys,” Foster said. In addition to those three, Foster really likes the younger players behind that trio. At the mike linebacker position, Keshon Artis finished this spring behind Ashby. Artis played mostly on special teams as a true freshman in 2018, but the rising sophomore really showed instincts for the position, and in some respects, he possesses similar attributes as Ashby. “I thought Keshon had a good spring,” Foster said. “He’s got to be a little more vocal for me. He showed steady improvement. He’s going to compete there. He’s smart, has a good football IQ and is a good finisher. I’m excited about him.” At the backer spot, Alan Tisdale is a young prospect to watch. Tisdale, who enrolled at Tech in January of 2018, missed this past season with a shoulder injury, thus taking a redshirt season. This spring, he looked a little skinny and probably needs to add strength to go with his speed. Foster called Tisdale his fastest linebacker. “He’s shown flashes,” Foster said. “He hasn’t had a full offseason in the weight room. Once he gets that and starts to get stronger and gets more weight … he’s a guy that can be bigger, faster, and stronger. He’s got a natural pop to him, an explosiveness. He’s the least experienced of all of them, but I think he can help our football team and has a bright future.” Jaylen Griffin and Daniel Griffith round out the group, and both showed improvement this spring. They only add to the depth at the two positions, and they also may factor in on certain special teams units. Overall, Foster likes the group. The players work hard, they want to improve, they push each other, they encourage each other, and there is no selfishness. But he is cautious. “We’re still young,” he said. “We got a season under our belt, but that’s it. You get some guys that are a play away from being the guy, and they don’t have the experience. That’s really across the board defensively, but by the same token, we have a lot of guys back.” For sure, though, theHokies’ linebackers are ready to inflict some pain this upcoming—and after last fall’s experience, Foster, for sure, is grateful. Linebackers Mike linebackers 23 Rayshard Ashby (5-10, 230, Jr.) 41 Jaylen Griffin (6-1, 247, r-So.) 48 Daniel Griffith (6-0, 233, r-Jr.) 49 Keshon Artis (6-0, 233, So.) Backers 4 Dax Hollifield (6-1, 228, So.) 34 Alan Tisdale (6-3, 214, r-Fr.) 44 Dylan Rivers (6-1, 232, Jr.)