One we get past all of the obligatory I-AA upset warnings, let’s get take a look at what we can truly expect at tomorrow’s game. With no disrespect intended toward William and Mary, and assuming this game plays out as expected (a Hokie romp), what can the Hokies do in this game to get better heading into their first ACC game the following week?

Obviously you want Tyrod Taylor in the game long enough to develop a rhythm with the offense, especially the receivers, all of whom must be salivating at the possibilities now evident with a more mobile and exciting quarterback under center. At the same time, you don’t want to keep him in too long and run the risk of him getting hurt.

I fully expect the Hokie offense to come firing on all cylinders and just pound the Tribe defense (which is pretty bad statistically) into an early submission. Tyrod will probably run wild at times, picking up 20 yard gains. I think when it’s over, T-Mobile will have more than 100 yards rushing, not to mention the big numbers he’ll put up in the passing game. If he threw for 287 against Ohio, imagine what he can do against a I-AA team that went 3-8 last year. Scary.

Don’t forget Tech’s defense, which smothered the Bobcast last weekend. They might pitch a shutout in this game. And I certainly expect they will probably put up some points off turnovers.

This game should allow the coaches to get some young players some quality playing time. And I would even argue that Frank Beamer should keep Sean Glennon on the sideline. Not as punishment, but because he is graduating in December and probably won’t be back next season, so why not let Cory Holt, who will likely be back, get some quality snaps so we have another “mobile” quarterback in case … well, I’m not even going to say it. Suffice it to say that Holt is more like Tyrod in terms of the ability to escape pressure than Glennon, who, by the way, didn’t beat Holt out by much last season. Plus, from all accounts, Holt has never put himself before the team.

It makes sense to me that if the offensive line gets comfortable with how Tyrod is playing and moving around and the o-line is adjusting to his style of play, why not go with the backup QB who has a similar style, that way the o-line doesn’t have to make as many adjustments.

We’ll probably see more of Jahre Cheeseman as the backup tailback behind Ore and Kenny Lewis, Jr. Ore, who is nursing some sore ribs, probably won’t see much time in this game. What’s the point? Give him enough carries to keep him active, but don’t risk further injury right before you enter the ACC schedule. And Lewis, Jr., has been tearing it up lately! He ran wild over Ohio and showed some explosiveness and speed that I don’t think many expected to see.

This will be a good opportunity for Tyrod to mature a little more and develop some timing with the offense, but the quality of the opponent won’t do much to prepare him for the likes of Miami, Florida State, Clemson and Boston College. Then again, T-Mobile didn’t look too flustered by the LSU defense and if he doesn’t get flustered by a defense with eight legitimate NFL draft picks, then I don’t imagine there are many teams that will intimidate him.

I finally got a chance to sit down and carefully watch the Virginia Tech vs. Ohio game last night. I was on vacation at the beach on Saturday and only got to watch the game on my laptop (ESPN 360), so there were some finer details and nuances of the game that I was sure I had missed. And wouldn’t you know it, after watching the game on a bigger screen I discovered that Tyrod Taylor was even more impressive that he was on my laptop.

His stats were pretty impressive for any quarterback. But they were especially impressive for a true freshman making his first collegiate start against a bowl team picked to win its conference. Taylor completed 18 of 31 passes for 287 yards, rushed for 40 yards (not couting the 32 yards lost when he was sacked) and ran for a touchdown. Take into account the three dropped passes and he would have been 21 of 31 for about 340 yards passing. Uh … wow!

While the stats are enough to make even the most stoic and reserved Hokie fan giggle like a little girl; what was more impressive is how comfortable and veteran-like Taylor appeared. It looked like he has been the starting QB for a couple of years. He never got flustered in the pocket when the pressure was on (watch the highlights here). Countless times he just floated gracefully away from danger, buying a precious extra second or two to make a John Elway like pass with nothing more than a flick of his wrist. I don’t think he ever cocked his arm back to throw a pass - just his wrist.

Taylor reminds me of three quarterbacks all rolled into one. He was John Elway-like zip on his passes; a quick release like Dan Marino and the poise and elusivity of a Steve Young. And he’s only 18! He even looked comfortable against LSU. This kid is the real deal and it is going to be an absolute pleasure to watch him play for at least the next three years. Set your DVRs folks, because kids like Tyrod only come around so often.

Glennon Fallout
There was a was an article in the Roanoke Times today - “Beamer: Booing Glennon Not Cool” - about Frank Beamer’s disappointment with Tech fans for booing the benched Sean Glennon. I understand where Frank is coming from and assuming someone from the media asked him about what he thought on the booing, he had no choice but to say he was disappointed. What else was he going to say?

The fans weren’t booing Glennon because of his disappointing performances during the last several games; rather, they were booing because of his attitude following his benching. Glennon said in a Washington Post article,”I hope the coaches realize I need to be on the field this year. If they don’t, I think a lot of programs would be willing to take me.” That was the straw that broke the fans back and caused them to boo. Sour grapes.

The tailgatefever.com Web site came up with a great script for Glennon to read from in future interviews. You can read the entire “interview” scenario on their site, but here is a brief excerpt that will give you an idea of what Glennon should have said following his benching.

From tailgatefever.com:

Interviewer: There are rumors that you are considering transferring to a school with a crappy program so you would be the best quarterback on the team. Is this true?

Glennon: I am a member of the Va. Tech football team, and I will do whatever I can to help my team win. Do I want to be the starter? You bet. But that is Coach Beamer’s decision. I don’t like his decision, and I am going to try to win my job back by getting better, but in the meantime I am going to do everything I can to help Tyrod get ready to lead this team to victory. If that means it is my job to signal in plays then so be it. The most important thing to me is for this team to win, and I am going to do my best to make sure that happens. Hopefully, that means things will work out for me. I still have two seasons left and a lot of things can change.

Had Glennon actually said something along these lines, the fans would have embraced him and applauded him when he entered the Ohio game in the final minutes. Instead, he aired his dirty laundry to the public and came across as a sore loser in the collective mind of the Hokie nation. This is why the fans booed him; not because of poor play, but because of poor sportsmanship. According to the fans I have spoken with, they feel that Glennon put himself first before the team. Anytime a player puts himself before the team, especially the Hokies, the fans will not respond kindly. I have a feeling Beamer knows all of this, but what else was he going to say?

On Jan. 6, 2007, I wrote an article (”A Preview of the 2007 Virginia Tech Football Season”) previewing how I thought the 2007 Virginia Tech football season would play out - click here to read the original article. So far, I am 2-for-2, and I have to say, I seemed to know what I was talking about … Hey! There’s a first time for everything!

Here’s what I wrote about the Hokies’ first two games of this season:

East Carolina
Win (1-0): But I think it’ll be ugly as Tech QB (whoever it is) will struggle, either because it’s Glennon (who struggles naturally), or it’s a new QB (Whitaker or Tyrod Taylor) making his first career start.

@LSU
Loss (1-1): Finally, Tech plays a heavyweight on the road at the beginning of the season! Unfortunately, I think Tech gets manhandled, likely on national television. Of course, if LSU’s monster QB (6-6, 260) JaMarcus Russell leaves for the NFL draft, which he’s likely to do, then Tech might be able to hang tough. But if Russell stays, forget about it! Either way, Tech loses on the road. Kudos, though, for a quality opponent this early in the season.

So, as I mentioned in my article earlier today, I saw the blowout coming and had more than eight months to prepare myself, which probably explains why I am not as upset as I normally would be following a loss. Now, what did I say about the Ohio game? Read on, my friends, read on!

Ohio University
Win (2-1): You’d thinks this would be a great rebound game and confidence-builder for the Hokies; coming home against a cupcake, right? Well, not so fast, let’s take a closer look at Ohio. They finished 9-4 during the regular season, with a chance to make it 10 on Jan. 7 against Southern Miss. in the GMAC Bowl. Granted, Frank Solich’s team didn’t beat anyone worth noting, but they still won nine games. However, an even closer look at their roster reveals some trouble for 2007. They lose 11 seniors on offense, including their starting quarterback, two starting receivers, their backup running back, two offensive linemen and three tight ends. The only bright spot for the Bobcats is their RB Kalvin McRae, who will be a senior next season. He led the team in rushing (1,215), receiving (280) and points (98). The good news is, Ohio is a run-first offense, which Tech can generally handle. It’s the passing game that usually kills the Hokies (especially the tight end over the middle).

I will revisit my January predictions after each game and see if I have a future in legal gambling, or if I should just shut up! Only time will tell, my fellow Hokies fans. Until next Saturday (or whenever I write my next column), be safe and GO HOKIES!

LSU flat out whipped my Virginia Tech Hokies last night 48-7. Of course, realistic Hokie fans knew that this was probably coming, so it should not come as any surprise. What is surprising is that I wake up this Sunday morning, Sept. 9, without the normal sense of despair and hopelessness that general dominates my mood for a few days after a Tech loss. Instead, I feel like a sense of hope, albeit faint; but I feel like Virginia Tech, and especially Frank Beamer, have turned a corner and have set forth on a new path, in a new direction.

It took all of two games for Tyrod Taylor, the highly touted true freshman quarterback, to get into a game and the circumstances couldn’t have been any more daunting. It was a risk that Beamer had no choice but to take. To put a true freshman, who is one month removed from his 18th birthday, into a game against the nation’s best team (I don’t care about USC being No. 1 - LSU is the best team in the country), in the middle of a blowout, was bound to test the mettle of any player, especially a kid making his first college appearance.

I was impressed with Taylor’s play. He showed the ability to escape one of the best defenses in the country, which is going to be very important going forward since Tech offensive line can’t seem to block anyone.

Something else I noticed immediately, is that Taylor seemed quite comfortable stretching the field and going deep to his talented receivers - something his predecessor struggled with. Granted, Taylor didn’t complete many passes, but I chalk that up to playing one of the best defenses Tech has seen in the Beamer era, and to the fact that it was Tyrod’s first game.

Good grief, think about it, that’s like telling a Christian back in the Biblical days, “Hey, your Christian buddies aren’t fairing too well against those lions, why don’t you go in there and see what you can do … go get ‘em KID!”

So … this probably means that the Tyrod Taylor era has officially begun. I am not really surprised, especially after Beamer names Taylor his No. 2 quarterback before the season started. That told me that Sean Glennon was on a very short leash. That leash got even shorter after the first game in which, despite impressive stats, Glennon repeatedly failed to see wide open receivers down field and was routinely behind on the timing of his passes - a trend that continued into the LSU game.

It appears that Glennon, barring an injury, has played in his last meaningful game for the Hokies. He is a redshirt junior (which means he has been in the Tech system for four years) and still hasn’t shown much progress. He did an admirable job last season and didn’t lose any games. He played hard and gave his best for his teammates. But his role now is to help Taylor become the team’s starting quarterback. Outside of that, Glennon will join the likes of Dave Meyer and Grant Noel; former Virginia Tech quarterbacks who filled in until more talented signal callers were ready to take over. Someone has to do it, right?

Next up for the Hokies is a home game against Ohio University. This will be a great opportunity for Taylor to get some quality game experience against a team that won nine games last season. Tech’s defense will still have their hands full with a very good running back by the name of Kalvin McRae, who rushed for three touchdowns yesterday, and rushed for more than 1,200 yards last season.

I think the Hokies will bounce back after some serious soul searching and licking of some deep wounds after last night’s butt-kicking. But, like East Carolina, I don’t think this will be an easy “W” for the Hokies. But, it will give their new starting quarterback some quality playing time. In fact, the Hokies schedule is very favorable for the next three games - Ohio University, William & Mary and then UNC. I think by the time the Hokies get to the Georgia Tech game, they will have found some rhythm to their new offense and will give the Yellow Jackets a great game.

Alright, my fellow Hokies - I am off to the beach for a much needed vacation. Let me know what you think about the Hokies - e-mail me at gary@vthokiefans.com. I will take the best e-mails and put them together in a blog posting.

It is no secret that the Hokies have a tough defense that should keep them in just about any game, including this Saturday’s matchup against No. 2 LSU. The question most Hokie fans are asking is “can our offensive line get the job done against an equally talented defense?” After the offensive line’s woeful performance against ECU in last Saturday’s game, I am more than a little concerned.

The Tech offense managed 33 yards rushing on 31 attempts. Do the math people, that’s a little more than a yard per carry … against ECU. No offense to ECU, but the Hokies should be able to put up more than 33 yards on the ground against ECU. To make matters worse, of those 33 yards, 9 of them came on Tech’s longest run of the day - 9 yards. So, take that one rush away and you have 30 attempts and just 24 yards - less than a yard per carry.

Kudos to the Tech coaching staff for recognizing their weakness on the offensive line, because they adjusted and attempted 33 passes, most of which were little dump offs or screens that essentially served as short yardage runs of 3-5 yards. I know some of you will say, “but Tech averages 7 yards a pass play,” but take away the three big pass plays to Wheeler and Hyman and the average takes a significant nose dive.

Granted, ECU is no slouch - this is a team that held West Virginia to less than 150 yards total offense last season. The Pirates are a good team and came ready to play. So a lot of credit goes to the ECU defense. However, that doesn’t excuse the fact that the Hokies have serious problems up front.

Take the ECU sack of Glennon when the left defensive end came in unblocked for a clean shot on Sean. Three Hokies, including the right tackle, blocked one defensive lineman, leaving the left end untouched on his way to forcing a fumble. And on the running plays, the line was not getting any kind of push up front. If anything, they were getting pushed back behind the line of scrimmage.

Finally, I want to give some credit to Sean Glennon, who played one of the best games of his career. It was unspectacular, but from Glennon, that is what we want. He completed 22 of 33 passes for 245 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Of course, I am sure I wasn’t alone in thinking, “Oh Lord, here we go again” when Glennon threw the interception on the first play of the game. But, he got right back in there and went 21 of 32 the rest of the way including three deep balls; two to TE Sam Wheeler and a should-have-been touchdown for Josh Hyman (see the highlight video if you missed it). Glennon showed poise, touch and toughness while steadying the ship and guiding the Hokies to a respectable 10-point win.

Going into Saturday’s game at LSU, though, the Hokies will need to play much better than they showed against ECU. I can only hope that they have more tricks in the bag and were just hiding their playbook against the Pirates. I do know this; making the kind of drastic improvements from one week to the next, especially on the offensive line, is pretty tough. And if they don’t make the changes in time, the Hokies will be in for a long night in Baton Rouge.

The Roanoke Times is reporting that Virginia Tech true freshman quarterback Tyrod Taylor (Hampton) will serve as Sean Glennon’s backup to start the season. Redshirt sophomore Ike Whitaker, who many felt would be the No. 2, or even the No. 1 QB, apparently could not overcome his time away from the team and his stint in rehab to regain his once promising form. Instead, he will move to wide receiver and play on special teams.

Chris, Lee and Kirk are coming back to Blacksburg! The ESPN College GameDay crew will be at Lane Stadium for the Hokies’ season opener against East Carolina on Sept. 1. The game was originally scheduled to air on ESPN2, but with Wednesday’s announcement, the game will now be carried by the ESPN. This will mark the sixth time that the GameDay crew has hosted its show from Blacksburg.

Read more at TSL!