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Virginia Tech sophomore Jake Johnson began the 2009 season as a starting linebacker, but struggled to read offenses and blew several assignments that eventually led to diminished playing time in favor of redshirt freshman Lyndell Gibson. Gibson started five games last season including the last four. In lieu of Gibson’s performance, defensive coordinator Bud Foster recently met with Johnson to talk about moving to defensive end beginning with the spring 2010 practice schedule, which begins March 31.

“I told Coach Foster that I’ll do whatever’s best for the team,” Johnson told BeamerBall.com.

Johnson is 6-1 and 231 pounds, which is the perfect size for a Virginia Tech defensive end (see Corey Moore, Darryl Tapp and Jason Worilds). The rising junior Fredericksburg, Va., is a very physical player that loves contact and plays with a great deal of intensity, though he needs to learn to reign in that intensity and focus it a little better. We love Jake here at VTHF and think that if he can make the transition from backer to end, he could do some serious damage against opposing offenses next season.

Tech’s defense is going to look very different next season compare to last. The Hokies lost several defensive players who started at some point in 2009: Jason Worilds, Nekos Brown, Stephan Virgil, Dorian Porch, Cordarrow Thompson, Kam Chancellor and perhaps the biggest loss, Cody Grimm, who was the heart and soul of that defense.

Johnson’s move to defensive end could mean that Foster is comfortable with Gibson as the unquestioned starter going into next season; or it could mean that losing both starting defensive ends, Brown and Worilds, has left the Hokies with a serious experience issue at that position. Our guess is that it’s a combination of both, but more the latter than the former.

Defensive end is a huge concern for Foster right now. His starters are gone and the guys replacing them have a total of ZERO starts at the position. Rising redshirt junior Chris Drager, who switched from tight end to defensive end after last spring, and rising redshirt senior Steven Friday are the only returning ends with any experience. So moving Jake Johnson was almost a necessity.

On the current roster, there are only three defensive ends that have a jersey number. Now, the Hokies have three defensive ends coming in with the 2010 recruiting class, but only one of them, in our opinion, has a legitimate shot at seeing significant playing time next season: Zack McCray. The 6-5, 235-pound end from Forest, Va., has the size and strength to make an impact, but how quickly can he adjust to the speed of the college game and pick up on a more complex defensive scheme will determine whether he sees the field in any significant capacity.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Today, the Virginia Tech Athletics Department announced the “details” of defensive coordinator Bud Foster’s “continued employment agreement. I remember when it was first announced that he had a new deal, we were hearing numbers upwards of $5 million. Clearly, that was not the case.

Heather Dinich, ESPN.com’s ACC blogger, reports that Foster and Beamer have talked about a coach-in-waiting scenario and says Foster has made it clear that he wants to be the next head coach at Virginia Tech. Interesting. Check out Heather’s blog post about Foster’s take on his new deal.

From HokieSports.com…

BLACKSBURG, Va. – Virginia Tech Director of Athletics Jim Weaver announced Thursday the terms of defensive coordinator Bud Foster’s continued employment agreement.

The new agreement will pay Foster $800,000 in deferred compensation if he remains employed at Virginia Tech through the 2014 football season. Should Foster leave prior to the end of the 2014 season, he would not receive any part of this deferred package.

The only other qualification to the 2014 date is that in the event Frank Beamer resigns or does not continue in his position as head football coach, Foster will receive the deferred compensation with the effective date of Beamer’s departure.

The agreement is subject to all of the terms of Foster’s existing employment contract. Foster recently completed his 23rd season on the Tech staff and his 15th year as a defense coordinator for the Hokies.

Popularity: 16% [?]

According to knoxnews.com, there are two finalists to replace Tommy West as the head coach of the Memphis Tigers’ football team and Bud Foster, Virginia Tech’s defensive coordinator, is not one of them.

The report lists Washington Redskins defensive assistant Jerry Gray and LSU assistant head coach Larry Porter as the two finalists. Porter, 37, is a Rivals.com two-time national recruiter of the year and played running back for Memphis. He appears to be the front-runner at this point. A decision could come early next week.

Read more about the Memphis coaching search at knoxnews.com.

Popularity: 20% [?]

Box Score | Highlights

Blacksburg, VA — The 15th-ranked Virginia Tech Hokies (5-2, 8-3) forced four turnovers to win their third straight game following a decisive 38-10 victory over N.C. State (1-6, 4-7). On senior day in Blacksburg, Va., the Hokies got career performances from senior linebacker Cody Grimm, redshirt freshman running back Ryan Williams and sophomore wide receiver Jarrett Boykin.

Grimm tied an NCAA record with three forced fumbles in his first four defensive plays while Williams scored a career-high four touchdowns and broke Tech’s and the ACC’s freshman single-season rushing record with 1,355 yards.

Williams still has one more regular season game and presumably a bowl game to add to his totals. The Virginia Tech single-season rushing record (1,647 by Kevin Jones in 2003) is still within reach for Williams.

Boykin also had a career game with six receptions for 164 yards and a touchdown catch. He becomes the first Tech wide receiver to have three games with more than 100 yards receiving in a season since Andre Davis did it in 2001.

The Hokies got off to an encouraging start before the opening kickoff. For the first time all season, Tech won a coin toss and it paid off. On the Wolfpack’s first play of the game, Grimm got to N.C. State quarterback Russell Wilson from the backside and stripped the ball out of his hands. Grimm recovered the loose ball and the Hokies settled for a field goal to take the early lead, 3-0.

Grimm went right back to work on the second play of State’s next possession. Wilson completed a pass to Darrell Davis along the sideline, but Grimm was there to strip the ball loose again. Tech senior cornerback Stephan Virgil recovered the fumble and returned it three yards to State’s 25.

“We work on it [forcing fumbles] in practice,” Grimm said. “If you’re the second person there, try to rip the ball out, but if you’re the first, then concentrate on getting him down.”

Grimm leads the nation in forced fumbles with seven.

Williams capped a six-play, 25-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown to give the Hokies a 10-0 lead midway through the first quarter.

After two fumbles in their first three offensive plays, it would make sense that N.C. State would have gone out of its way to protect the ball on their third series. However, Grimm forced another fumble on the Pack’s fourth offensive play. This time, however, State was able to recover it, and then marched 81 yards to score its first points of the game on a Wilson pass to Owen Spencer, cutting Tech’s lead to 10-7.

But the night belonged to the Hokies. On the ensuing kickoff, freshman running back and return manDavid Wilson ran the kick back 40 yards, giving Tech’s offense a short field at the State 49. Tech eventually scored on another short TD run by Williams, pushing the Hokies’ lead to 17-7.

State added a field goal in the second quarter, but the Hokies answered with a 74-yard drive capped by another Williams TD run, his third of the game, and the Hokies took 24-10 lead into the half.

Williams scored his fourth and final TD on the Hokies’ opening possession of the second half. The freshman, who has been named the ACC Rookie of the Week six times this season, literally dragged an N.C. State defender — clinging to Williams’ jersey — 10 yards into the end zone.

Williams, who had 120 yards in the game, now has eight 100-yard games this season, one shy of Kevin Jones’ record of nine, set in 2003.

Williams tied Tech’s freshman record for touchdowns scored in a game (4). “Touchdown” Tommy Edwards scored four against Pittsburgh in 1993. Williams also tied the ACC’s record for touchdowns in a season by a freshman with 16.

“He is strong, quick and powerful,” Tech head coach Frank Beamer said of Williams. “I think he’s a complete back.”

Boykin, who had racked up impressive receiving yards finally got in the end zone in the third quarter, scoring Tech’s final TD of the game and securing a 38-10 win for the Hokies.

While Taylor, Williams and Boykin stole the show on offense, Bud Foster’s defense deserves a great deal of credit for shutting down the ACC’s second best offense. The Hokies held the Pack to just 14 rushing yards and 259 total yards of offense.

The defense set the tone early thanks to Grimm’s incredible performance.

“That was big,” Beamer said. “You need to get up on those guys [N.C. State] because they can score in a hurry.”

N.C. State came into the game averaging 32.6 points per game, second in the ACC.

Popularity: 16% [?]

No. 4 Hokies look for sixth straight win in Atlanta

Blacksburg, VA — The fourth-ranked Virginia Tech Hokies (3-0, 5-1) take their hopes for a national championship on the road this weekend against ACC Coastal Division rival Georgia Tech (3-1, 5-1).

The Hokies have won five straight games since their season-opening loss to No. 2 Alabama and hope to make it six on Saturday in Atlanta. Virginia Tech leads the series against the Yellow Jackets, 4-2, and are 4-1 since joining the ACC.

Let’s take a look back at the short series between the two schools.

1990 – Two Techs Collide

The first meeting between the two Techs was on Nov. 10, 1990. The Hokies were 5-4 heading into their second-to-last game of the season. The undefeated Jackets were ranked No. 7 and the Hokies gave them all they could handle in Atlanta. Georgia Tech won the game, 6-3, and went on to finish 11-0-1 and earned a share of the National Championship with Colorado. The Hokies finished 6-5.

[Updated: I did not originally include the 2000 game that was never played, because, well, they never played it. But, I had some people tell me that I forgot it, which I didn't, but decided to throw it in anyway.]

2000 – The Game That Wasn’t

The infamous lightning game. Who could forget. It was supposed to be the season-opener for both teams. The Hokies were fresh off their 1999 undefeated (11-0) regular season and a trip to the National Championship game – a 29-46 loss to Florida State. Michael Vick was back for his second season as the starter and expectations were sky high. But, Mother Nature had other plans.

A severe lightning storm rolled through Blacksburg and struck ESPN analyst Lee Corso’s rental car parked outside the stadium. Corso picked Georgia Tech to win the game just before his car was smote. The game was nevery made up and the Hokies went on to finish the season 11-1 and whipped No. 16 Clemson, 41-20, in the Gator Bowl.

2004 – New ACC Rivals

The teams didn’t meat again until the Hokies joined the ACC in 2004. Georgia Tech jumped out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead and led 20-12 with less than six minutes to play in the game. That’s when Virginia Tech exploded for three touchdowns in just four minutes and 32 seconds.

Trailing 20-12, Hokies’ quarterback Bryan Randall hit Eddie Royal for an 80-yard touchdown on first down. A two-point conversion tied the game at 20. The Hokies got the ball back a mere 90 seconds later and used a three-play drive to get into the endzone again. This time it was Randall to Josh Morgan for a 51-yard strike putting good Tech up 27-20.

Roland Minor sealed the come-from-behind victory with a 64-yard interception return for a touchdown, giving the Hokies a 34-20 win. Tech finished the season 10-3.

2005 – Going Coastal

No suspense here. This remains the only blowout of the short series between the two schools. The Hokies came in at 3-0 (2-0 ACC) and ranked No. 4. The Jackets were No. 15. The game was never close or in doubt as the Hokies jumped out to a 24-0 halftime lead.

Defensive end Chris Ellis and linebacker Xavier Adibi both returned interceptions for touchdowns in the fourth quarter to put GT out of its misery. Hokies romped to a 51-7 win at Lane Stadium and went on to finish the season 11-2.

2006 – Tech Wins One

The only Virginia Tech loss to the Georgia Tech in ACC play came in 2006 in Blacksburg. The 24th-ranked Yellow Jackets beat the 11th-ranked Hokies 38-27, handing Virginia Tech its first loss of the season and dropping Frank Beamer’s team to No. 22.

VT lost its next game against Boston College, a loss that knocked the Hokies out of the top 25 completely. Tech rebounded to win its final six games, giving up a combined 19 points in the six wins, which included a pair of shutouts. The Hokies finished the 2006 regular season with a 10-2 record before losing a heart-breaker to Georgia in the Chick Fil A Bowl, 24-31.

The 2006 loss to the Ramblin’ Wreck marked the last time a Virginia Tech quarterback had thrown for more than 300 yards in a game – Sean Glennon threw for 339 yards. That changed this season when Tyrod Taylor threw for 327 yards against Duke in a 34-26 win in Durham.

2007 – The Infamous Missing Jerseys

Who doesn’t remember this game? It was a Thursday night, nationally televised ESPN game and when the coverage of the game began, we learned that four Virginia Tech jerseys had mysteriously vanished. Among them, both quarterbacks – Tyrod Taylor and Sean Glennon. The two had to wear old Georgia Tech practice jerseys with black marker used to write in their names and numbers.

It worked, though. The 6-2 Hokies fell behind 3-0 midway through the first quarter, but that’s all Georgia Tech would get. Virginia Tech scored the next 27 points in a dominating 27-3 win. Hokie fans everywhere started asking if Glennon, who completed 22 of 32 passes for 296 yards and two TDs, could wear the GT practice jersey the rest of the season. No dice, said the ACC.

The Hokies finished the season 11-3, including another heartbreaking loss to Kansas in the Orange Bowl, 24-21.

Watch highlights of the 2007 game.

2008 – The Costly Personal Foul

The Yellow Jackets came into Blacksburg last season with their new triple option offense that was going to wreak havoc on defensive coordinators. It was only the third game of the season for both teams, so the Hokies didn’t have much game film of the new Paul Johnson offense.

And truth be told, the Yellow Jackets probably should have won this game, but they didn’t. They put up 387 yards to the Hokies’ 247, but fumbled the ball twice and threw an interception. The Hokies didn’t turn the ball over at all.

Georgia Tech was playing better for the most part, but the Hokies were the more disciplined team that day. The Jackets committed eight penalties for 61 yards, none more costly than the 15-yard personal foul call in the fourth quarter, with the game tied at 17.

On third down and 7 from Tech’s 23, Tyrod Taylor sprinted toward his own sideline, well short of the first down marker. The Hokies were going to have to punt, but out of nowhere came Georgia Tech’s Cooper Taylor with a late hit on Tyrod. The penalty gave the Hokies an automatic first down and 15 more yards, which they used to march down the field and kick the game-winning field goal.

Watch highlights of the 2008 game.

That brings us to this year’s game. The Jackets are much improved and have perfected the triple option. They lead ACC teams in total offense and rushing offense and have two running backs, as well as a quarterback, who can bust open a big play at any moment.

What the Jackets lack is solid defense. Last week, they gave up 44 points to a bad Florida State team. If they don’t make significant improvements from last week to this week, it may not make any difference how many points their offense can put up.

The Virginia Tech offense has reeled off three straight impressive performances. In wins against No. 9 Miami, Duke and Boston College, the Hokies are averaging 38 points and 429 yards a game (219 rushing / 210 passing).

Georgia Tech is a running team, plain and simple. They are dead last in passing offense in the ACC and the only team in the conference to have fewer than 100 pass attempts (75). However, when they do pass, they are highly efficient. In fact, they lead the ACC in passing efficiency with a rating of 169. The Hokies are second with a rating of 164.

If Frank Beamer and the Hokies are going to win this game, defensive coordinator Bud Foster must figure out how to stop the triple option and still be prepared to defend the pass. Should the Hokies’s offense come out and play like they have in the last three games, I think the Hokies win this game, especially if Georgia Tech’s defense can’t get its act together.

Kickoff: 6 p.m.
TV: ESPN2
Announcers: Mark Jones (play-by-play), Bob Davie (color analyst)

Popularity: 10% [?]

Blacksburg, VA — Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer was unusually hard on his team in practice the week leading up to today’s game against Boston College.

He was tired of losing to the Eagles in the regular season and wasn’t about to allow Boston College to win its fourth straight against his Hokies. And they didn’t.

Not only did the Hokies win the game, they dominated the Eagles from the opening drive in a 48-14 win.

“I thought we had them disrupted a little bit,” Tech head coach Frank Beamer said. “I know that kid [Shinskie, Boston College's quarterback] had made some nice throws the past couple of weeks. They were having trouble running the football on us, and any time you can make them one-dimensional, I think that really helps you and we had that going. We got them into passing situations and we had them disrupted in the passing game. That’s what really pleased me.”

This was supposed to be a tough game for the No. 5 Hokies, who had lost three of their last four games against the Eagles.

Everything went right for Virginia Tech in this game. The running game that stalled last week against Duke kicked into high gear and the ACC’s leading rusher Ryan Williams led the Hokies with 182 total yards – 159 rushing, 23 passing – and a touchdown.

Williams has nine touchdowns on the season, just two shy of Tech’s freshman record of 11 set by Darren Evans last season. Evans tore his ACL in the preseason and will miss all of 2009.

Junior quarterback Tyrod Taylor had another solid passing game completing 7 of 10 passes for 126 yards and two touchdown passes. Taylor has thrown eight TDs to one interception this season. Last year, he threw two TDs to seven interceptions.

Virginia Tech scored on its first four possessions in the first half to sprint out to a 24-0 lead. Boston College was never in the game. Tech made it 31-0 when Rashad “Rock” Carmichael returned an interception 22 yards for a touchdown. The Hokies added a second quarter field goal to take a 34-0 lead into the half.

Bud Foster’s defense, which has been inconsistent this season, stepped up and took out its collective frustration on Boston College. The Eagles managed just three yards in the first half. At one point in the second quarter, they had -7 yards.

Boston College’s two touchdowns came in the fourth quarter against Tech’s second and third team defenders.

Redshirt freshman backup quarterback Ju-Ju Clayton threw his first career touchdown pass, an 80-yard bomb to Marcus Davis who picked up his first college touchdown.

Popularity: 5% [?]

Virginia Tech wide receiver Jarrett Boykin scores a touchdown against the Miami Hurricanes. (Photo by Gary Cope)

Blacksburg, VA — The Boston College Eagles are on a roll. They’re 4-1 and coming off back-to-back home wins over Wake Forest and Florida State. They have a 25-year-old rookie quarterback who is getting better each week. The have beaten Virginia Tech the last three times the two teams have met in the regular season, although the Hokies have won two straight ACC championship games at the Eagles’ expense.

Tomorrow at noon, the Eagles will try to make it four straight regular season wins when they travel to Blacksburg to take on the 5th ranked Hokies. Tech is suddenly back in the national champtionship hunt after reeling off four straight wins including a dominating 31-7 win over then-No. 9 Miami on national TV and a dramatic 16-15 win over Nebraska.

Frank Beamer’s team is a heavy favorite to win on Saturday, but Hokie fans aren’t so sure. They remember the heartbreaking loss at home two years ago that dashed their hopes at a national championship. Sure, the ACC titles help make up for it, but the Hokies have lost eight ACC games in five seasons since joining the conferece; three of those losses are courtesy of the Eagles.

While the Eagles have played beyond expectations, they are still a very vulnerable team. Their four wins have come against Northeastern (54-0), Kent State (34-7), Wake Forest (27-24, OT) and Florida State (28-21). Northeastern and Kent State aren’t necessarily top level competition, though the Eagles did what they should have done – blow them out. BC’s one loss was on the road against Clemson in which the offense managed a total of 54 yards in a 26-7 defeat.

BC then blew fourth quarter leads against Wake and FSU, but pulled out wins in both games. Wake Forest is 3-2, but their wins are less than impressive: Stanford, Elon and N.C. State. Florida State is off to its worst start (2-3) since Bobby Bowden’s first year on the job. The Noles have lost to Miami, Wake and most recently, a terrible home loss to South Florida, who had a freshman quarterback.

While the first-year head coach Frank Spaziani has the Eagles are playing better than expected, they haven’t proven they can keep up with better competition. Clemson manhandled them on offense and BC’s defense broke down in horrific fashion against the Decons and the Noles. However, if they can pull it together on Saturday and shock the Hokies, the Eagles will certainly jump up in the polls and deservedly so.

Meanhwile, the Hokies have had an inconsistent-at-best season thus far. The offense struggled against Alabama and Nebraska early in the season, but woke up against Miami and then again against Duke.

Normally, you wouldn’t think putting up big numbers against Duke would be a big deal, but considering the Hokies’ quarterback Tyrod Taylor passed for 327 yards – the most in three seasons – and that a wide receiver, Jarrett Boykin, was the first Tech wide receiver to have more than 100 yards receiving in a game since Eddie Royal in 2007, it was certainly an impressive showing for a passing attack that has been dormant for two seasons.

Should the Hokies continue their offensive output as they have in the last two games, it could be a long day for the Eagles. The big question mark for the Hokies, and it almost sounds sacriligious to say, is their defense. Bud Foster has a young and inexperienced bunch and they have struggled at times this season, especially last week against Duke in which they gave up 26 points.

Rest assured the Hokies will come ready to play. They have lost three straight to the Eagles in the regular season and will not allow Boston College to sneak up on them this season.

Popularity: 5% [?]

From ESPN.com: “Miami 24, Virginia Tech 21: Miami’s offense is more prolific, but Virginia Tech’s defense will at least slow the Canes down enough to make this a wildly entertaining and close game. If it were a night game, this might be a different pick, but the Canes are too calm, composed and confident to let a 3:30 p.m. crowd at Lane Stadium determine the outcome.”

Hokie fans, you may not like what I have to say, but I’m going to say it anyway … I think it’s going to be ugly. And by ugly I mean I think the Canes could very well whip us in our own house. That doesn’t happen often. I know players and their families read this blog and I have received more than a few e-mails from them for various posts. But let’s face facts: our offense is anemic unless we’re playing Marshall. We couldn’t move the ball against Alabama or Nebraska which meant our defense has been on the field entirely too much. Not to mention the fact the defense isn’t exactly in sync yet.

I hope I’m wrong. I hope Tech can find a way to move the ball against a very fast and physical Miami defense. And I hope Bud Foster has something planned to somehow contain Jacory Harris, who has burst onto the scene with back-to-back impressive games against ranked opponents. But if the Hokies play the way they did against ‘Bama and the Huskers, it could be a long night in Lane. Foster’s defense, even at it’s best, can only stay on the field for so long before it gets tired.

Popularity: 4% [?]

Virginia Tech freshman running back Ryan Williams celebrates a TD against Nebraska, his sixth of the season. Photo courtesy Gary Cope, VTHokiefans.com

Blacksburg, VA — Tyrod Taylor and the Virginia Tech Hokies’ offense struggled the entire game, but when they needed it most, Taylor completed a pair of difficult passes, the second of which won the game for the 13th ranked Hokies.

Heartbreaking doesn’t begin to describe the loss for the No. 19 Nebraska Cornhuskers. They had the game won, leading 15-10 with less than two minutes to play and the Hokies with no timeouts.

The Huskers’ defense, led by All Big 12 defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, had held the Hokies to less than 200 yards of offense and hadn’t given up a single second-half point. In fact, until the final drive by Virginia Tech, the Hokies had managed only 57 yards total offense. Nebraska fans were ready to leave Blacksburg with a win. But Tyrod Taylor and Danny Coale had other plans.

Facing a 2nd and 6 on their own 16 yard line with time running out and no timeouts, Taylor danced in the pocket looking for an open receiver. Then, he stepped up with purpose and delivered a perfect pass down the right sideline to a streaking and wide open Coale, who sprinted 81 yards before being tripped up by Nebraska safety Matt O’Hanlon at the three yard line.

Hokie fans were going crazy, but on 1st and goal from the three, Taylor’s protection collapsed immediately after the snap and he took an eight-yard sack, giving Tech a 2nd and goal from the 11 yard line. On second down, Taylor was forced out of the pocket and scrambled to the near sideline where he threw a pass out of the back of the end zone. This set up a 3rd and goal with :33 seconds left in the game.

Taylor rolled left on a designed play, then when he couldn’t find an open receiver, he rolled back right, frantically pointing his receivers to open spots in the endzone, then, with Suh clinging to his back, Taylor fired a pass to Dyrell Roberts who made the catch with a Husker draped all over him.

Lane Stadium errupted into a wild celebration. Nebraska coach Bo Pelini removed his headset calmly and then threw it in disgust over the heads of several players.

Nebraska still had time to attempt a miracle comeback of their own, but quarterback Zac Lee threw a Hail Mary pass deep in to Tech territory, but Rashad Carmichael intercepted the pass and ran the clock down to zero before falling down to end the game and seal one of, if not the most dramatic wins ever in Lane Stadium in Blacksburg.

The Hokies only other touchdown of the game came on the first offensive possession of the game after a 76-yard opening kickoff return by Roberts. Ryan Williams rushed over the right end for a 1-yard touchdown and a 7-0 Virginia Tech lead.

Tech’s defense didn’t give up a touchdown. Once again, Bud Foster’s bend-but-don’t-break defense did not allow a touchdown and instead held the Huskers to five field goals.

The Hokies (2-1) complete a series sweep of Nebraska, having beat the Huskers 35-30 last season in Lincoln.

Box Score | Game Highlights | Detailed Recap

Popularity: 6% [?]

The weekly ACC injury report is out and it looks like senior tight end Greg Boone will play tomorrow against the 19th-ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers. He is listed as probable.

Boone missed the Marshall game with an SC joint sprain (shoulder) after delivering an impressive crack-back block on a Ryan Williams run that set up a touchdown against Alabama. Hopefully Boone will be up for some blocking because the Hokies offensive line will need all the help they can get against Nebraska’s monster defensive line, led by All Big 12 defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh.

Senior cornerback Stephan Virgil is listed as questionable for the Hokies with a knee injury. Like Boone, Virgil also injured his knee against Alabama and missed the Marshall game. Freshman Jayron Hosley stepped in an played some cornerback against Marshall, but the Hokies will need some help this week. Expect Bud Foster to put a lot of pressure on Nebraska’s inexperienced quarterback and provide a lot of safety help to the corners to help defend against NU’s big receivers.

*Weekly ACC Injury Report

*Injury reports are optional.

Popularity: 5% [?]