I don't know about you, but I sense a weird mood with the Virginia Tech fan base. This is nothing scientific and only based on my small sampling of cruising the blogs and forums, but the anti-climax of the Alabama game has left many Hokies with a "where are we and where do we go from here" attitude, both for the short term and the long term. The season is not lost, we still have a great program, and we still love Virginia Tech football, but a big opportunity, one that won't come along again for a long time, was lost.
There are 12 or 13 more games in 2009 to attend to, including the one on Saturday against Marshall.
Its part of what makes college football great. Virginia Tech's opening game against Alabama seems like all we've focused on for months. For an opening game, incredible significance was placed rightly or wrongly on this one game. Its all been discussed: chance to win one against the SEC, against the 'big boys', the start of a potential National Championship run, etc etc... But in a single opening loss, all those opportunities are lost. Much like a playoff game in other sports. In college football, if you are aiming for big things, every game is a playoff game, even your opener. (Note: none of the NFL games you'll watch this weekend have that kind of significance).
Now that its behind us, Hokie fans are a bit in a daze. Are we all surprised we lost? No. Are we surprised we lost the same way we usually lose (good defense, up and down special teams, baaaadddd offense)? No. Sure we all hoped for better, heard the encouraging off season words about talent, improvement, chemistry, etc. But there is an extremely heavy "here we go again" feeling hanging off the fan base.
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Many Hokie fans saw positives in the Alabama game and still feel confident about the season. Bama is a strong team, and VT matched them in many aspects of the game. This bodes well for our chances come ACC play. The nagging feeling I think bothering many is just that. The goals we have left for 2009 are ones we know we can achieve, and the college football nation knows we can achieve. The Alabama game further cemented the perception of the status of Virginia Tech football: a very good ACC program, a top 15 national program, a BCS worthy program. But not a national player.
That perception of Hokies football got solidly confirmed all in one very visible game, and there is very little the Hokies can do in the rest of 2009 to change it. Sure there's plenty of success and achievement in front of Virginia Tech this year. We will thoroughly enjoy wins over very good teams like Nebraska, Miami, and Georgia Tech, if we can get them. Winning the ACC is commendable, even at its low point, and a BCS game is a BCS game. But we've climbed that mountain, and it will take a lot of effort to climb it again this year for the reward we've tasted.
There's no question the other simmering issue with Hokie fans is the lack of offensive production. Its interesting to me to read different Hokies characterize the problem in various ways. Some think its play calling, some its our scheme, others think its our coaches inability to develop talent. Of course Bryan Stinespring gets blamed, but so do the other offensive coaches, and you'll find some say its just Beamer unwilling to let the program change offensive philosophy. I also get a kick out of how analysis of our game tapes consistently show us "one player away" from a good play or some other seemingly minor thing preventing a play from going very, very well. Its a game of inches, so if you are off by an inch, you might as well be off by a mile.
To me, the whole offensive program just doesn't' work, and what's most disheartening for Hokie fans is the consistency of failure and the lack of 'light at the end of the tunnel'. At least fans at really bad programs know that their coaches will eventually get fired (or some other major event will eventually force change). For the Hokie offense, there's no end in sight.
We are a passionate bunch, we love Virginia Tech football, and I like others will thoroughly enjoy this season, the tailgating, and the games in Blacksburg. Something about this week just feels weird.
Virginia Tech is a 20 Point Favorite Over Marshall
Virginia Tech needs to get past last week's game quick because the let down factor will hit them other wise. The Virginia Tech Marshall point spread is around 19 or 20 points, and a 3 touchdown line seems about right. Of course if you don't have ESPN 360 you won't see the game.
Go Hokies!!!
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{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Defense is fine and simply ran out of gas. Special teams were also good. Bama is superior in size and speed and the top SEC teams almost always will be. Just the way it is. However, Tech needs to think about two things, both for this season but also as they recruit and build over the next few years: quarterback and offensive scheme.
Fun fact, if you read the game stats is looks like we attempted more runs (31) than passes (20). That would be wrong, which is why data without context often fails to tell the story. In fact, our running backs only attempted 19 rushes. We attempted 30 passes (10 of which were counted as rushes as they ended up being sacks or scrambles…yikes). The only other rushing attempt was by a wide receiver. This is NOT a ball control offense. This is an offense that has no clue what it wants to do. We recruit big, tall, fast recevers but fail to train them on how to get open (Eddie Royal is the exception and came in knowing how to do this) and fail to recruit a classic drop back, football-smart passer (Glennon was drop back but forgot the football-smarts part). Bama’s QB (Freshman) was light years ahead of Taylor in both accuracy, vision, and football accumen. Memo to the OC…if you have 3 strong running backs and Taylor is your QB, you focus on a running attack, not a short yardage, precision passing attack. So every game, regardless of the score, we need to run 60% or more and pass 40% or less…and I mean TRUE running plays, not broken pass plays. If we do that, we will tire the opponents defense out, give our OL confidence, turn the ball over less, and win more games – even against tough teams. This includes Miami, FSU, UNC, GT, and Nebraska(ouch)…schedule is looking a little tougher is it not? Again, even if we are not getting huge rushing gains early, this will turn around as the game progresses. Throw in some pass-action with vertical balls to keep the defense honest, and that will do the trick. As a wise man once said…Keep It Simple Stupid. Hope someone is listening…but likely not. I will continue to watch and cheer faithfuly regardless. GO HOKIES!!!
Seems to me that we frequently fail to create mismatches on offense. We don’t seem to “scheme” to make the most of what we have and are up against. I would argue that we do develop talent offensively at VT (just look at how our wide receivers are doing in the NFL), but we fail to utilize them while they are at Tech. In the Alabama game I saw way to many shots down the field and way too few quick passes that attempt to get players in space and let them do some work… and Chancellor needs to be the last line of defense, not watch the receivers blow by him…
Great points by both, right on the money. You are right, we most be doing some sort of development of the talent we have or they wouldn’t be making in the NFL, we just don’t seem to get the most out of it while they are at VT.
I would love to turn our offense over to a young, creative offensive mind, let Beamer tell him exactly what his boundries are, and see what he could do. He certainly couldn’t get any worse, and man the possibilities for yards and points would be incredible.
I hear a lot of criticism of Tyrod Taylor, but I still contend he would be an absolute star at many other schools with good offensive systems.
I think it’s kind of that been there, seen all this before, Groundhog day type of feeling. Did I think we would handily win the Bama game? No, but I did think that we would put some sort of offense on the field. What I saw was just a continuation of last year’s offense efforts. (Minus Ryan Williams). I guess that’s the feeling of deflation. I still love the Hokies, I’ll still go to the games, but it does get old watching the same offense game plan week after week, year after year.
I think Tyrod was unfortunately thrown into the fire a year too early and then criticised for not being Michael Vick. What are we really expecting of him? I think he’ll be a fine QB if we would scheme for it. I want to see him throw some 5 yard routes and have the wide-outs or RBs make some plays, get the ball to Williams with some space so he has to make an opponent miss… I just don’t understand why our offensive trust (and I mean Stinesping/O’Cain/Newsome/Sherman, I don’t think this is all Stinespring but since he is in charge he should get most of the blame) can’t seem to get it together they have had several years together. Thank goodness our RBs are here. Think how badly Tyrod would be critiqued if he was expected to fly to the end zone on every play without even them to help…
Mostly all football teams that have speed in the backfield will throw a screen. Do we ever? No! I thought for sure that would be our game plan, either Tyrod run or set a play up to throw to Ryan, who is great in open field. We’re (Stinsp.) setting our players up to fail. The one thing a great defense hates is a running quarterback combined with a great back. “Please use them to move the chains”. Do something about it Beamer. We have the players to beat that Alabama team. We’re sick of it!