Eye in the Sky: … the only 2015 Public Scrimmage #1

Bud Stout 2014:

• 21st in Total D
• 39th in rushing D
• 14th in pass efficiency D
• 3rd in Sacks
• 3rd in TFL (tackles for a loss)

 

2015?

Better!

Maybe noticeably.
In particular vs. the run.

Which is a brazen statement when you look at the bottom three metrics; is it not? As the trailing two prolly have something of a hard-ceiling to them, as it is pretty damn tough to improve on all of that. Less the Total Defense and ground-assault metrics.  Which I truly aver, posit, hint and suggest… can be cut at least in half; maybe more.

In point of whispered fact, someone heard someone say this could be one of Bud Stout’s best D’s ever. Mmmmmmaybe. Although I’m not going to go quite that far. As 1995, 1999 and 2005/2007 would like to have a word with all of that.

Still yet, this may be coach Wiles deepest front-4; ever!
(READERs note: I chose the word “deepest” in lieu of the word best, though this much depth is pretty (bleepin’) good, maybe even great, make no mistake here gents)

Lawsy! Too bad this ain’t the N.f.l. We could deal one or two of ’em for help somewhere else. As we are only 1 or 2 defending down-linemen away from being very respectfully close to going a full 3-deep!

Someone did tell all of you not to worry about Tim Settle’s weight. As this kid must truly be a freak athlete underneath all that rotund body-amour. The kind who could cut 100+ lbs., and truly helicopter dunk the hell outta a basketball in hoops!

I don’t know whether to call him the Human Dumptruck or the Human Genome Project. As this kid’s double helices are special. As in very. As in a very rare spiral staircase of sporting gridiron D.n.a. Did momma Settle have any mo’???

My boy Dadi, Ken, and Maddy; please note: Settle already has Top-3 raw pure coach God given Talent.

As someone on that returning Top-3 list has to make some room. And I heard he’s already melted a quick 10 lbs. right off.  So, and mark my words here folks, he is only, gonna, get, better! mid.script. look at the absurd girth on Settle’s thigh’s in the above pic men! You wanna call him out for some politically incorrect Bull-in-the-Ring? Thought so … and … me neither!

Ditto not wanting to call out S.e.c. sized De Vinny Mihota. Who someone hears is a reminder of the hell-bent-for-leather crash course days of our very own Morgan Roane; albeit a more fluid or naturally gifted one. Most Improved Player of spring-ball and possibly repeat Most Improved offended of the 2015 August camp.

The one thing I would not mind seeing a bit more secondary depth. Or at the very least a bit more well-seasoned depth in the hind-4 or Nickle look hind-5. As there are some inherent errors to be made here while partially still juggling Fs and in particular, Rover. With Rover yet to be 100% fully nailed down pat.

Ditto the talented rookies (# 36 Rover, Adonis Alexander and #6 Cb, Mook Reynolds) and the fact that four, or 80% of our back-up secondary ballers are 18 or 19 years of age and mere t-freshmen or r-freshman in terms of class rank. So how am I the only one seeing this? As this is clearly a (potential) red-flag in terms of rotations, mixes, disguises and baiting.To amplify matters all the more, 3 of those 4 are pure rookies or 18 year old t-freshman. Can you say: “dialing coverage back” if we have any real live Secondary attrition? As there is some handsome enough talent here folks, to be sure; although we will have to wait until at least 2017 to ask that talent how some much needed experience tastes.

Nevertheless, our Top-11 on D you ask?
We are gonna play at a lock-down and highly advantageous 9/2 set, at least at times; when we face a less than daunting pitch-n-catch battery of opposing offensive talent. Why?

Because, unless you are named: Stallworth and Swann? Fuller and Facyson will lock you down. This will leave us at least +1 in run-fighting aggregate terms, wide-side of the field. If those two are as great as I’m hearing they have been thus far this 2015 August training-camp? Maybe even 8 or 9 v. the Run vs. any pure 2 Wideout traditional Pro set goes. As we can surely go Robber or Bandit coverage with these two Lester Hayes clones on the proverbial island-coverage per Field or wide side and the Boundary or short-side. As any given Foster stop-unit needs a play-making De or two, and at least two isolation and at times help-free lockdown Cornerbacks on edge. This particular Bud Stout incarnation appears to have such, in spades, at least as the starting elements currently juridically go.

Offense:
More on the O whenever I publish the second or even third half of this write-up. Though here are a few quick observations for now… the Hansen (leg, may not be a ding) injury knocked the new attitude driven front-5 blocking and covering timing outta kilter; more than a little a bit. Though the epic coach Wiles d-Line likewise had more than a little something something to do with that. As ask yourself this candid question … when will this 2015 coach Stacy face a better defensive line than the one they currently face all day long in practice? Maybe in week #1, maybe? And then quite possibly not again until the A.c.c. Championship game, or the quad Play-Off round#1 contest; take thy pick.

Further, Trey being dinged up a bit did the O no favors. Some kinda foot/ankle thingy. Folks, as popular and pious as J.c.c. truly is, to be direct here, we need Trey. He is an every down horsepower back, with just enough in-line speed! And the pure “hit” in his game fits this nasty oLine’s temperament to the proverbial Tee. (a healthy Mars’ would fit it best, however) And do observe that Trey looks much more physically matriculated than ever before, and he wasn’t exactly a soft-touch or a cupcake, prior!

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Lawson has the biggest pure arm since…………C.Holt. (who had a howitzer, with
no aim or gun-sight whatsoever). Maybe even going all the way back an O&M decade and a half to the much vaunted Michael Vick?

I’m not sure he’s ready for 2015 however? At least not early on (this season). He is however a taller, more Gifted T-mobile, with a much better arm. Or he is a vastly more fluid effortless looking LT3.
Again, take thy pick. Albeit it I’d estimate about year under-cooked, or still senior high prom downright raw in at least a few small to medium sized aspects of Pivot play. Can he play now, in a pinch? Yah; he prolly can, his awesome physical metrics say so; although it would be best if he first played later, say in 2016, courtesy of M.Brewer’s return to health and early 2014 season form permitting.

Speaking of which… I hear Brewer and the 1’s have done very well in camp so far. I even hear Brewer is running a bit more (often), or at least a running bit mad-hatter better than he did after the inhumane beating he took vs. E.c.u. last season. After which his fun-n-gun style Richmond, Va native or Fran Tarkenton version of Texas Forever or Friday Night Lights brand of football was never quite the same. Tough to run when you are dragging internal bleeding downfield that no doctor can find!

Go ahead and watch Bucky become his clutch go-to Wr (yes, Wr) in a pinch or in the red-zone for sure; with Ford delivering at least something of a credible vertical stretch or home-run throw threat. That coach Loeffler’s offense needed in order to move opposing defenders outta the 2014 box just like a dead man needs a coffin.

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The take away:
The take away is thus… Scrimmage #1 results were prolly just what the O coaches needed, to really crack the whip at Practice this week. Or in other words, do indeed give the credibly  grandiloquent  D their due, and then… “don’t worry, be Hokie” presuming we recover the serviced of Hansen soon enough.

Coach God willing, much MORE early next week once I settle in (see: the pun) and write the rest of this Hokie on Hokie scrum, all the way up.

Virginia Tech D=a bit more, Virgina Tech O=a bit less (for the moment)

“LETS GO!”

“Hokies!”

bourbonstreet**