NC.State Eye in the Sky and Tech Thoughts

Today’s word of the day is … gutty!

gutty

(gŭtty)

noun.

 Slang

A Stately win indeed!
A Stately win indeed!
  1. Innermost emotional or visceral response: .
  2. guts The inner or essential parts:
  3. Slang Courage; fortitude:
  4. (still) Head Football Coach Frank Beamer, and the changes he made before Nc.State!

This aging (then) 2 up and 3 down wounded animal turned out to be a dangerous one indeed. Just ask da Wolfpack if you don’t believe me.

As Frank’s bite turned out to be worse than his bark, and this as so many were calling for “next” even right up until kickoff over on the pay side of TSL.com.

Friday night coach Beamer turned back the clock and won a vintage Beamer era football game in classical O&M Style.

One might dare say Frank won it the  Smith Barney or “old-fashioned way…
…he earned it.”

2nd Quarter 11:45 remaining:
Yah; sure, the home-run rainbow throw to Ford on the sideline fly pattern was sexxy enough. Though it was actually rookie left or blind-side Ot #69 Yosuah Nijman who saved the day with the peel-off boundary side Cb blitz pick-up of the dealing #11 of Nc.State. Make no mistake, this is a big boy play from a kid with big time potential men. In fact this is at least an upperclassman level pick-up by Nijman. Maybe even a Sunday level pick-up in point of fact.

20-20 field vision, and the footwork to get there.
20-20 field vision, and the footwork to get there.

3rd Quarter 1:00, game and possibly season remaining:
(Play of the game)

+6, +16, +11, +4, +4, +3, +4, +3 … and then on 3nd and 2 a passing incomplete?!?

This one may not be due to any credit of our own, as I have no earthly idea why State just had to throw this football with two downs available to pick up less than 6 feet?!? One of the worst opposing calls I’ve seen in several years of doing this, as the Wolfpac -to their credit- had smartly marched from their very own 30 yard-line to our very own 14 yard-line and then promptly wet the play-calling bed. Go fig’ on throwing this one when for we could not stop the run for 9 straight plays?!? Try as we might, this game still ain’t rocket-surgery folks. K.I.S.S(tate), and simply run the damn ball.

If you ask me? We beat Nc.State on this inexplicable play-call and this one very well may go down as the seminal moment or no doubt unsung turning point in our 2015 season.

4th Quarter 7:00 remaining:
EPIC individual efforting here by Travon McMillian on a play that would have made Edwin Moses of high hurdling championship double-gold medal, 107 consecutive finals wins, and 4-time world record holder fame proud. And as much as I like J.c.c. and as much as I respect Trey? They won’t be making this play anytime soon; as this is coach God Given talent in the fullest. This kid is good, and yes, Virginia Tech hit paydirt and no less than 3-cherries straight across on a jackpot recruiting pick-up in T.McMillian –now being converted to Tb. And if Travon keeps developing? He is all-A.c.c. good.

"Up up and away!"
“Up up and away!”

12 midnight 1o.o9, Tech Thoughts:

Let us cut straight to the chase, in the combined nearly 26 odd football coaches, graduate assistants, directors of whatever and so forth on the Worsham Field or up in the press-box of Lane Stadium proper on Friday night? None other than the haggard, now much maligned, and yet …not yet dead old warhorse his very own self, one Mister Fancy Gap or Frank Beamer –he reigned supreme!

Frank Beamer was the best coach on the field last Friday night men.
Make no mistake here.

  1. As it was Frank who cut out the everyone’s best friend Tb via committee routine of the other coach Beamer.
  2. It was Frank who took full responsibility for the laggard efforting vs. a solid though beatable Pitt Panther squad the sleepy looking week before.
  3. And it was Frank who said his very own Virginia Tech football club needed to “get back to having fun”, both at practice and in-game last week post-Pitt.

And it was damn sure Frank who rallied these sagging 2-3 and possibly down for the count O&M troops. Not coach Next, not richrod, not coach Kelly,…..FRANK people. It was Frank who taught the new-school an old-school elementary gridiron lesson.

Techbits:

  • our island-man on edges has ever so slightly been tightening up, almost imperceptibly, even, quietly; as it slowly yet surely, improves!
  • Chuck Clark in particular strikes me as a Cb playing Fs. A team leading 51 stops -a staggering 31 of which are solo tackles– and that strikes me as Defensive M.V.P. As the early vibe here is that this guy is a Pro. Because Mister Clark plays very very well with his back to the ball and has done some very smart Slot coverage work for Foster in the last 8 quarters of play.
  • Now mix in Brandon Facyson who is starting to shake off some of his rustication or coverage oxidation; and suddenly you might just backdoor Bud Stout’s signature 2 lock-down island-coverage Corner’s (even if one of them is playing Fs).
  • now mix in the organically ball-hawking Adonis Alexander, who brings a new element of pass protect marksmanship to the typically forward facing or run-prone Rover spot, and suddenly you are really only one more true Cb away from having a very tight secondary before the Thanksgiving leftovers get too cold.
  • a season high in Time To Throw metrics with 4 Sacks, 6 Qb Hurries and 14 Qb Pressures helps, just like that.football IQ
  • “Shhhhhhhh!” Don’t tell anyone, though is the Tuaman starting to find his niche? Notice I did not hyperbole and type: starting to turn the corner. As much maligned #54 still does not shed blocks very well. Though he does appear to be playing faster. And this -per always- connotes a baller who is starting to figure things out, as the game begins to proverbially slow down for the same. Or in other words, why leave poor #54 marooned (pardon the pun) out there in the middle to simply get physically mugged? Did we leave an even lighter-weight Chase Williams there to get pwned last year? No. We dealt Chase same as we have begun to red-dog or blitz the Tuaman a good deal more on the inside. (and where did we read this idea; first?)
    The Tuaman may only be averaging just south of 5 tackles per game, and yah; that is kinda mean, median mode Mike-Lb low. Though the more we launch him N-S, the less he is getting physically owned and therefore the less conspicuously obvious the MLb position rush-fit sore thumb becomes. Almost improvement in reverse or via disposal if you will.
  • However, would somebody plu-eee-zee teach my boy Dadi to not tackle as high as possible? He’s missed at least 3 Qb sacks thus far this season by head-tackling, maybe more.

R.A.T.T.......................what is Virginia Tech right now?

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VT letter grades:

Virginia Tech Offense:
Qb play gets the lowest possible B— due to injury, grim, guttiness, and the fact that I expect it to improve, upon my boy m.Brewer’s return, for as long as he lasts that is. Also like seeing us ranked 27th in Passing Efficiency and averaging less than 1 INT per game (with 5); such is not the worst thing when you are playing Musical Chairs at Qb.
Rb’s looks to me like they are sorting themselves out, Frankly speaking, pun very well intended. They may not be epic, though Rogers and McMillian are authentically above average, 5.8 and 7.8 from them respectively per carry says so!
Wr’s and Te’s: blocking is better all not named Ford, Wr depth is wanting, although if Bucky can give us more in the second-half of 2015, this is still an above average unit.
oLine: run blocking is still ahead of pass protect, as coach Stacy is the anti-Curt Newsome in that regard. However 89th in Sacks allowed is especially troubling, given the fragile career of one Qb12 or m.Brewer. Ditto the fact that poor Motley is dragging 3-4 small to medium sized dings and dents around his ownself.

VT O letter grades midway 15

VT O overall: methinks this offense showcases a modest positive slope from here on out, coach God and m.Brewer’s person safety allowing of course.

As Frank has ordered our best offensive 11 out onto the filed. No more everybody’s best friend at Tb platooning approach –and that can only help. Hence the lowest possible B— overall.

 

***

 

Virginia Tech Defense:
dLine: if there is a more underwhelming layer to this Tech football team right now; I’m not sure what that would be? 3 all-conference pre-season nominees and one stop-unit that is 96th best in the nation in defensing the run later and you see what I mean. Dadi is not the same guy with his broken-hand, however Ken is coming on and Barron has excelled. Though we need more than a 61st (or average) Havoc Rate from 3 all conference guys.
Linebacking: well, we all knew Mike-Lb might be a bugbear and Mike-Lb has not disappointed; however, the Tuaman is slowly playing just a bit better, week-by-week. Whip and ‘backer have not been traditionally productive; either. As I can only foresee marginal 2nd-layer improvement going forth; and what little there will be will be from the Tuaman himself.
Secondary: some odd substitution patterns have injured this grade, ditto the fact that our best defender (Fuller) is out for the year. That would appear to cap things at first blush; however, this hind-4 (or 5) appears to be coming together as I type on film. Ergo, I firmly predict their second-half of 2015 is in excess of their first-half.  The only question is in the measurement, or by just how much? (as a 30th best Havoc Rate thus far is pretty dang fair to middling, considering…)

VT 2015 midway d grades

overall: this may not be an epic or vintage version of Bud Stout on tap, Bud Bock is more like it. Nevertheless, I do forecast that this ’15 stop-unit will slowly tighten up a bit more and a bit more as 2015 wears on, and as we benefit from seeing less dynamic opposing offenses for our trouble as well.

Bowl Projection: Camping World Independence Bowl is the most common one I could find from all the on-line websites.VT bow projection


This too, same as the Qb grade, depends upon Brewer’s participation quotient. It goes up and this projection does the same | it goes down however and a sub .5oo or negative record is not umpossbile. Right now my best take is we overachieve and finish a gutty looking 8-4 or at worst a post-season  eligible 7-5.

Virginia Tech=52nd overall ranking from b.street and so.main

 

LETS GO!

Hokies!

bourbonstreet**

24 Responses You are logged in as Test

  1. Dadi tried to tackle Frisette that one time and got a good old-fashioned piggy-back ride. I wouldn’t be surprised if JF owns the Wolfie record (at least for their QBs) for squats.

    1. He’s no small boy.
      Pretty big, sloped traps for shoulders.
      Could have physically been a Lb Ss with some work.

      bigeiii

  2. Typical Frank, being slow to react and change. This is the type of effort and management/leadership he should be providing all of the time. This is why he needs to retire. Also because of recruiting.

    You don’t get to slack on your job for a majority of the time, then finally do your job and somehow be praised for it…

    1. “You don’t get to slack on your job for a majority of the time, then finally do your job and somehow be praised for it…”

      that was a strong take.
      (tough to argue with that)

      b.street

      1. Thank you sir! I wish I felt differently about it, but my loyalty is to VT, not Frank. I don’t think Frank has been doing his due diligence in a LONG time…

    2. Well NokieHokie how much weight do you think your opinion garners? Do you give say $2M a year to the Hokie Club each year? No? How much do you give? $5,000 a year maybe? $50? Do you purchase season tickets?

      Other than like minded folks on these web sites i believe the majority of fans are happy with Frank and company. I have been following Virginia Tech football since 1968. I am happy with things the way they are.

      1. You would be mistaken then…If you DID read these threads, say on TSL…the MAJORITY want Frank to retire, and soon (end of the year) I think Nokie makes a very valid point…why did he have to wait till now to “Fire up the troops” or make Shane play Travon now…should have been done earlier.

        1. Why take a shot at Shane?
          The OC gets it done his way — and with the personnel he wants — not the RB coach.
          They discuss it every single week. Almost certainly multiple times a week.

          Now, the two may have agreed. For all you and I know, the whole staff, their wives, and the janitors at Merryman took a vote and they all agreed. But, Shane wasn’t dictating strategy to Lefty over Lefty’s objections.

          And if he was (which he wasn’t), then Shane and RBs would be the absolute least of our issues.

      2. I have season tix. No I don’t donate $2M a year. That doesn’t make my opinion any less valid. Nice lame attempt though…

        1. Tylerhokie … the MAJORITY of what??? the posters on web site? surely you don’t think i believe you speak for 100,000 Hokie fans??? and NokieHokie … i am not questioning your right to your opinion, i am questioning your influence on determining whether Frank stays or goes. Right now the influence of your opinion is like a hand in a bucket of water … remove the hand, other than a few small ripples the influence is ZERO. Well not exactly ZERO, you amuse a few readers on this and other web sites.

          1. Where did I ever say or even imply that I had any influence? That’s right, never…

            You know who does? Whit Babcock! And he’s not going to let Frank’s stubbornness and ego ruin the football program and the athletic department. I bet Whit is closer to my thinking than yours.

          2. Well NokieHokie, are you willing to bet money that Whit fires Frank at the end of the season? excluding Frank stepping down for health reasons. Say $100?

      3. Well, that would be interesting to me.

        If you ask me?

        The polls on here and on TSL.com, seem to favor at least some unrest towards Frank.
        Now maybe that sample size is not demographic enough; or too small?
        Could be.
        Or maybe it is a vocal minority?

        I’d be open to any ideas on how to make the polling more conclusive or broader, as well. Thank you.

        b.street

        1. And the number of people who post on this web site and TSL.com? vs the number of Hokie fans?
          You are talking about a very small number. Most likely many of the posters on TSL.com also post here.

          Let’s say there are hmmmm 100,000 Hokie fans who either attend the game or watch on TV. And there are 100 unhappy posters on this site and TSL.com …. I doubt if there are that many but it is a good round number, then you have 0.1% of Hokie nation who are truely disgruntled.

          Now who has influence in Whit’s decision? The guys who write the big checks. You guys are simply noise, but you are entertaining.

          1. You are sorely mistaken if you think there are only 100 fans unhappy with Frank. You are also going to be disappointed when Whit pulls the plug on Frank.

          2. My comment was to BourbonStreet … the disgruntled members on here and TSL is not a large enough sample size to draw any statistical conclusions regarding the mood of the fan base.

            Your opinions are of no value to me so i wad them up and toss them into the waste basket. Unless of course you care to make a $100 bet whether Frank, barring any medical issues, returns as HC next year. Then your opinion is worth $100 to me.

            Perhaps Spurrier’s surprise retirement induces Frank to retire as well. I had heard from from a couple of my SC friends that SC and VaTech were trying to put together a regular season game that would have been Spurrier vs Beamer.

    3. Just to be clear, you think Frank “slacks on his job a majority of the time.”

      Correct?

      1. He “delegates” to be fair, but yes, I view not stepping in and monitoring properly from the beginning as not doing his job. Also his recruiting could be considered slacking, he doesn’t use social media, had that stupid “6-hour radius” BS philosophy, he recruited by area instead of position, let Stiney run the offense into the ground, then kept him too long, etc. That is not doing his job IMO.

  3. My $.02, not worth much more:

    +1 on Dadi hitting too high… Cardale and Jacoby both

    Whole defense (Tua included but not only) tackled orders of magnitude better against NCSU. I recall very few broken tackles.

    I don’t want to see Brewer any sooner than we desperately need him. Motley isn’t losing us games and risking Brewer’s health isn’t worth it IMHO. It would seem he has better rapport with Bucky though.

    Can you clarify the pass interference rules? I am thinking of a late sequence where they went after Facyson about three times. He was called for PI once, but on none of the three did he appear to turn his head back to look for the ball, which I thought was a key differentiator for PI/non-PI calls. Not complaining, mind you.

    1. +several.
      Nice tackling take.
      It finally did improve.
      (though why does it open in regression most years, now?)

      I agry on Brewer as well.

      P.I.
      I’m no fan of that rule. None.
      And I liked Flanker.
      What do they expect?
      They defender to 180 degree pivot to avoid the call and forfeit obstructing contact with the Wr? That’s krazy!

      I thought all of ’em were clean.

      However, a lot of it is Line-of-Sight by the side judge or back judge or whomever making the call. Can you read the Db’s eyes?

      Tough call even if you can see the Db looking into the Wr’s eyes and reacting accordingly.

      b.street

  4. Great writeup; thx!

    Do you know Lefty’s position on the tag-team RB approach?

    Would love to see Travon get more than 11.
    It’s only about three games worth of carries, but his #s are good.
    Interested to see where they go carries mount.

    What’s the max totes you see him getting? 15-17ish?

    1. That’s a great question.

      From what I got, he was NOT against the committee.
      (why I do not know)

      Yah; prolly mid-teens.
      Though he gets that one burst or explosion play off the more often you get him the rock as well. Kinda has a little Wilson in him, in that regard.

      b.street

  5. I would like to respond to the retirement question as maybe I fill the requested credentials. Went to my first game in 1948-49. Golden Hokie Champion. Have six season tickets. I ask the same questions, I am and have been far from satisfied, and I firmly believe that Frank should do as well as he possibly can record wise and retire this year.

    It should not be necessary every year to simplify, decide there is too little emotion, admit that it is my fault for not getting the team up, clarify exhibition season or bowl games being rewards for the players comments, and have goals that, in this division, should be easily accomplished. We must have a good percentage of the top ten players in the state and must be in the top 25 (hardly an acceptable goal) in recruiting rankings. We used to play big boy football but continue to become more like most ACC teams… Satisfied with results that would have been laughable just a few seasons ago.

    1. Yes, let’s turn Frank out to pasture and hire a young dynamic energetic HC. Perhaps our new coach can produce results similar to that being produced at the University of Texas.

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