Notes from the Spring Game

Feel free to enjoy these notes from the spring game provided by James Williams:

Hot, 41000 people, free, exciting.

I was late getting there so I missed Ryan Williams taking Ju-Ju’s screen pass 56 yards for the TD on his first touch of the game. Let me break it down per player that I tried to follow (I didn’t have a program so I couldn’t tell who was who very well). A couple of things you need to know the white team was mostly the #1 offense with receivers Dyrell Roberts, Marcus Davis and running backs Zach Evans and Tony Gregory and the #2 defense. Maroon was #1 defense and #2 offense with Ju-Ju, Ryan Williams, Danny Coale and Brandon Dillard.

Tyrod: He looked poised and in command. Made a lot of good throws on the run after protection had broken down, however standing in the pocket he missed a couple of easy throws to open receivers. At the end of the game when his team was down 6 with 20 seconds left inside the 10, he used his feet to make a play and probably would have scored if he didn’t have the yellow jersey on.

Ju-Ju: Definitely not ready right now. It looked like he had a good pocket presence, he never panicked and knew how to move around in the pocket. His accuracy and decision making was pretty bad though. missed a lot of passes, a full summer as #2 should help.

Recievers: Dyrell Roberts looked faster and more confident. He was the clear #1 on Saturday. He made an amazing catch over Rashard Carmichael in the end zone. Marcus Davis is huge and looks like he will contribute at receiver right away. Coale, Dillard and Boone were on Ju-Ju’s team and didn’t really have a chance. Chris Drager had a bunch of nice possession receptions from Tyrod.

O-Line: Looked great. I didn’t really notice them which I guess is a good thing. I only saw one sack and that was the #2 D and O. Most of the time if Tyrod was running it was because no one was open, not because someone was in his face.

D: I had a hard time keeping up with the defense because I didn’t know who anybody was. Kam Chancellor had a big hit on Zach Evans that caused a fumble which was returned for a TD. Tackling looked good for the most part. Carmichael spent most of the time in between plays with his head down, which I thought was weird, not sure if he was still thinking about the TD he gave up.

Running backs: Ryan Williams never stops moving and he is always moving really fast. There were 2-3 times he would have 3 guys on him and still move the pile an extra 5 yards. He’s shifty and quick and will be a great change of pace for Darren Evans (who didn’t play). Olgesby didn’t play either. Zack Evans looked pretty good for a walk-on he’s a small quick guy like Williams and had a few good runs.

Kicking game: Was terrible. Of the first 4 punts I saw two were blocked, one was a 20-30 yard duck and one was a bad snap that led to a big loss. Luckily Bowden was the victim of the bad snap and the backup was the guy getting harassed by the defense. Kickoff guys were only getting the ball to the 10 yard line. I’m sure Frank was not pleased.

I think that’s it. One other cool thing was how many old hokies were in town and recognized during half time. There were about 20 alums including Eddie Royal, Andre Davis, DeAngelo Hall, Pierson Prieloau, Jake Grove and a bunch of other big names.