Welcome to 2010, where Frank Beamer has his first back-to-back bowl win in his Virginia Tech coaching tenure. That's kind of an absurd statement given how long he's been in Blacksburg and considering the number of bowls we've been to, but it's the truth. And it all happened a little over a year since he vowed that the Hokies would start taking their bowl games more seriously. I don't think it's a coincidence that this mentality has translated to wins in bowl games. All of these years, Virginia Tech fans wanted to prove that their team could play with anyone in the country if they were properly prepared and properly drilled, and this latest win over Tennessee is our "proof in the pudding."
I went out to Home Team Grill to watch this game with some friends. I almost considered just recording the game on DVR and watching it the next day because it was New Year's Eve, but I'm glad I watched the game instead of partaking in other diversions. That atmosphere couldn't have been better and the drink specials were pretty solid. I've recently become a big fan of Bud Light Golden Wheat... frankly, it just tastes good. Was that considered a plug? Can I get paid for that?
It was a dominant performance by the Hokies, particularly in the second half. The first half showed that Tennessee had a lot of talent and could make your team pay if it made mistakes. And VT made some mistakes, particularly in our ability to tackle on defense. I have to believe that Frank Beamer and Bud Foster spoke about that at half time and stopped the bleeding right there. Admittedly, I did not come away terribly impressed with Tennessee safety Eric Berry. He's being listed as a top-5 NFL draft talent. I didn't see anything in that game that would lead me to believe he's even a first-rounder. I know it was just one game though, and I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he already checked out mentally and was thinking of his new huge house and his new Lincoln Navigator (with OnStar!), I really don't know.
I can't really think of too many things that I didn't like about the Hokies' play in this game. The play-calling by much-maligned Bryan Stinespring was adequate if not good. There were a few head-scratchers, but most of the calls were defensible. I think, overall, he put our offense in good positions to win. Ryan Williams ran very well and his stats don't really show you everything he did. He had a somewhat modest 117 yards on 25 carries, but you have to consider how many of those runs were short power runs to either get the first down, push us towards the goal line, or get over the goal line. David Wilson ran well late in the game and I like the idea of red-shirting him next season. Wilson obviously WON'T like the decision, but our backfield is extremely crowded right now with Darren Evans coming back, Ryan Williams setting records, and Josh Oglesby being another sound option. It's in Wilson's best interest to give himself an extra year of eligibility so that he can take over the starting RB role when he's a junior (or if he's really impressive and Ryan Williams leaves for the NFL, a sophomore).
Tyrod Taylor was excellent in running the offense and showed some arm power on that long throw to Jarret Boykin that set up a field goal at the end of the first half. I'm really excited about having Tyrod for one more year. He showed this year that he is finally starting to "get" his position. What he needs to continue to improve on is consistency and passing accuracy. Taylor's wide receives get better with every game and I think he really has a chance to put up some ungodly numbers next year. Boykin, Danny Coale, and Dyrell Roberts will all be back next year, as will Xavier Boyce and Marcus Davis. Taylor's familiarity with these guys will be about as high as it can possibly get.
The offensive line has been disappointing at times, but you can't say they had a bad season. Particularly in the bowl game, the line gave Tyrod plenty of time to throw the ball. Sometimes he just takes too long to get rid of it. We'll miss Sergio Render and Ed Wang as they will be leaving for the NFL as seniors, but I think there is good talent coming in to replace them.
Defensively, the Hokies were mostly dominant against the Volunteers and our best players on defense were the ones who shined. Cody Grimm was all over the place and Jason Worilds made Jonathan Crompton's life pretty tough on Thursday. John Graves was back and in good shape physically for possibly the first time this year, and his play showed that. Kam Chancellor showed his typical form, which is strong against the run, but lacking when it comes to covering speedy wide receivers. He got beat on a long pass for probably about the 15th time this season. I know he was supposedly a good team leader and that he's got great size for his position, but I don't think I will be that sad to see him leave for the NFL. I think we can upgrade at free safety with one of our younger guys.
I have to say I'm really looking forward to next season. We have basically all of our key players coming back and we should look even better barring injuries. It's going to be hard to temper my national championship expectations for next season, but the media will be looking at the Hokies even more closely. Frankly (pun intended), I am excited for Beamer's boys to take the field. Fall can't come soon enough, but for now, at least we have Virginia Tech basketball to occupy our time. GO HOKIES!
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