The Hokie Hotline (football and basketball season)
When: every Monday from 7:00-9:00 during football season, 7:00-8:00 during
basketball season.
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Monday night’s Hokie Hotline came live from Beamer’s Restaurant in Christiansburg. Guests included athletic director Jim Weaver, defensive coordinator Bud Foster and head coach Frank Beamer. They discussed the trip to West Virginia, great play by the defense and the Marshall Thundering Herd.
Jim Weaver
Weaver said he has been very impressed with the team thus far. This football team is very good. The team speed on both sides of the ball is very impressive, and the team has a chance to go a long way because of that speed. Xavier Adibi and Vince Hall excite Weaver with their play because they can shed blocks and run to the football. Everyone on the team, coaches and players, believe they can get better. Marcus Vick has been very impressive.
Weaver said he hasn’t heard much from fans about their experience at WVU. He thinks it was much better this time than in 2003. WVU made a major effort to improve things, and the game was at noon rather than at night. It was better overall than in the recent past.
Weaver was asked about ticket allotment to the Rose Bowl. He said he thinks it is the same for all the other BCS bowls, but he is not sure. Roth noted that the Rose Bowl will be the toughest ticket in the history of the BCS games if USC makes it there. It would basically be like a home game for them.
Weaver was asked about scheduling. He said the ACC office handles the scheduling of ACC conference games. They decide the dates and the Thursday night games. Weaver is free to schedule out of conference game around this conference schedule.
Weaver was then asked about student tickets. Weaver said Virginia Tech has the sixth largest allotment of student tickets in the country. Some students pay a small fee to receive student season tickets. They don’t allow students to camp out for tickets anymore, so they put the lottery system in place.
A caller remarked that Matt Leinart mentioned that the team that would matchup with USC the best would be Virginia Tech. Jim Weaver said it is a tremendous compliment for the football program. He said he hopes that everyone can see that matchup at the end of the season.
Weaver was asked about the teams with the best chances to beat Virginia
Tech. Weaver said he thinks Boston College is very good and were probably going to give Florida State a great game until their quarterback got hurt. But across the board, the ACC is very tough. Anyone is capable of beating the Hokies on any given day, and Tech must stay focused each and every week.
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Bud Foster
Foster said he is proud of the numbers the defense has put up. They will have to continue to play well because Marshall is talented and they like to throw the ball. He said he was disappointed after the West Virginia game because the defense wasn’t as sharp as it could have been, but he is proud they came out with the victory.
Foster said he isn’t going to fault Roland Minor for trying to make a play. He just misjudged the ball. WVU had two long gains that totaled about 90 yards. The WVU running back made a big run that was a result of poor tackling by Tech.
Foster said linebackers Vince Hall and Xavier Adibi were very good. They were very active and they played fast. Vince Hall graded out the highest of any defender. The best thing about those two players is that they continue to improve every week because they are just sophomores.
Foster said Tim Sandidge has really stepped his game up. He had a great summer of preparation, and is playing well and showing leadership. Jonathan Lewis is playing well also. Charley Wiles has done an outstanding job coaching up the defensive tackles this season.
Foster said today was a light day of practice, and tomorrow the defense will really work on tackling. They did it after NC State and improved, and they must do it this week as well. Some guys were dropping their heads and missing tackles, but things need to get better. Foster said the best fundamental tackler he has ever coached might be Archie Hopkins.
Roth asked Foster if he was surprised and pleased that Nick Sorensen has had a successful NFL career. He said he was surprised and happy for Nick. He had a good football IQ at Tech, and for some people, their best football days are ahead of them after college.
Foster said he is a lot better coach when he has good players. The team really works on turnovers during practice. The offense focuses on not turning it over, while the defense works on creating turnovers. The defense has been able to create turnovers this year. Marcus Vick has done a great job with the football this season, and Cedric Humes and Mike Imoh are not fumbling.
Foster was asked about the difference between field and boundary corners. He said both guys have to be athletic, but the boundary corner has to be more physical. He covers the tight end some, and has more action in the running game.
Foster said Marshall is still using a lot of the same offense that they used against the Hokies in 2002. There is no Darius Watts or Byron Leftwich, but there are still a lot of talented players. They are passing for about 315 yards per game. Their quarterback reminds Foster of Pat White of West Virginia. Ahmad Bradshaw is a talented player who leads the team is rushing and receiving. Marshall will throw a lot of short passes. Foster said he would rather see short passes than long passes.
Foster was asked why he hasn’t left Tech for a head coaching job. Foster said the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. Foster said he has aspirations to be a head coach, but he isn’t going to jump on just any job. He has raised his family in Blacksburg, and he sees VT getting better in the future. Plus he works for a great coach like Frank Beamer.
Frank Beamer
Beamer said it was a great win against WVU. They knew they had to play tough to win the game, and they did. Cedric Humes ran the ball very hard. The turnover margin was very important in the outcome of the game. VT had zero and West Virginia had two. Third down efficiency was also very important.
Beamer said Marcus Vick has been very good. He is a talented guy who has made all the throws. He is in total control of the offense and does the little things. He is very calm, no matter what the situation dictates. The offensive line is helping Vick by pass blocking very well. Vick also has a group of talented receivers to throw the ball to.
Beamer said the success starts with Mike Gentry and what he does with the team during the summer. Also, the coaching staff is doing a great job of making adjustments at halftime. Those are the main reasons why the team is performing so well in the second half.
Beamer said the fact that Virginia Tech is used to winning is helping with the play of the younger guys. The veterans and coaches have distilled a winning attitude in them, and that translates onto the field. The more you win, the more confident you are when you enter a game. You feel that you have a chance to win every game you play.
Beamer was asked about revealing injuries to the media. Beamer said he feels that you might as well reveal it, because it is a lot of trouble to hide it. He understands that Coach Groh has his way, and it is different from Beamer’s. Not everyone handles it the same way, and just because Groh’s way is different does not mean it’s wrong.
Beamer said it was not planned for Develli to do a short kickoff against WVU on Saturday. He just tried to kick it too hard and shanked it a bit. The future plan will be to have Develli kickoff with the wind at his back, and Jud Dunlevy will kickoff against the wind. Dunlevy kicks the ball higher, so he will be more effective against the wind.
Beamer said he takes great pride in the relationships that the staff has built with in state high schools. He takes great pride in knowing that there are so many Virginia players starting for the Hokies. Jim Cavanaugh does a great job, and keeping the coaching staff together to help build relationships is very important.
A caller asked about pinching the defensive ends against West Virginia. Beamer said it was a good gameplan, but the defense needed to tackle better. The WVU quarterback threw the ball better than the coaches thought he would after watching him on film.
Beamer said he always enjoyed playing at Mountaineer Field. It is a nice stadium and always a good atmosphere. VT has had some good moments there, including knocking off a Major Harris led WVU team in 1989 and the Miracle in Morgantown in 1999.
Beamer was asked if college kickers would ever have to kickoff from the 30 yard line like in the NFL. Beamer said he thinks that will happen one day. There would be more chances for big kickoff returns because there would be fewer touchbacks. That would add a lot more excitement in games.
Beamer commented on the illegal formation penalties. He said their wide receivers line up in so many different places, and Clowney lined up wrong once against West Virginia. Beamer said they have to get better at that, because they have been called for that penalty for three consecutive weeks.
Roth asked Beamer about upcoming ACC games. Beamer said he isn’t sure how the NC State/Georgia Tech game will go. He said UNC is much improved. Their defense is much improved and they had a nice win over Utah. Don’t count out Wake Forest against Florida State either.
Beamer said it’s a good feeling to coach a team that always makes a big play to counter the opponent’s momentum. The Hokies did a great job of that against NC State and West Virginia.
Beamer said the team has been great at turnovers so far, but they have some good opponents coming up. The team has good kickers and winning the field position game is very important to winning and losing games.
Beamer was asked about the lack of penalties, and he said the team is filled with very smart players. The coaches go over penalties with the team on film every week. They use peer pressure to their advantage by showing penalties to the entire team. But mostly the team just understands that penalties have a big impact on the game. You can’t commit a lot of penalties and expect to win games.
Beamer said he hasn’t received any feedback on the instant replay rules. He said he is happy with the instant replay system. If it helps get the call right, then he is all for it. There won’t be very many questionable calls that decide games anymore.
Beamer was asked about Marcus Vick’s actions during the West Virginia game. He said he met with Vick on Sunday night, and he knew he had handled the situation poorly. Beamer said he told Vick that the crowd wouldn’t be on him if he wasn’t a special player. Vick decided to issue the apology, and now it’s time to move on.
Beamer said Eddie Royal will matchup against his brother Chris, a free safety for Marshall, on Saturday. They will compete hard on the field, but they are as tight a family as you will ever see off the field. Both players are lucky to come from a very good family.
Beamer said Marshall found themselves a quarterback in Bernie Morris. He really throws the ball well, and he is tall and athletic. The defense has to keep things in front of them and tackle well.
- Monday was day 311 of Virginia Tech’s
continuous possession of the Commonwealth Cup, day 367 of Virginia Tech’s
continuous possession of the Black Diamond Trophy, and day 304 of Virginia
Tech’s continuous possession of the ACC football championship.
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