Virginia Tech wide receiver David Clowney will miss this weekend’s game
against Cincinnati, and possibly even more time, due to an emergency
appendectomy that was performed on Thursday evening.
Clowney began having pain on Wednesday night, and it got progressively worse
on Thursday. He was taken to the hospital and underwent surgery at 5:30pm. He is
expected to be released from the hospital today.
Clowney is currently Virginia Tech’s leading receiver. He has caught 13
passes for 182 yards on the season, including four catches for 120 yards last
week against the Duke Blue Devils. At this point, Clowney has not been ruled out
for the Georgia Tech game on September 30, though a more likely return date is
October 12 at Boston College.
Eddie Royal should step into the starting flanker position in Clowney’s
absence. Cory Holt, who is getting more and more reps in practice as a wide
receiver, could also see action as Tech’s fifth receiver.
Hokies Get a New Tailback
Virginia Tech r-freshman Jahre Cheeseman is the latest Hokie to get his
chance in Tech’s offensive backfield. A week after Kenny Lewis was elevated
from the practice squad, the coaching staff decided to move Cheeseman from
cornerback to tailback as part of their continued efforts to find a capable
backup to Branden Ore.
The 5-9, 200-pound Cheeseman played tailback at Eastern High School in
Vorhees, N.J. He rushed for 1,167 yards and 15 touchdowns as a senior, and 1,444
yards and 18 touchdowns as a junior. Coming out of high school, he was
considered the #9 all-purpose running back in the nation by Rivals.com.
Cheeseman will compete with Elan Lewis and Kenny Lewis on the depth chart.
The coaches consider this a safe move because of the impending return of former
starting corner Roland Minor, who is coming off wrist surgery. True freshmen Kam
Chancellor and Stephan Virgil are also making very good progress at cornerback.
Ore leads Virginia Tech in rushing with 229 yards on 48 carries. Tech’s
second leading rusher is George Bell, who has 38 yards on the season. However,
Bell could be close to giving up football because of knee problems.
Jake Grove to be Honored on Saturday
Former Virginia Tech starting center Jake Grove will be honored during a
pre-game ceremony on Saturday, and his jersey will be retired. He will be the
fourth Virginia Tech player to have his jersey retired. The Hokies no longer
retire numbers, just jerseys.
Grove won the Rimington Award following the 2003 season for being the best
center in the country. He was drafted in the second round by the Oakland
Raiders, where he is currently a starter.
Grove will join Frank Beamer, Michael Vick and Cornell Brown as having his
jersey retired in Lane Stadium. Frank Loria, Bruce Smith, Jim Pyne and Carroll
Dale have their numbers retired.
MaroonHelmet.com Locations This Weekend
TSL sponsor MaroonHelmet.com will be at the Amerisuites Hotel (which is
changing over to Hawthorn) this weekend and all football game weekends. If
you’re the type who likes to check out the merchandise in person, then head over
to the lobby of Amerisuites and ask where MaroonHelmet.com is set up.
The Amerisuites Hotel is located at 1020 Plantation Rd — click below for a
map.
MaroonHelmet.com also operates out of the front yard of a residence on
Southgate Drive each and every football game. To find them, just turn off of 460
onto Southgate Drive, go past the South end zone parking lot, and they’ll be
right there, just beyond the parking lot, in the front yard of a residence there
on Southgate. You can’t miss them — just look for tons and tons of Hokie stuff
for sale.
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