Caleb Farris , Corey Marshall , Charley Meyer and Carlis Parker chatted with us briefly on Media Day.
On the progress the offensive line is making: “As a unit I think we’re making great strides. Obviously having Jeff Grimes, I can’t express how happy I am, he’s a great coach, a guy who really cares about us. We’re making strides as a unit, everybody is coming together, trying to buy into the system. Everybody is giving their fullest, learning the steps, learning the process. If we make some great strides in the next couple of weeks we’ll be where we need to be.”
On whether he feels more comfortable at center or left guard: “Either one. We’ve been studying a lot as a group, so we’ve got a good grasp on them. If you play center, you know guard. I know center pretty well I feel like. I’ve got a ways to go at both positions, but I feel comfortable at either position.”
On what Jeff Grimes brought in that this offense really needed: “Nothing really in particular, just really as an overall…they’ve worked together before, Coach Loeffler and Coach Grimes, and also Coach Pugh the GA, they’ve been there and done that together. They know how to work together and how to get the most out of us and I think that’s going to show here in a couple of weeks.”
On Ryan Pugh, the GA: “I believe he’s a good guy and he knows what he’s doing. He played for Coach Grimes, played in the offense. He knows what he’s doing. He can help us out, and he’s really doing that.”
On when the coaches approached him about playing defensive tackle: “It was a couple of days before camp, they got together as a staff, Bud and all those guys. We decided in a mutual decision to kind of move in that direction. I’ve been playing it freshman year and all through high school variations [of defensive tackle] so I was real open to it and it’s working out. I’m going along and playing fast, so it’s great.”
On whether he feels more comfortable at end or tackle: “Nah, both of them are second nature to me now. I have to keep improving and molding my craft, but as far as which one I prefer, I’m either/or right now.”
On whether he feels like he needs to add any weight: “Yeah, I was going to go up maybe 5 or 10 pounds, nothing more than that.”
On whether he’s only going up 5 or 10 pounds so he can keep the same quickness: “Exactly, you’ve got to feel good.”
Charley Meyer
On summer preparation: “This summer seemed a lot more intense, a lot more aggressive…what’s the word I’m looking for? Focused, definitely. Urgency is the word I’m looking for. Things were urgent this summer. We made sure we came out and competed every day in 7 on 7 and stuff, and we worked hard. It definitely felt like change, and it’s change for the good I think.”
On how close Meyer came to going to the Naval Academy: “I was pretty far down the line. I had actually started my application process because you have to start it early to get all the appointments and stuff. Honestly it came down to Signing Day. I sat up all night talking with my parents about it. When it came down to it, we decided the best decision for the family was for me to come to Virginia Tech and it’s worked out great.”
On whether he has a history with the military: “I went to Benedictine High School in Richmond which is an Army ROTC school, so there was military there. My father went there, and also my grandfather. I’m a third generation.”
On making the adjustment from high school quarterback to college wide receiver: “It’s a big adjustment. In high school I played a little bit of wide receiver, but it wasn’t anything like this. But it’s a fun adjustment and I’m having a lot of fun with it.”
On the hardest part of the adjustment: “I think it ties into everything with route running, learning the system, everything. But I’m still working hard at it and getting better every day, so I take that as a plus.”
On moving up the depth chart quickly and whether that motivates him even more knowing that he could be playing against Alabama: “Oh yeah, that’s a lot more motivation because Bama being preseason pick #1. Having a chance to play against them would be real nice.”
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could you find a more awkward photo of Carlis Parker? haha…
It certainly sounds like all these guys have bought in to giving 100% to what ever the staff ask them to do. Practice, film, practice in the summer. Lets hope it pays off, they seem to be progressing faster then I thought they would. Hope its not just player speak.