Tech Talk Live Notes for December 2, 2013

Chugger Adair

Duke is a very good and very experienced team, and it was big to knock them off to advance to the College Cup.  The Hokies scored right before halftime, and that put a lot of pressure on the Blue Devils.

It was different being the #1 seed.  That was a new role for Tech.  They are used to being in the underdog role.

The women’s soccer program is getting a lot of exposure right now.  It’s good to get some publicity for the program.  It all goes back to how well the players have played this year.  They have earned it.

Tech plays FSU on Friday at 5pm.  They are very good.  They beat Tech twice this year in two close matches.  The Hokies have to go out and be aggressive.  Once they get the ball, they have to keep it and translate possession time into goals.

Scoring first would be huge for the Hokies against FSU.  That gets the momentum going and puts pressure on the other team.

Shannon Mayrose

Going to the College Cup is pretty surreal.  It’s everything you could wish for as a college soccer player.  It’s something she’ll never forget.

Mayrose has had a lot of injuries: three knee surgeries on her right knee, a surgery on her left knee as soon as she came back from her right knee surgery, and then she broke her fifth metatarsul in the offseason.  It’s been tough at times, and it cost her a lot of her career, but she’s very happy to be back and playing and getting the chance to have these memories.

After her left knee surgery, she did think about giving up soccer briefly, but she decided to stick with it.  Tech was where she always wanted to be, and she focused on that during rehab.

If the Hokies come out and play like they did against UVA, they can beat anyone.  The FSU game should be a fun one to watch.

Taylor Antolino

Going to the College Cup is something you grow up thinking about.  It’s something you dream of as a kid.

You always hope that a moment like this was possible.  It’s something the team has put in a lot of work for throughout the years.  It’s great for the senior class.

About midway through the ACC season, Antolino realized that Tech had a special team, and that they needed to take advantage of the opportunity.  They’ve been able to do that.

Beating UVA meant a lot.  The Hokies were the only team to beat the Hoos this season.  They know there’s no team they can’t beat.

Florida State is very good.  They have to defend as a team and be confident in themselves.

Torrian Gray

Tech has never lost to UVA since Gray has come back as a coach.  They only to UVA once while he was a player.

It’s always a great feeling to finish with a win, but beating UVA makes it even better.

The Hokies had to rely on two true freshmen this season, and they played well.  It was fun seeing Kendall Fuller and Brandon Facyson develop.  He feels bad that Kyle Fuller and Antone Exum have been hurt so much.

Kendall Fuller is better than Gray thought he would be.  No matter how highly he is recruited, you always expect a freshman to have some freshman moments, but he came in with a lot of maturity.

Brandon Facyson’s performance also surprised Gray.  Gray really liked his skill set and his makeup while he recruited him, but he never thought he would be this good this soon.

Even though Kyle Fuller and Antone Exum were hurt a lot, they did a great job helping to prepare the younger players for game action.

The Hokies also had to use r-freshman Der’Woun Greene and true freshman Chuck Clark at times this year, and those guys also responded well.

Tech wasn’t quite settled early in the UVA game.  They weren’t as sharp as they needed to be, but the Hokies settled down and played a great game for the rest of the way.

Tech had some tough injuries to start the year.  Ryan Malleck might have been Tech’s leading receiver, but he got hurt.  Ronny Vandyke was also a big loss.

The UVA fans were yelling at the Tech coaches that “Duke won” as the VT coaches were heading up to the pressbox.

There’s a possibility that Kyle Fuller could come back for the bowl game.  It depends on how he progresses.  Antone Exum should be fine for that game.

Gray feels pride that Tech has developed a great reputation for defensive backs, but it’s something that the players have to keep living up to.

If things hold up, Gray feels very good about his 2014 class of defensive backs.  He’s excited about the future.

Gray will be in Florida tomorrow, and later this week he’ll be in Northern Virginia and Pennsylvania.

Tariq Edwards

You have to beat UVA.  There is no other option.  You have to keep the Cup every year.

There was plenty of talking during the game, but it’s nothing new.  It happens every year in each UVA game.

Tech didn’t get off to a great start, but they rallied and played much better after the first two drives.  Bud Foster told them at halftime to not get caught up in the talk, to just go play football.

Tech wanted to blitz a lot, and they knew they could when Greyson Lambert came into the game.

In the second half, it sort of felt like a home game.

It’s kind of sad to know that his career is winding down.  He just wants to keep on playing.  That’s what he told the coaches and players after the UVA game.

It’s been great playing for Tech.  The atmosphere has been great, and he has enjoyed playing with his teammates.

Jack Tyler

Saturday’s game was a little bit more chippy than he thought it would be.  It was a fun game.  UVA wanted to win it badly.

Tyler knew that Duke had already won, and that actually motivated him more.  He knew that since the Hokies couldn’t play in the ACC Championship Game, that was one less football game he’d have a chance to play in.  He wanted to take advantage against UVA.

UVA has some talent on their team, and they generally play better than their record shows against Virginia Tech.  It comes down to pride.  It’s always a fun week.

It’s definitely sad going into his final game.  He’s tried to slow down this year and enjoy things a little more.

The Commonwealth Cup stayed next to Jack Tyler on the bus on the ride back home.  The Cup has made the rounds at most Blacksburg bars since it got back to Blacksburg.

James Johnson

The Hokies are doing a good job of getting off to a good start.  Even in losses to Seton Hall and Michigan State.  It always helps to start the game strong, particularly on the defensive side of the ball.

James Johnson doesn’t remember the last pass-first point guard the Hokies had.  Devin Wilson is guy who can effect the game without taking a shot.  The other players love playing with Wilson because he is always looking to make the pass.

Adam Smith is playing well, and he did a better job with the ball in his hands running the point in the last game.  He’s still a young player, and he’s still learning.  He needs to keep attacking the basket.

Jarell Eddie has been much more efficient recently.  He has three consecutive double-doubles, and he’s scoring points while taking fewer shots.

Johnson likes Joey van Zegeren defensively and rebounding.  Hopefully the offense will come down the line.

Marshall Wood is still figuring out his role.  He’s played much better recently.  Is he an inside player, or a three-point shooter.  Sometimes that’s hard for a young player to figure out.

Trevor Thompson will be up and down this year, but he gives the Hokies another defensive presence who can block shots.

Ben Emelogu probably won’t play against Winthrop on Tuesday.  They hope to get him back against Miami.

Winthrop is one of the best defensive teams Tech will have faced so far.  They are a good team that is off to a 5-1 start.  They like to push the ball up and down the floor.  They aren’t a big team, Andre Smith is a 5-10 junior guard who can really score.

Miami is coming up on Sunday night.  They lost five seniors last year, and they are still trying to figure out who they are right now.  They are a very well-coached team that will continue to get better.  They are the defending ACC Champs, and the Hokies have to remember that.

Frank Beamer

Shane Beamer had been working on the reverse on the kickoff return for the last few weeks, and they decided to use it this week.  Frank decided to go for the onside kick by watching film on UVA’s kick return team.

The Hokies have been working on the reverse pass to Logan Thomas a lot in practice.  Scot Loeffler announced to the staff on Wednesday night that they would run it against UVA if they got in the right situation.

If the Hokies had put in Chris Mangus or a fast guy in place of Sam Rogers on the reverse on the kickoff return, UVA would have known that play was coming.  They would have pointed out that the Hokies had different personnel on the field, and they would have been ready for it.

Tech didn’t get the ball snapped when they went for it late in the game on a short yardage situation.  They had communication problems, and it blew up the play.

Mark Leal is in line to be Tech’s starting quarterback next year.  Beamer thinks he’s a gamer.  He’s got a good arm, and he’s always scrimmaged well.  Beamer thinks he’ll be a good quarterback for the Hokies.

Injuries really hurt the Hokies on offense this year.  J.C. Coleman was hurt early in the season.  Ryan Malleck never got to play a down, and he was going to have a big impact.  They had so many young players on offense.

This was a fun team to be around.  They had good leadership, and they had good kids.  It could have been a better year from a win-loss perspective, but it could have been worse, too.

Tech has to continue to upgrade their talent.  That’s a priority.  Beamer feels like this current staff is Tech’s best recruiting staff ever.

Jim Grobe is one of the best coaches and best people in the business.  It’s tough to win year in and year out there.  It’s tough for them to get players, and you have to have players.  They did a great job with the players they had.  It will be tough for anyone to duplicate what he’s done at Wake Forest.

David Cutcliffe has done a great job at Duke.  They’ve improved their talent.  They’ve gotten things to go their way.  Florida State will probably have to help them out a bit, but Duke could win.  They are on a roll.  Beamer never thought they would win out after they beat the Hokies.

Tech will be out recruiting the rest of the week, and they will resume practice on Saturday.  They really want to win the bowl game.

Monday was Day 3,293 of Virginia Tech’s continuous possession of The Commonwealth Cup.