Injuries stink. They stink even worse when they hit you in waves in the exact wrong year, and at the exact positions you can’t afford them. This morning, the football gods are kicking back and laughing at Virginia Tech’s expense.

Tailback, whip, offensive line … the news isn’t good anywhere. What will the injuries do to the team this year? Let’s talk about it position-by-position. Note: in this article, we’ll just talk about whip and running back. We’ll talk about the offensive line in this afternoon’s regularly scheduled OL preview.

Whip

Virginia Tech lost Ronny Vandyke (#37, 6-3, 218, r-So.) for the season because of shoulder surgery. That’s a brutal injury for this defense. Whip is a specialized position. If the Hokies lost a defensive end, they’d just plug in a guy like Tyrel Wilson. If they lost a safety, they’d plug in a backup safety. The problem is that there is no backup whip.

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