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   Welcome to TSLMail #330 - Friday, May 16, 2008    
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Defense Not So Experienced in 2008
by Chris Coleman, TechSideline.com

Last year at this time we were talking about how experienced Virginia Tech's defense would be heading into the 2007 season. This year it's the opposite. The Hokies lost a lot of very good players, and they'll have to replace them with guys who mostly have no experience in the starting lineup. Despite their inexperience, expectations are still high. That comes with the territory when you're a defensive player at Virginia Tech.

The 2007 Hokie defense had six seniors, as well as a junior who declared for the NFL Draft. Four of them were drafted, and three of them were signed as free agents. They are all currently on an NFL roster. That's a massive talent exodus.

The following table shows how much starting experience the 2007 defense had, and how much the 2008 defense has, going into each season.

2007 to 2008 Defensive Experience Comparison

Position

2007

Years
 Starting

2008

Years
 Starting

DE

Chris Ellis

2

Orion Martin

1

DT

Barry Booker

1

John Graves

0

DT

Carlton Powell

2

Cordarrow Thompson

0

DE

Orion Martin

0

Jason Worilds

0

Mike

Vince Hall

3

Brett Warren

0

Backer

Xavier Adibi

3

Purnell Sturdivant

0

Whip

Cam Martin

0

Cam Martin

1

FC

Macho Harris

1

Stephan Virgil

0

FS

D.J. Parker

2

Kam Chancellor

1

ROV

Kam Chancellor

0

Dorian Porch

0

BC

Brandon Flowers

1

Macho Harris

2

Total

 

15

 

5


That's a 3-to-1 starting experience edge for the 2007 defense. When we dig even deeper, we see that things are weighted in 2007's favor even more than that.

While 2008 does have five years of starting experience returning, only two years are returning at the same position. Macho Harris, who started two years at field corner, will now play the boundary corner. Kam Chancellor, who started at rover last year, moved over to free safety in the spring.

Only the Martin brothers, Orion and Cam, have a year's worth of starting experience at the position they will be playing in 2008. Everyone else is either moving to a new position, or starting for the first time. One player, Stephan Virgil, is starting for the first time and moving to a new position (boundary corner to field corner).

Not only did the 2007 starting defense have three times the starting experience, but those all of them were at the same position. None of the guys in 2007 on the table above had started at a different position before that season.

What's particularly disturbing is that Virginia Tech only has a grand total of two years of starting experience in their front seven. No defensive tackle on the current roster has ever started a game, and only one defensive end has started a game. At linebacker, Purnell Sturdivant is a first year starter. Brett Warren started four games for an injured Vince Hall last year, and did a fine job, but this is still his first year as a full-time starter.

Despite all that turnover, Virginia Tech is still expected to put a good defense on the field this fall. Based on recent results, it's likely that Bud Foster will do just that.

After the 2005 season, the Tech defense lost Darryl Tapp, James Anderson, Jimmy Williams, Jonathan Lewis and Justin Hamilton to the NFL Draft, as well as Tim Sandidge to a free agent contract. Those are very similar losses to those suffered this offseason. All the 2006 defense did was finish #1 nationally in total defense, despite all that turnover.

Look for Bud Foster to have another solid unit this fall. Maybe not one of the top five in the nation like the last few years, but this group should still be one of the best in the ACC.

Peter Rose Arrested

WSET 13 has reported that 2008 Virginia Tech football signee Peter Rose has been arrested as part of a drug bust at Amherst County High School. Seven students have been charged, and five were arrested at the school this morning.

This is the end of a 10-month long investigation. An undercover police officer has posed as a student at the high school, and all seven students who have been charged allegedly sold the officer drugs. Those drugs include marijuana, prescription pills and imitation cocaine. Virginia Tech has yet to comment on the arrest.

Rose ranked #28 on TSL's postseason Top 30 list, and was the #16 player in the state according to The Roanoke Times. He was expected to be a defensive back for the Hokies, after leading Amherst to the state championship the past two seasons as their starting quarterback. He was named A.P. Group AA Player of the Year for his senior season.

We'll have more on this story as it unfolds.

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   TechSideline.com Updates From the Past Week
Recruiting Notes: Oscar Smith H.S.
May 16, 2008
With three prospects holding Division 1A offers, Oscar Smith High School (Chesapeake, VA) no doubt has been buzzing with college coaches this Evaluation Period. Head coach Richard Morgan provided the latest on his three top 2009 class recruits - LB Jerod Askew, DB Perry Jones and WR/KR/PR Tim Smith.
more

2008 NCAA Softball Preview
May 15, 2008
Craig Fain is a Virginia Tech graduate (2002) and Tennessee graduate (2006) who has years of experience working with the Virginia Tech and Tennessee softball teams, and he has attended the last three Women's College Softball World Series. Craig brings us a preview of this weekend's NCAA Softball Regional in Knoxville, Tennessee, matching the #2-seed Hokies up with #1-seed Tennessee, #3-seed Louisville, and #4-seed Winthrop.
more

The Latest on Javanti Sparrow
May 15, 2008
Western Branch (Chesapeake, VA) cornerback/wide receiver Javanti Sparrow has three definite Division 1A scholarship offers on the table according to Bruins head coach Scott Johnson. A handful of others have stopped by Western Branch this Evaluation Period, so the 6-1, 185-pound prospect could enjoy some more recruiting success in the near future.
more

TSL Poll: How should VT handle the QB situation in 2008?
May 15, 2008
Introducing a new item we hope will be regular feature here on TechSideline.com: TSL Polls. The polls are open to all TSL visitors, subscribers and non-subscribers alike. This week's question: How do you think VT should handle the QB position in the 2008 season?
more

Hokie Golf Tees Off in NCAAs
May 15, 2008
The Virginia Tech golf team began play in the NCAA Regionals this morning. The Hokies are competing in the East Regional at Council Fire Golf Club in Chattanooga, TN. They are the #11 seed in a 27 team field.
more

TSL Audio: The Final Word, 5/14/08
May 15, 2008
Free Audio Feature: On yesterday's show, "The Final Word With George Hunsicker", Chris and George talked about ACC football and basketball schedule expansion, the benefits and challenges of scheduling top OOC competition in football, the sad state of ACC football, and how competitive the Hokies have been in the ACC (WMA format, compatible with Windows Media Player and MP3 players, 3.3 MB, 14:08).
more

VT Recruits in Action at Southern Invitational
May 14, 2008
For most of the players at the Southern Invitational in Charlottesville, VA, this AAU tournament was a chance to get their names out there in front of recruiters from some of the top schools on the East coast. It is what makes AAU basketball so unique; the goal is not as much about the success of the team as it is about getting the players to the next level.
more

VT No Slouch at Winning ACC Championships
May 13, 2008
Virginia Tech is completing its fourth year in ACC competition, and the results have been encouraging so far. The Hokies have won a total of nine ACC Championships in their first four years in the league. As Tech becomes entrenched in the ACC, and recruiting continues to improve across all sports, that number has a chance to improve.
more

VT Offers Dinwiddie Linebacker
May 13, 2008
Virginia Tech hadn't expressed a significant amount of interest in Dinwiddie (VA) linebacker Bradley Johnson until a few weeks ago, when the staff began to send handwritten letters to the 6-1, 210-pound junior. Primary recruiter Jim Cavanaugh made a stop by Dinwiddie last week, and yesterday morning informed Dinwiddie head coach Billy Mills that the Hokies would be offering Johnson an official scholarship offer.
more

Discussions About Expanded Schedules on the ACC Agenda
May 12, 2008
Officials from all 12 ACC schools traveled to Amelia Island, FL on Sunday to take part in the annual ACC meetings. Five years ago, the major topic was expansion of the league, but this time, it's expansion of the schedules in football and men's basketball that's being discussed.
more

Young Prospects Shine at Southern Invitational
May 12, 2008
The Southern Invitational AAU Tournament hosted at the University of Virginia over the weekend featured the best AAU teams from up and down the East Coast. Teams congregated for two days of round robin action Friday night into Saturday afternoon, capped by a bracket-style playoffs Saturday night and Sunday. In the 17-and-under division, it was CJ Harris and the CP3 All-Stars who exhibited ball movement and team play unbecoming of an AAU squad and easily took out the National Christian Academy in the championship, after barely escaping the Georgia Ballers in round one the night before.
more

Hokie Softball Headed to Tennessee for NCAA Tournament
May 12, 2008
Virginia Tech's softball team, fresh off their second straight ACC Championship, will play in Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament. The Hokies will participate in a four-team regional with host Tennessee, Louisville, and Winthrop. Play begins this Friday, May 16th.
more

Tech Repeats as ACC Softball Champs
May 11, 2008
Behind a 2-hitter from pitcher Angela Tincher, the Virginia Tech softball team repeated as ACC Champions with a 2-0 victory over NC State on Sunday. The win improved the Hokies to 44-15, and they now await word of their regional destination in the NCAA Softball Championship.
more

Softball Beats FSU, Baseball Upsets #1 Miami
May 10, 2008
Angela Tincher pitched a no-hitter and the Virginia Tech softball team defeated Florida State 2-0 in the ACC Tournament semifinals on Saturday afternoon. The Hokies will advance to the ACC Championship Game on Sunday, where they'll attempt to defend their title against NC State.
more

Hokies Now Set to Play Today at 2pm
May 10, 2008
More showers moved through the area on Friday night, and as a result the ACC Softball Tournament has been pushed back yet again. It is now a single elimination tournament, and the Hokies will finally get to play again on Saturday at 2pm.
more

Friday Football Q&A: May 9, 2008
May 9, 2008
We are back with another session of Friday Q&A! Raleigh Hokie will answer some interesting questions today, such as why Kam Chancellor is the best fit at free safety, as well as other questions about Virginia Tech's offensive tempo.
more
 
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