Sshhhh!! Quiet!! Somebody Will Hear You!

The Richmond Times-Dispatch ran an article Tuesday praising Tech strength and conditioning coach Mike Gentry and the work he does building the Hokies into an awesome football team. We've talked about Gentry a few times on this page, but it bears repeating that he is without a doubt one of the biggest factors in the Hokies' success of the last few years. Interestingly enough, Gentry spent five years at ECU in the late 80's before coming to Tech.

The problem is that the more attention Gentry gets, the more likely it is that he'll be hired away by a larger, richer school, or maybe even the NFL. On the positive side, Tech is taking a step in the right direction towards keeping Gentry by building the new Merryman Facility, which will include a state of the art weight room and conditioning facilities. If Gentry has been able to tolerate Tech's outdated facilities thus far, he's going to be thrilled when the Hokies build him a brand-spanking-new weight room.

I once read a comment by a Pitt fan that sums up Gentry's value perfectly. The guy said something like, "Pitt recruits guys who weigh 270 pounds, and when they graduate, they weigh 275. Tech recruits guys who weigh 250, and two years later, they weigh 300 pounds."

Not only that, but Gentry makes them stronger and faster along the way. Let's hope this guy stays put.

Wade Featured in USA Today Article

In yesterday's USA Today On-line, in their "College Sports" section, Tech deep snapper Tim Wade was featured in the main article. Wade is a senior who has spent his career behind Jim Pyne and Billy Conaty at the center spot, but he has owned the deep-snapper spot since mid-1994. Wade said that his most pressure-filled snap was the extra point snap in last year's Virginia game, when the score was tied 29-29 and the extra point represented the difference between a win and a tie. No problem. We all know how that came out.

The Hokie Huddler On-line ... Sort of

All right, all of you remote Hokie fans who have been crying to have the Huddler on-line, here's your chance to have your voice heard. "hokie.com" has a limited version of the Huddler on-line at http://www.hokie.com/huddler.html. Be sure to check it out.

More importantly, there is a short form for you to fill out in which you can indicate your prodigous desire to see the Huddler on-line. For you far-away Hokies who don't get your Huddlers until a week-and-a-half after the game, an on-line version is the perfect answer. Visit the link and let them know what you think!

The Big East Tie-Breaker

I get a lot of questions about what the Big East tie-breaker is, and I'll have to admit that despite a little research on my part, I haven't been able to find out the details. I did pick up a little info on the Tech radio broadcast the other day, and if I remember correctly, here's what I heard: the first tie-breaker is head-to-head record. The winner of the head-to-head game gets to go to the Bowl Alliance, UNLESS the "number two" team is ranked five spots or more higher than the "number one" team, in which case the Bowl Alliance can take the "number two" team.

That's all I know. I don't know which poll the tiebreaker is based on, or whether or not it's a hybrid poll that will be used. If anybody out there can clear this up (and I know some of you can, because you've sent me email on this subject before that I've deleted), please send me some more info. I'll post it on the page and give you extra credit and a gold star.

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