I had a chance to see Saturday's scrimmage first hand, and let me tell you, it's hard to keep up with those things and tell what the heck is going on.  First of all, the quarterbacks are all wearing yellow jerseys, and it's hard to tell them apart from one another.  It's pretty easier to figure out Michael Vick from Al Clark, because Clark is a little shorter and a lot stockier, but it's darn near impossible to differentiate between Dave Meyer, Denny Randolph, Travis Turner, and Grant Noel - and I'm not even sure Turner is suiting up at quarterback these days.

They run players in and out constantly, and furthermore, there's about a million freshmen and walk-ons out there.  Tech is curretly suiting up over a hundred players, so some players wear the same number, which confuses a tiny brain like mine even further.

And Saturday, it was impossible to figure out what was happening on any given play, because by the time any play started, Corey Moore was ending it.

I attended the scrimmage with a couple of message board posters, and we all decided by the end of the scrimmage that whoever was blocking Moore should hang up his jersey.   Corey spent the afternoon in the offensive backfield, blowing in on the quarterback and pressuring him on every play.

Last spring, I saw one scrimmage and the spring game, and so far this fall, I've seen one scrimmage, and for me, they're getting really monotonous.  The defense routinely buries the offense in the scrimmages that I watch.  I seem to miss the ones where the offense actually scores, and instead, I find myself watching scrimmages like Saturday's, where the defense racked up thirteen sacks, including five by Moore.

What the papers don't tell you is that they're not true sacks.  In a scrimmage, all the defender has to do is touch one of the yellow-jerseyed quarterbacks, and the whistle blows.  But I will say that Corey spent enough time in the backfield that if this had been an actual game, with tackling required, he might have still racked up 3 or 4 sacks.

Again, it's hard to take away specific impressions from a scrimmage that involves the defensive line dominating the offensive line, but here's what I saw:

• Lee Suggs is slick, and was involved in one of only two plays that the offense can be proud of.  Lee ripped off about a 20 yard run that saw him change direction in the secondary several times.  Any other running back gains maybe 10-15 yards, but Lee's efforts earned pretty solid applause from the sparse crowd.

• The other play that was notable for the offense was a pretty pass from Grant Noel to walk-on Duane Caines for a 37 yard TD.  Duane got inside the defender, and Grant led him to the middle of the field with a beautiful pass, enabling Duane to separate himself from the DB and score easily.  If there had been more real estate available, the pass might have covered 50, 60, or 70 yards.

• I can't believe Jake Houseright is only a freshman.  I could work out for 8-10 years and not be that much of a stud (that's today gratuitous Jake Houseright plug).

• Vick has a strong arm and great confidence.  The one play he had that impressed me the most occurred when the defense blitzed about 12 guys, and Vick rared up and threw the ball out of the back of the end zone for an incompletion.  I know it sounds silly, but he totally had nowhere to go, and he got rid of the ball in a hurry, and I can't remember the last time I saw a Tech quarterback do that.

• Several times, when Beamer shouted "one against one" through his megaphone, meaning that he wanted the #1 offense against the #1 defense, Nick Sorensen lined up on defense at the safety spot.  Read into that what you will.  Maybe Keion Carpenter wasn't suited up, but all I know is, I saw Nick lining up with the #1 defense.

All in all, it was a ragged, inconclusive effort that featured Corey Moore but little else.  I consider Al Clark's knee to be a dead issue at this point, because he showed no ill effects.  Of more concern to me is the fact that OL Matt Lehr is out for up to a month with a sprained ankle.

Corey Moore Leads Hokies Defense in Scrimmage - Bristol Herald Courier

Tech allows 13 sacks in scrimmage - The Roanoke Times

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