Thursday, August 9, 2001
by Will Stewart, TechSideline.com

With the true freshman having been on campus since Monday, Virginia Tech's upperclass football players will arrive today. Media day is tomorrow, and then the dreaded two-a-day practices start Saturday.

The freshmen reported Monday and worked out in a freshman "mini-camp" Tuesday and Wednesday. The freshmen are taking today off while the coaches welcome the upperclassmen back, and then the entire team will be present at Lane Stadium for interviews and the team picture on Friday.

News out of the freshman mini-camp has been good. In the past, injuries have sometimes occurred during freshman drills (most notably Camm Jackson's knee injury in 1997), but fortunately, no injuries have been reported this year.

Speaking of injuries, Kevin Jones is progressing nicely from the high ankle sprain he suffered in the Big 33 Classic All-Star game last month. Jones is full-speed in straight-ahead drills, but less than full-speed in drills that require cutting and side motions. One observer of early practices remarked to Tech Sideline via email, "If he (Jones) runs that good hurt, I can't imagine how good he is healthy."

In addition to Jones, all eyes are on the freshman quarterbacks -- Will Hunt, Bryan Randall, and Chris Clifton. At 6-4, 200 Clifton is thin and appears destined for a redshirt year. One of the freshmen will serve as the third quarterback this coming season, and with Clifton headed for an apparent redshirt, it's down to Hunt and Randall.

Sources indicate to Tech Sideline that Hunt has excelled in the classroom portion of learning the offense, including written tests, since arriving on campus for second summer session. Hunt and Randall are essentially equal in weightlifting and running drills, both standing out in various areas (according to  BeamerBall.com, Randall ran a faster 40 time, with Hunt logging the second-best vertical jump among the freshmen). In passing drills, Beamer noted on BeamerBall.com that Randall's arm strength "surprised" him, and that Hunt was "up and down" in passing.

Beamer is not expected to wait very long before deciding on which one of the freshmen will be his third quarterback this coming season. He told television reporters that it is important to name the non-redshirt freshman QB early, so the player in question can work hard and get the undivided attention of the coaches.

TechLocker.com Gearing Up for Football Season

Email and message board inquiries have increased lately as to new product lines that will be carried in TechLocker.com, our on-line store. We have been talking about our plans to increase TechLocker.com's offerings in a product-line expansion that will be the first since its launch nearly two years ago, and here's the latest information.

First of all, we have restocked the store (TechLocker.com inventory levels have been low for the last few months), so the items that are currently on display should be available, with very few exceptions.

The new items will start rolling in in a couple of weeks, and new offerings and products will continue to appear throughout football season. Here's a breakdown of most of the new things we'll be carrying:

Apparel Items: #22 Nike replica jerseys, bathrobes, camouflage caps, women's apparel (t-shirts, sleeveless denims, baby-doll tees), silk ties, VT baseball shirt (Henley-style), flip-flops.

GameDay Items: stadium blankets, stadium seats, umbrellas.

Home Items: VT banners/house flags, blankets, beach towels, mini-helmets and authentic (full-size) helmets, VT welcome mat, golf towel.

Automotive Items: car flags, car magnets, license plate frames, auto floor mats, trailer hitch covers.

Gift Items: gold watch, checkbook cover, wallet, plus a new line of glassware.

Tech Sideline Apparel: T-shirts, hats, and polo shirts.

Items Appearing Later (September/October): retro letterman-style sweater, maroon polar fleece, various maroon outerwear items.

We're happy to be carrying the new items, and they ought to make shopping at TechLocker.com a more fulfilling and exciting experience. Look for the new items starting in a couple of weeks (we're working on getting everything in well before the season opener), and watch the "Featured Item" box on the home page for new offerings.

Get yourself ready for football season by heading to TechLocker.com now!

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