The Hokie football team has just a few more days of practice left before they finalize their depth chart and start game week preparation for NC State. Our insiders tell us that Marcus Vick is ironing out the kinks in his formidable game, Jimmy Williams is flashing the ability that makes him the best cornerback in the country, and Nic Schmitt is finally hitting his groove.

"Vick looked very sharp and in command in the two minute drill," our source said. "He was getting the receivers set and up to the line of scrimmage efficiently. He was fitting the ball in tight spaces and moved the ball down the field. I believe the offense scored a touchdown with about 5 seconds to go on the clock. I don't think you could ask for better results in a two minute drill.

"The quarterbacks had a good day in one on one drills, I thought. In this drill, there is one wideout and one DB. The quarterbacks were very accurate. This is a tough drill for the defensive backs. Jimmy Williams is about the only guy who can lock anyone down.

"Chris Clifton is back with the team at wide receiver, and he looked good in this drill. Chris is big, quick and strong. He was getting off the line of scrimmage well. I wonder what would have happened with his career if he had caught that pass at the 15 yard line against USC. I don't think he would have sat on the bench for the rest of the season, and maybe Justin Harper would have redshirted. We'll never know."

Watching these passing drills made our observer realize the extent of Jimmy Williams' talent. When Jim Cavanaugh signed Williams out of Bethel High in Hampton back in 2002, Cavanaugh pooh-poohed recruiting rankings, as he always does, and held Williams up as a prime example of how wrong rankings can be. Williams wasn't ranked in-state by Doug Doughty until Doughty released his postseason rankings that year, and even then, Williams was only #26. Rivals.com had him as the #30 safety in the country, and Williams has turned out to be arguably the best cornerback in college football.

"Jimmy Williams is just amazing to watch. He doesn't get fooled by any receiver on the team, and the way he can move his hips for a guy his size is incredible. He'll have a big year if quarterbacks throw his way."

That's a big if.

In other observations, our observer's report sounded familiar, from the standpoint that a different receiver drew the positive comments. (It changes from one report to the next.) "It's tough to determine exactly who is our best receiver. Today I thought it was Josh Morgan. He looked to be on the same page with the quarterbacks. He doesn't just catch the ball, he snags it out of the air. He made a great catch on a fade in the corner of the end zone over Brandon Flowers. Good coverage, but good throw from Sean Glennon and a great adjustment by Morgan to go up and get it."

Nic Schmitt has fought off the challenge from freshman Brent Bowden, as expected, and he appears to be getting in a groove, or at least, he was today. Schmitt can boom it, but he is seeking consistency. "I thought Nic Schmitt looked good punting the ball today," we were told. "He was getting good hang time and good distance, and I don't remember any shanks. He has responded well since Bowden stepped up and posed a challenge to him."

Another source told us, "I watched Schmitt punt and all of them (I lost track of how many) were very good. None of this two-good-one-bad stuff."

As for Brent Bowden, some of you expressed surprise and concern when Frank Beamer looked at Brent during ESPN's broadcast of a Tech practice a few days back and said, "Brent -- is it Brett, or Brent?"

How could Frank Beamer, the special teams coach, not know the first name of his freshman punter? Well, a very, very good source tells us that Beamer was kidding around. It appears that a defensive coach was making a public speaking engagement a while back, and he incorrectly referred to Brent as "Brett," more than once. Since then, the "Brent or Brett?" thing is a running joke on the football team. Beamer deadpanned it so well on ESPN that day that it seemed like he was serious.

Which defensive coach made the faux pas? Hint: he coaches a player named Brett.

Other Notes

• "William Wall might be hurt," our observer said. He was not in pads today, not even a helmet. He was just jogging, doing some light sprints with Cordarrow Thompson. Cordarrow hasn't been in full uniform that I've seen since the first day of practice. Just a T-shirt and shorts." (Editor's Note: Wall and Thompson have not been cleared by the NCAA Clearing House, therefore they can't practice with the team.)
  
  
• Freshman QB Greg Boone is down to 260 pounds, after reporting at 287. This is believable, in light of the fact that Boone was also overweight in the spring/summer of 2004 but whipped himself into shape for his senior year rather quickly. Here at TSL, we sure wish we could drop 27 pounds in just a few weeks. Sigh.