Playing for Pride

First and foremost, it was good to watch the Hokie O move the ball at will. It brought back memories of Miami and BC... before the Dark Times. And it's apparent that Tyrod has followed the Bryan Randall plan of quarterback development: slow start, underwhelming numbers the first couple of years, splitting time under center, and then it just clicks. At this point if you're a Tyrod detractor there's just not much for us to talk about. Tyrod has settled into the leadership role of this offense and is simply getting it done. I'd suggest that anyone who wants more out of a VT quarterback than Tyrod brings to the table needs to accept that it wasn't really so much that Mike Vick was a great quarterback, it was simply that the defenses being run while Mike Vick played at Tech were completely unprepared for him.

I've heard some criticism about the Hokies' inability to convert red zone appearances into touchdowns in the second half, but I think that argument is bunk. The first half was more than enough proof that Maryland could not stop whatever the Hokies wanted to do on offense, and Beamer could have hung 60 points on Maryland if he had wanted to. What people need to understand is that Frank is never going to do that to Ralph Friedgen. There's way too much history between those two, and their friendship is way too strong - and Frank Beamer is just simply too decent a guy - to run up the score to the point of humiliation.

So if we can't really hang all the red zone field goals on Stinespring, there's really not much to criticize Stinespring for in this game. Except, of course, for what might well have been the single worst call we've endured from Stiney all season. At the 11:34 mark of the 4th quarter with the game completely in hand VT faced 1st and 10 from their own 1 yard line. Stinespring, who had found success all day with the pass, seemed to miss the memo on where we were on the field and that the focus of the game had shifted to clock control. Bryan called a pass play from our own end zone, and the inevitable blitz by the Terrapins shredded the offensive line and forced a fumble which was recovered in the end zone for a Terps touchdown. With that one mind-bogglingly stupid call Stinespring managed to triple the Hokies' points allowed in the game.

But the biggest indictment of Stiney came not from the Maryland game on Saturday, but from Durham, NC, where Georgia Tech scored 49 unanswered points to throttle the Duke Blue Devils and clench the Coastal Division crown. VT is now officially an also-ran in the ACC. VT - with the best running back in the ACC and perhaps all of college football, with a vastly improved receiving corps, with a quarterback touting a 4:1 touchdown to interception ratio - misses out on an opportunity to defend its conference championship.

Why?

Because this season Bud Foster is fielding a top-20 defense instead of a top-10 defense.

Forget any thoughts of national championships. With Stinespring calling plays for the offense, it takes the best defense in college football to give us a chance to play for the championship of our own conference.

How can there be any question that this guy needs to go?

Open Thread: Maryland - Bloggin' Thru Swine Flu Edition

Howdy FBSers. The IH here, on the mend from H1N1 and thoroughly pissed off about how many VT games are finding their way onto ESPN360, where absolutely nobody can watch them. I've got my Yahoo! Sports GameChannel open and I'm ready to kick back, sip some hot tea, hack my lungs out, and pontificate on what's about to go down in College Park.

Post your in-game thoughts and opinions here, won't you?

Another Former Hokie Weighs in on Stiney

One of our fellow FBSr's sent me an email pointing out some interesting tweets by former VT Free Safety Brenden Hill:

BrendenHill - Top 5 Defense + Top 5 Special Teams +111th Ranked Offense=Ten Wins and ACC Championships! I need a the Big 1!! But I'm proud of my guys

BrendenHill - I apologize to Bryan Stinespring. It isn't his fault we lost but I need more than 10 points from my offense.

BrendenHill - I'm SICK!!! GT has always given us trouble! Damnit Bryan Stinespring!

BrendenHill - Note to Virginia Tech: Go Hire Cincinattis Offensive Coordinator!!!

It's nice to see that more players have some reservations about Stiney's coaching ability. If any of you come across any other former players who speak ill of the BS: Great Failure, please let us know at firebryanstinespring@gmail.com.

As always: T-Shirts, anyone?

FFODC: Bud Foster's Successor

It's been quite a while since I've posted here, so I'm sorry for the delay. I've been busy moving my site over to http://www.ffodc.com, and nobody wanted to help me with the futon. I have to give credit where credit is due, and HokieJayBee gave me the idea for this post by talking about things we've lost, and might lose as a program. This is crossposted from my site. Come for the wit, stay for the analysis and COMMENT!

For the past several years, Virginia Tech fans have been extremely concerned about the prospect of losing defensive coordinator Bud Foster to a head coaching job. Earlier today, the Washington Post broke news that Foster is interested in the University of Memphis vacancy (Tommy West was fired Monday). Like previous seasons, Hokie Nation has begun crafting doomsday scenarios that might or might not come into play. However, over these past few seasons that have seen Foster flirt with Clemson, NC State, Illinois and South Carolina, nobody seems to want to discuss what WILL happen when Foster leaves Blacksburg for good.

Keep in mind that Frank Beamer is 63 years young. Beamer has stated publicly that he has several years left before he wants to hang up the clipboard. Bud Foster is no spring chicken himself (he turned 50 in July), and the window of opportunity might be closing on the long-time Hokie great. Foster has long stated that he wants a Big Six, BCS conference job rather than being forced to build a mid-major into a power. Unfortunately, various athletic directors have chosen people with direct head coaching experience over Foster. This leads me to believe that Bud is reevaluating his stance, and considering any FBS situation that could be favorable. The guy has coached five consecutive top ten defenses (nationally), and in this “down year,” he’s managed to produce the 23rd best defense (on yardage) as well as the 21st scoring defense in the country. Not too shabby. Hokie fans need to come to terms that there will not be a succession plan for the four-time Broyles Award nominee, and that Bud’s days in Blacksburg are probably coming to a close.

However, we must have faith that Ol’ Bud doesn’t plan on leaving Beamer high-and-dry. There’s a good possibility that he might take an assistant or two with him to the school of his choosing, but I expect that he’ll do his best to leave the program in good hands after he’s gone. Beamer is notorious for being loyal to his current staff, and I believe that it’s highly unlikely that he will look outside the program to replace Foster. That being said, let’s take a look at the current staff and examine who the best candidate will be to succeed Bud as Virginia Tech’s defensive coordinator.

Jim Cavanaugh- Defensive Assistant, Whips and Rovers

Cavanaugh has been an assistant under Foster since the 1996 season, and is entering his eighth as Tech’s recruiting coordinator. Coach Cavanaugh has done a great job of both bringing in and developing talent for Frank Beamer’s program. He recruited the likes of Michael Vick, the Adibi brothers, Macho Harris, Bryan Randall and Chris Ellis among others. Along with the big names, he has worked with players with less notoriety and turned them into defensive mainstays for the Hokies. Aaron Rouse, James Anderson, Pierson Prioleau, Cam Martin and Cody Grimm all entered the program as question marks and developed into explosive, reliable players for Cavanaugh. In particular, Grimm has been developed into one of the most disruptive defenders in the last 20 years for the Hokies.

Pros: Considering that Cavanaugh coaches two positions that require high football IQ, he’s got a great knowledge of Foster’s system, and in particular, his blitzing schemes. He’s a proven motivator, and has gotten maximum efforts from his players over the years. If we’re looking for someone with significant experience and intelligence, Cavanaugh provides a great deal of both. He has been a part of ten conference championships, and has learned from some of the best in Lou Holtz, Bobby Ross, and now Frank Beamer.

Cons: We all know that a great recruiter does not necessarily transition into a great coordinator (Stinespring). Cavanaugh is the oldest member of Foster’s defensive staff, and it’s hard to say how long he’ll be willing to stay around. Virginia Tech’s program has been a picture of stability over the last fifteen seasons, and I believe Beamer will be looking for someone that expects to coach in Blacksburg for a long time.

Charley Wiles- Defensive Line Coach

Wiles has been on the Virginia Tech staff since 1996, and has been known for developing a crop of disruptive, yet undersized defensive linemen throughout his tenure. He can claim the likes of Corey Moore, Darryl Tapp, Chris Ellis, Orion Martin, and now Jason Worilds as his outstanding performers. Wiles units have been consistently strong, even without ideal size. His players are typically known for their work ethic and speed, which are both nurtured under his tutelage. He makes the most out of developing relatively small guys with big hearts and consistent motors.

Pros: Wiles has developed players to the tops of the college football world. His players have probably been most nationally-recognized during their careers IN college, but not necessarily in the NFL. Eighteen of Wiles' former defensive linemen have earned all-conference honors, and been named All-Americans five times. This is a direct result of playing with smaller players. However, Wiles also teaches his ends impeccable technique and timing, which are two very valuable assets to a defensive coach. He knows Foster's system inside and out, and isn't too old to stick around at Tech long after Foster leaves (he's 45). He also follows in the same mold as Foster, because he's a former player under Beamer, and was an All-American at the Division 1-AA level himself.

Cons: The likelihood of Wiles sticking around if Bud leaves is lower than a guy like Cavanaugh, mostly because he and Foster are close friends. There have been whispers that Wiles would leave Blacksburg with Foster and become his defensive coordinator. He's also a guy that has stayed in the same position for thirteen years. Is that extreme loyalty, or is there a reason nobody's tried to pluck him away?

Torrian Gray- Defensive Backs Coach

Gray is the greenest member of Foster's staff, serving in his fourth season in 2009. He is a former player under Foster, and was a standout at rover and free safety. While Gray has not accumulated as much experience as his fellow staff members, he's considered a rising star in the program, and has experience on the NFL level as well. He led one of the best defensive secondaries in the country in his two years at UConn, and coached for two years with the Chicago Bears, where he worked under Lovie Smith and with a group of the leagues most respected defensive minds.

Pros: As previously mentioned, Gray is considered a rising star in the coaching world. He's been largely successful in several programs, and he's transitioned smoothly from position-to-position. He's produced several high-caliber players in his first several years in Blacksburg, and helped make Brandon Flowers into an unstoppable force at the boundary corner position. Flowers has praised Gray for his enthusiasm and knowledge in making him one of the most successful corners in Virginia Tech history. His defensive backs are known for their ability to generate turnovers and their tenacity. He seems to be working his magic with another former "unknown" in Rock Carmichael. He earns the respect of his players quickly, and is more than willing to defend them in public forums.

Cons: Gray is only 35, and only has nine years of professional experience. He has never had to take on a lead role with a defensive staff (unlike Cavanaugh as recruiting coordinator, and Wiles as a co-defensive coordinator at Murray), and might be a little too inexperienced and fiery to carry out Beamer's plans to a 'T.' He's also been known as to cater a little too much to his players' egos, and hasn't been able to instill the best discipline in his DBs at times (e.g. Kam Chancellor). Most would argue that Gray would need to see an increased role in defensive playcalling or scheming before he's ready to step up as a coordinator.

Once you consider all of the options available within the program, it's easy to see that there are capable coaches that could take the reigns from Foster. However, I believe that Wiles will follow Bud to his new school, which leaves Gray and Cavanaugh. In that scenario, Beamer will probably keep Cavanaugh in his recruiter's role, and promote Gray, even though he has less experience. I would consider Cav to be the safe choice, but Gray to have greater potential. I think that Beamer and Foster see the promise with Gray, and it would be a big statement for the future of the program. If Gray is successful in taking over for Foster, he could keep the Hokie defense at a high level for years to come.

What do you think about the succession situation? Should we promote one of these three guys or look outside the program? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

Uh oh.

Recently Big Tony made a post about things Bryan Stinespring has cost us.
****PASTE****
1) A shot at a National Championship.
2) A shot at an ACC Championship.
3) A shot at a 6th consecutive 10-win season.
4) Our dignity as a football powerhouse.
****PASTE****

Don't go read here if you don't want to think of the absolute worst possibility of something else Bryan and his offenses could cost us.

Although, after carrying Bryan around all these years, his back must be tired. I guess I don't blame him a bit.

A Surprise Interview With a Former VT Player

Over the weekend, I ran into a former VT player at a bar somewhere in VA. Let's not get into details about who, what, where, why and when. It is safer that way. I will just give you a summary of the important stuff we talked about. The conversation was very, very casual (as in we each had a drink in our hand) as I am not a professional journalist, just a concerned fan and someone who believes our football program is wasting talent on offense and is also wasting great defenses.

The player played at VT sometime during the Stinespring OC era. He was at VT for his entire college football career. I will not tell you which side of the ball he played on, but let's just say this player said that former players on both sides of the ball agree with this player's assessments of certain coaches. In fact, the player made it seem like this was a consensus agreement about our offensive coaching staff. He spoke freely, but since I am an honest guy, I told him I blog for this website and he agreed to still speak to me and answer my questions as long as I did not publicly name him [for political reasons and for wrath of Beamer]. I am going to keep my word to him. The following is a paraphrase of the 5+ minute conversation I had with him. I did not have a tape recorder with me because I was not expecting to run into him and I am not a reporter like I said. I am not sure he would have agreed to be recorded anyways. I am just going to paraphrase my questions and his responses. This was a total surprise what he said to me in response to some of my questions and you will be very interested in what he had to say. Tell me if any of this sounds familiar and if you have heard some of this stuff anywhere before?

Me: I write for the FBS website. Do you read the website? I heard from some reliable sources some former players do read the website. I know the Football Offices and Athletic Dept monitor the website to try and improve Stinespring's PR, but it is hard to try and argue against the facts and the statistics...

Anonymous Player: Hahaha. Yes, I am aware of the site. Yes, I do read the website. So do other former players. We talk about the website sometimes. We think you guys are dead on and you guys do quality work on there. I think it is funny because you guys are all just preaching to the choir about our offense. Lots of us [former VT players] agree with you guys, but we are not allowed to admit that publicly [give an interview to the press/media about it] because it would upset Beamer. There is a lot of politics involved in our football program even after we graduate. It is not smart to upset the boss.

Me: Have you been watching the last few games [I was referencing more the GT and UNC losses than the ECU game]? What do you think about the offense and more specifically about Stinespring? I think Stinespring lost us both of those games with his predictable playcalling, poorly designed gameplan and lack of in game adjustments. I think we lost both games in the first half by doing nothing on offense with good field position. What is your opinion on Stinespring and the offense?

Anonymous Player: Hahaha. Again, you are just preaching to the choir about the problems with our offense, man. The problem is the coaching. We have great talent now on offense. There needs to be changes to basically every coach on the offense. The offense has no chance of improving until coaching changes are made. I am convinced of this and so are many of us [former VT players]. Even if there are weaknesses in the players, a good coach would be able to scheme and gameplan around it. The coaches do not use all of the players properly or put them in a position to succeed by playing to their strengths. What happened in those games didn't surprise me in the least. Fans really have no idea just how clueless Stinespring is. Some of you guys think you do, but it is worse than you think. He is in way, way, way over his head as an OC. I am not even sure he could be a good OC in high school. We thought he would get better each yr as an OC just learning from his mistakes, going to coaching clinics, etc. al, but that didn't happen. From just watching the games on tv, he actually seems even more confused now. He's really just clueless and nothing is going to change that.

Me: What do you think specifically about the QB coach, O'Cain?
Anonymous Player: I watched Sean Glennon in practice under Kevin Rogers and he looked real good and seemed to be destined for great seasons. To me at least, he looked like a different player than his last yr or two under O'Cain. He was a lot more confident and he was improving everyday in practice under Rogers. O'Cain is no Kevin Rogers. Let's leave it at that...

Me: Fair enough. Do you have anything else to say?
Anonymous Player: Yea. Tell your other Hokie fans that read this that the offense will not improve at all like everyone expects until coaching changes are made. We could add lots more talent and it would continue to be wasted on offense as long as the same offensive coaches are on the staff. The problem is 100% coaching. We [former players] also agree that execution is not the problem. It is very tough to successfully execute a play when the opposing defense knows exactly what is coming. They can cheat to stop it. We also agree with you guys that blaming the players for not executing has to stop. It is a cop out by the coaches. But, Beamer will not hold him [Stiney] accountable for the offense or Beamer would have made coaching changes already.

Me: Do you think there will be any coaching changes at season's end on offense even if we lost all of the remaining games this season?
Anonymous Player: Nope. Beamer is loyal to a fault. Those are his guys.

Me: So has our program peaked then? Can the program improve on its past successes in your opinion?
Anonymous Player: Yes, I think so [about our program peaking]. The offense will not improve until coaching changes are made. The last few yrs is as good as it is going to get until offensive coaching changes are made. The rest of the ACC appears to be catching up so future ACC Championships are not guaranteed if he [Beamer] keeps the coaching staff entirely intact. Even if we bring in unbelievable talent on offense, it will most likely be wasted like it has for yrs now under Stinespring.

[End of Interview]


Our website is spreading the word! We are the voice of truth! We are reaching our intended audience slowly but surely! The best part about this is we can speak our minds and not worry about the ramifications of political backlash from Beamer or the football offices or the threat of having our press passes revoked if we speak our minds in public like some other journalists do! The ESPN pre game love fest for Stinespring by Jessie Palmer and Craig James in studio right before the ECU game was no doubt engineered by our AD and football office PR departments. It was as if they were handed a script and told to read that exact garbage and outright lies about Stiney's greatness word for word!

Welcome to the ranks of the also-rans.

GT narrowly escaped Wake Forest in overtime yesterday, which all but nails the coffin shut on VT. While the Hokies are not technically mathematically eliminated from the ACCCG, a series of semi-miraculous events would have to occur: Georgia Tech would have to lose to Duke while Miami and VT would have to win out, and VT - currently 14 spots behind Georgia Tech in the BCS rankings - would have to somehow manage to jump at least six spots ahead of the Yellow Jackets.

In other words, it's over. Which is nothing short of criminal.

If I had to take a guess, I'd say that VT will fall to the Gator Bowl, with the Chick-fil-a Bowl snatching up Miami ahead of the Hokies. If that's true, then the ACC's top three bowl selections will go to Coastal teams, which would seem to imply that this year the ACC has managed to go from being a horrible conference to a conference with one horrible division.

Meanwhile, with the remainder of VT's opponents having a combined 9-18 record the chances of VT rounding out the regular season are fair to middling, which means the Hokies' bowl game would be for that mythical 10th win, just like last year. Unlike last year, however, it will be in a fair less prestigious bowl.

Despite the fact that it would no doubt be used in an attempt to justify not making changes to the coaching staff, I would like to see the Hokies get into double digits in the win column one more time. I think Frank Beamer puts a bit too much emphasis on that particular goal, but I still appreciate that no matter what conference you play in, 10 wins in a season of 1A college football is damn hard to achieve, and that we've done it so consistently with a lobotomized chimp as our OC is nothing short of miraculous. There are those who say they secretly hope for an implosion of the football team because they feel it would affect a shakeup of the offensive coaching staff, but no matter how much I loathe Stinespring's playcalling I find myself simply incapable of canoeing down that particular river. As HJB pointed out so eloquently a while back, we're all Hokies, and the fact that I criticize the (in)ability of our OC doesn't mean I don't bleed orange and maroon.

Still, it's re-goddam-diculous we're settling for a second-tier bowl game this season, with this team, and these offensive players. This is the most talented offense VT has fielded. Period. No qualifiers on that statement. But we won't so much as sniff a conference title.

On a slightly related note, our anti-Stiney t-shirts make a great Christmas or Hannukah gift.