Tech Sports Blog

[The following post was published at HokieHaven.com on September 10, 2007.]

One word could be used to describe me after LSU’s completely dismantled the Hokies: salty.

I was literally and figuratively salty both during and following the game. Literally because the Louisiana humidity had me sweating the entire day, and I had salt deposits on the front and back of my shirt. Figuratively because I was disappointed and angry at our performance Saturday night. LSU pounded us from every direction and made us look like a high school team. No, I didn’t expect to walk out of Tiger stadium Saturday with a victory, but I did not expect to see us get schooled 48-7.

The most disappointing aspect of the game was how the Tiger offense put together methodical drive after methodical drive against a defense that is supposedly one of the best in the nation. LSU had a few big plays, but they surely didn’t need them. Their offense consistently moved the ball, and they kept our defense guessing the entire game. Not including LSU’s final “drive” of the game (where they knelt one play to run out the clock), the Tiger offense scored on 8 drives and punted on the other 3. LSU never turned the ball over.

On the other side of the ball, LSU’s defense looked like men amongst boys. They were often in our offensive backfield, harassing Sean Glennon and Tyrod Taylor all night. The Hokies were held to 149 total yards. Somehow, I haven’t figured it out yet, we managed to get rid of the goose egg on the scoreboard. However, LSU’s defense deserved a shutout.

There just isn’t much more I can say about LSU. They played absolutely lights out on both sides of the ball Saturday, and they handed us one of our most demoralizing losses in recent memory.

As for us, it really was depressing to watch. It felt like we took a few steps back that game, and we left Baton Rouge with more questions than answers.

What’s next for our offense? We knew our offensive line would struggle, but I felt like they hit rock bottom on Saturday. Maybe I’m being too negative here, because LSU’s front seven is the best they’ll see all season. As for the future, the future is now in the hands of freshmen phenom Tyrod Taylor. Personally, I don’t get it, but more on that later. The fact of the matter is the offense looked very bad, and it hurts to see that with the talent we have at tailback and in our wide receiving corps.

Did last year’s defense deserve it’s number one ranking? We didn’t lose many starters on the defensive side of the ball, and it was expected that this year’s defense would pick up where last year’s defense left off. On Saturday, the defense looked nothing like the squad that led the nation in total defense the last few years. If they are truly an elite defense, they should be able to keep any offense to less than 8 scoring drives. Ok, I admit, we’re not as bad as we looked on Saturday, but I’m beginning to think our defense is not as good as we thought.

Is the ACC really this bad? The supposed top team in the ACC got blown out by the cream of the crop of the SEC. Miami got worked by Oklahoma, and Florida State only beat UAB by 10. Wake Forest was a pleasant surprise, only losing by 3 to Nebraska, and Georgia Tech was the league’s “bright spot” as they blew out Division I-AA Samford by the score of 69-14.

Tyrod

I know there are many Hokies who were happy to see Tyrod make his debut on Saturday night, and I know many are happy that he’s getting his first start on Saturday. (At the time of this writing, I haven’t read any message boards since Friday night, so I don’t know the pulse of the virtual Hokie Nation. I expect the debates are raging.) Personally, it upsets me. I was pretty pissed off on Saturday when Beamer threw Tyrod in the game. Yes, Glennon made a few bad decisions, but he also had the LSU defense in his face the entire time. You cannot judge Sean’s performance Saturday night at face value. He was getting hit hard behind a substandard offensive line. When Tyrod came into the game, I felt like the coaching staff had essentially given up on the game. I felt like that sent a bad message to the team and to the fans.

I did not think Taylor played a whole heck of a lot better than Glennon, although he was able to make a few plays with his feet. That brings me to my next point. The fact that we are going with Tyrod Taylor tells me our offensive line is really that bad. It tells me we need to have a dual threat quarterback under center, because he needs to cover up for the inadequacies of our line. I didn’t like it in 2003 when we played musical chairs at the quarterback position, and I hope this year doesn’t turn into that. That year ended up being a complete disappointment, and I want this team to achieve more success than the ’03 team did.

Don’t get me wrong, I want Tyrod to go out there and light it up. However, the fact that we’re going with him so early just feels like a red flag. Our trips to Clemson and Georgia Tech look much more difficult now. I’m glad we have a few weeks of lighter competition before we hit the meat of the schedule.

Positives from the weekend

Getting back to lighter side of life, I want to take a moment to thank the LSU faithful for being absolutely gracious hosts on Saturday. Folks, if you consider yourself a college football fan, you have to go to Baton Rouge for a LSU game once in your life. They are professional tailgaters, they are passionate about their team, and they are great hosts. I wandered around their campus a few times on Saturday. Although I was on the receiving end of many “Tiger Bait!” chants and friendly razzing, I saw smiles and was welcomed to Baton Rouge. By the end of the afternoon, I was invited to a half dozen tailgates and given food and beer. They were a lot of fun to hang out with, and I received very few negative comments after the game. I would consider going back to Baton Rouge for a LSU game regardless of the opponent, and I recommend you do the same if you couldn’t make this trip. LSU is what college football is all about.

Looking forward to our schedule, this weekend’s game against Ohio means much more than it did before Saturday. It is vital for the team to regroup and bounce back after Saturday’s Bayou beatdown. It will be difficult to recuperate both mentally and physically. They need to come out strong and united this Saturday in Lane Stadium, because this game will set the tone for the rest of the season. The players can either let their performance in Baton Rouge get them down, or they can use it as motivation to prove to the fans and to themselves that they are better.

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EDIT … I wanted to clarify my thoughts on the Clemson and Georgia Tech road trips. Two things concern me.

1. Starting a true frosh means you’re going to have some ugly mistakes behind center. Clemson will be another difficult environment, and GT has a superb defense, which means the likelihood of those freshmen mistakes will be higher.
2. The fact that we’re going with Tyrod at this point really really concerns me about our offense. It means that we need a mobile quarterback to make up all of our shortcomings.

Maybe I’m putting too much stock into #1, and Tyrod will do just fine. However, I can’t emphasize #2 enough. Beamer has never been one to hand over the reins to a true freshmen, so since he is doing so this season means we’ve got serious problems on the offensive side of the ball. Tyrod Taylor is a great talent, and he’ll be able to cover up for our crappy offensive line at times, but he will not cure our offensive woes all by his lonesome.

Putting the QB situation off to the side for a moment, look at one other player’s stats …

According to ESPN.com Brandon Ore has rushed for 98 yards on 37 attempts averaging 2.6 yards per carry. His longest run the last two games? 9 yards.

Folks, it doesn’t matter who we have behind center. If we can’t get our tailbacks some running room, we’re going to have some rough games this year.

Categories: HokieHaven, VT Football
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