Believe me, I was not happy after this one. It hurt. It was just a rough loss to swallow. However, after a few days to cool down the sun is coming back out and I still love this team. So here’s my breakdown of the game.
Special Teams
Not terrible. A lot of people were worried about this part of our game and it really wasn’t all that bad. Yes, we did have an extra point blocked, but we made up for it with the 2-point conversion later in the game. Honestly, you can’t really expect to play VT and not have them have something big happen on special teams. Scott Blair hit his only field goal try of the afternoon. No spectacular returns, but we also held on to the ball during the returns. Coverage on kicks was pretty good. Overall, I’d say we showed improvement in this area this week.
Defense
Our inexperience at linebacker showed and VT showed how to neutralize our dominant D-line. Honestly, the Hokies didn’t have much beyond Taylor’s scramble ability. He made a few good throws and Darren Evans broke a couple nice runs, but their offense really came down to T-Mobile’s feet. I think with Glennon playing we win going away. The D-line got good push, but if any lane at all opened up Taylor got through it quick and made people miss to get some crucial first downs for the Hokies. I said this was going to be a key and we just didn’t stop it. Part of it was Taylor’s quickness and speed but part of it was linebackers not being in a position to slow him down either. We are young at linebacker and this type of thing will improve with experience. Our LB crew will be stacked for the next couple of years.
One thing that surprised me is we didn’t get a single turnover. They didn’t really pass all that much so there wasn’t many chances for interceptions, but give VT credit for holding onto the ball and not giving it away on any fumbles.
Oh well, at least Tyrod doesn’t seem like as much of a thug as another VT quarterback who most recently wore #5 before him.
Offense
Josh and Heart
While my heart bleeds for this team it is also wrung dry by it at the same time. So, the good? This team shows an uncanny will to fight and scratch and will NEVER give up. Josh Nesbitt is a man and he will give his all to get this team a win. I’m seeing an attitude about this team that I haven’t seen since I arrived on the Flats in 2003. The reads are looking better and Josh is timing his pitches better. The A-backs had a much better day as Roddy grabs a huge reception for a TD and Lucas Cox showed his abilities. Josh also set a record with over 150 yards on 28 runs. This team is obviously improving and showing flashes of ability and glimpses of a very bright future.
The bad? Turnovers. No, not of the apple form. Those are delicious, but this kind is hard to swallow. We put the ball into the Hokies hands too many times. VERY rarely are you going to go into Blacksburg, give them the ball three times, and come out with a win. To keep it as close as we did was remarkable and a testament to how dangerous this team can be. The fumble right before halftime proved to be the dagger in GT fans’ hearts. Without that fumble, which setup a Hokie touchdown on a Taylor scramble, the Jackets probably win this game. It was just a mixup between the minds of Dwyer and Nesbitt. These will become less frequent as familiarity with the system grows. Remember, this is just the third game running Coach Johnson’s offense. Cut down on the turnovers and we are going to be very difficult to beat.
The ugly? In my opinion, the O-line play has got to get better. VT blew up a lot of plays as soon as the ball is snapped. That is simply unacceptable on any level. The O-line has got to get some push so we can run the dive better to really see the brilliance of the option offense. Gardner has been good, but the interior of the line has not been very good and to top it off we seem to get costly penalties at inopportune times. I’m not sure what the problem is here, but it’s got to get better to have this offense run the way it needs to. On the plus side, we did seem to have pretty good pass protection.
Coaching
Coach Johnson trying to flag down an eye doctor for these guys
What can I say? It’s been solid all year. You can see that this team is mentally prepared and that mistakes are not a product of coaching. Problems we have are mostly contributed to inexperience, which is what we all expected. Coach Johnson knows how to adjust and have his kids in the right mindset. The thing I really like is Coach Johnson has such a fire about him. He showed that he was just as mad about that helmet-to-helmet call as the rest of us. You could clearly read his lips when he was yelling at the refs that they gave the game-winning field goal to VT on a bullsh*t call. It might be a matter of time before he’s fined by the ACC for calling out the incompetance of ACC refs that we all view week in and week out, but it needs to be said.
Loss 1 – Where to now?
The future is bright Yellow Jacket fans. A loss always sucks, but we certainly showed promise. I doubt we play another QB that is as mobile as Tyrod Taylor and our LBs will be more experienced by the time we do. This offense will continue to get better. The Jackets are favored in their next three contests and if they take care of business will be 5-1 going into Clemson. We did well splitting the BC-VT monster of a start and the option offense should be much improved for the more difficult second half of the season. All I know is that the second half of this season is going to be VERY exciting. This offense should have started to click and the inexperienced defense will have experience.
Coach Johnson has this program headed in the right direction and opponents are going to hate to play us. We just lost by three to the Hokies in Blacksburg, that is nothing to be ashamed of. Especially when you consider that take away the fumble before the half and/or the helmet-to-helmet call and I think we win that game. We show considerable promise and I love the attitude of this team.
Mississippi State comes to town this week. A horrid offense, but a very respectable defense. Turnovers will again be key, but I’m excited and certain that TOs will start to dissappear with experience in this offense.
Prayers go out for Jonathon Dwyer’s hip and to Virginia Tech losing two ACC games. We need Jonathon. I think he will be ok and the training staff will do all they can to help out that contusion. Since the Hokies now own the head-to-head with us, we need them to lose two ACC games and us win the rest. Can we do it? Yes. Will it be easy? Absolutely not. But we can always hope, right? Coach Johnson and this team has certainly inspired hope in this GT fan. Go Jackets! Bring on the other Bulldogs!
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