As I indicated at the end of my last write-up, I always try to marry solutions to any problems

that I might see. Will and Chris have seen this over the years as I try to find a remedy whenever we talk or correspond about what could stand to be improved on TSL.com. Before we look at that which needs fixing with regard to VT football in 2009, lets look at a few things that are doing pretty doggone good so as to paint a balanced picture to begin with. Virginia Tech is…

• 15th in Rushing Offense
• 11th in Passing Efficiency Defense
• 5th in Passing Efficiency Offense (T-mobile is 6th in this individually)

Now I have a pop quiz for you, though lets keep it simple as this is the weekend and we are OPEN today (Saturday).

VT is loaded at Running-Back (Rb), in the Secondary and at Qb? Pretty much true. Even if we are off schedule by a season in back-up synthesis at Qb.

So that’s the great news. Among the other likable pieces of good news would be……the fact that we are also…

• 18th in 3rd Down conversion % allowed (defensively)
• 27th in Kickoff Coverage
• 21st in scoring offense (though that one is skewed by what are actually special-teams and or defensive points scored)

Not half bad. Though too every coin there is an obverse side. That which is typically turned face down. We/VT are not immune to such, so lets look at a few problem areas and try to skull session (obligatory Halloween reference insert here) a few common-sense solutions or if need be, even a exotic remedy or two.

99th in Sacks Allowed:
Might as well talk about the elephant in the room from the get go. On average we are giving up 2.71 sacks per game. That’s 9% better than last year; believer it or not; and a 30% improvement over 2007. Feeling better already?

Ok, so 99th is not so hot to trot. Nevertheless, how we fix this?

1. Is pure assignment football. Who has whom? Zone-Blocking is not real big on this. You block your given zone first then help out left or right if your Zone is vacant. So hmmmmm, letttttts seeeeeee? What could we do here? Oh wait … I have a novel idea. Why not put our Zone-Pass-Blocking scheme on the O&M garbage heep. I’d love to see a chart of our untouched Sacks. i.e. where we did not even bother to put a finger on the given defender on a Stunt or a Loop or a Twist by a given defense.

2. Hot Reads: sometimes even with pure man-on-man blocking the defense overloads a given side. You may have 2 OLinemen blocking at least 3 guys. Or 3 blockers for no less than 4 defenders. R.Will has hit two of these already this year. On any given play in my passing offense I would have at least one Hot Read to either a Running-Back with flat passing on dinks and dumps, or a mini-me Fly pattern right up the gut. Also mix in the occasional Tight-End throw on the old-school jump-pass to the vacant area immediately behind the Blitz. Tebow does this, why can’t we?

3. Throw the dang ball away up to the hot chick in row E. This is not our thing. That precious football might get picked-off. However, this is why you have Hot Reads to begin with. Just rocket the ball at R.Will’s feet but throw it about 1-2 yards short. Avoids contact and wear and tear most of the time for T-Mobile and does NOT forfeit what seems like at least 5 yards moving in reverse when being tackled for a loss on the Sack itself.

4. Old-school deeper shot-gun. Like Roger Staubach used to use. Gives the defense further to run to get to the Qb which almost has to purchase a bonus second or even closer to two seconds worth of pocket integrity as it takes longer to get there from further away. This would be snapped to the spot of say a 9 step drop, maybe even 11 depending on field position.

76th in Rushing Defense:
1. I really do not like this one. I’ve had many chalk-talks with many of you about the aforementioned O&M pachyderm. Chris Coleman hit upon part of this in his Defensive mid-season review; so please consult his article; however a dose of such bears repeating. Tackles for a Loss are down across our defensive front-line. So how about we try to free them up? How do we do that you ask? Why not try some old-school situational based (i.e. when intense film-study showcases a running tendency) Slants. Slants are just what the word seems to suggest; and we saw Georgia Tech use these effectively at times last week. You simply slant or angle your guys into the gap that favors the direction of the play. IF film-study suggests that UNC runs to their right-side outta XYZ formation, we slant left; and vicea versa. D.Taylor in particular would be very effective here as he has the quicks to jump into a given gap on any play before a bigger-heavier OLIneman can react. Hoppy is rather agile, mobile and nimble to be as rotund as he is. More playing time is needed for him; ditto Battle. Which brings me to my next solution.

2. Back-ups need love too. Playing-time! In addition to getting Hoppy, Taylor and Battle some more playing-time, we need to do more to help keep Jake and ‘Quell fresh. Taylor is a lot of thigns as a back-up Linebacker; a pass-coverage savant may not be among them. That said who among us is mistaking ‘Quell and Jake for the second coming of X in defensing the Pass? Taylor is as big. He is very strong and bulky for a Mike Linebacker in our scheme. That sure seems like the recipe for a pure run-stuffer to me. Another one who is big, possibly even bigger when it comes to right-mass would be the Adonis in second-layer cleats otherwise known as one Quille Odom. Get Q out there and let him do what he is ready to do. Fight the run. Even the Offensive-Tackle and Te’s of B.C. could not move Q much of anywhere. Dood is built like a (blank) brickhouse. Now what about Gibson you are gonna ask? I’m glad you did, he needs to be out there as well, though I personally like him at Whip. Cam’s knee is week-to-week at best and someone has to start there next year. Why not start a natural play-maker at Whip? Gibby is quick and athletic even for being what would amount to an over-sized Whip. There is also a pragmatic difference in Newtonian terms when it comes to blocking a 236 pound Gibby vs. a 209 pound soaking-wet Cody Grimm. That’s not smack on Cody; however, what if Cody starts to wear down? Where will this defense be then?

Why can the VT Offensive-Line not pass-block worth a dang??? Coaching. (technique or fundementals) Lack of practice reps for pass-blocking. Scheme (Zone pass-blocking sucks). Lack of OLine Talent. View Results  Loading ...

75th in Penalties against:
1. Some of this is youth, and or the so-called Learning-Curve or Growing-Pains if you will. No real remedy to effect here except experience. Though we can change the way we punish. Discipline is best found from within. Call that self-starters, responsibility, or intrinsic accountability. Extrinsic discipline is getting harder and harder to accomplish in the workplace (insert TSL office joke, here: ahhhhh, errrrrrr, never-mind); and athletics alike. MYspace, Facebook and our ethical microwave society on the whole have placed the allure of individual convenience upon us all. This has put the “me” in team. So if it were me, I’d take the individual out. You screw up under my regime? You sit in the middle of the practice field; no scratch that, you lie down while your teammates run hills or gassers around you. They will have to get outta your way and they will prolly be quite eager to thank you once you get back into the dressing room with them. Praise be to Classical Warfare under Dr. Bumgartner at Virginia Tech all those years ago for this first-school Naval or Sailing traditional form of discipline.

Now that I’ve fixed all of that, I’m gonna fix one other pet peve while I am at it.

Chin-straps and mouthpieces:

You play for me and you damn sure are gonna buckle all four snaps up and you are gonna use a mouthpiece. Football, Boxing and Hockey alike are dental suicide without such. I don’t care if it is kool or sexxy or what. No more mouth full of blood and a chipped tooth for T-mobile, no more helmets popping off all over the place. We might even bring a suit from Riddle in and have them demonstrate how to fasten your chin strap and we will even go so far as to find the most audibly recognizable mouthpiece for Tyrod Taylor through simple trial and error. But you will buckle-up and you will put that mouthpiece in your pie-hole and you will do it right about now! If not, it is only a matter of time before SportsCenter gets a absolutely savage highlight along the lines of Joe Theismann’s leg “snap”; and that simply need not happen. Not at all.

“LETS GO!”

“HOKIES!”

b’street

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