Williams Breaks Loose in Scrimmage

Freshman running back Ryan Williams had 122 yards on eight carries, including an 80-yard touchdown run in Friday's scrimmage. Most of the carries came against the second-team defense, but by all accounts Williams showed the playmaking abilities that made him a highly sought after recruit two years ago.

Williams' play was the highlight for the offense, although RB Josh Oglesby had solid runs against the first-team defense. The passing game left something to be desired as Tyrod Taylor, Ju-Ju Clayton and Marcus Davis combined complete 13 of 30 pass attempts.

It's becoming obvious at this point that Davis' future with the Hokies is not as a quarterback. I think Clayton and Boone should start getting the majority of the backup QB reps the rest of the spring. The quicker you get Davis to whatever position will allow him to get on the field the better for all parties involved.

On defense, John Graves was a beast. He compiled four tackles for loss, including a sack. His transition from defensive tackle to end appears to be going smoothly.

Linkage

Hokies

- How Oglesby can impact the upcoming season. (VT Fan)
- Eddie Whitley is doing his best Brandon Flowers impersonation. (TechSuperfans)

Atlantic Coast Conference

- The GT O is getting the best of the D this spring. (The Legacyx4)
- NCSU may have a full-blown QB controversy. (Yet Another...)
- A former CB is impressing at QB for Maryland. (Testudo Times)
- Yet another reason I want the NCAA disbanded. (StateFans Nation)

Stuff Only I Care About

- My favorite cougar is in the Final Four against the mayor. (The Lost Ogle)
- The NHL playoffs are two days away... (Puck Daddy)
- ...but won't include the Sabres. (Top Shelf)
- "I have yet to hit someone in the head and it’s not on my list of shit to do." (Full Count)

Hokie Baseball Gets 100 Percent More Awesome

Because the Hokies will be wearing this little number for their game against Georgia Tech at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at English Field. The Houston Astros starburst-style jerseys are a part of Disco Night and old school VT shirts will also be given away.

Yes, they're ugly, but that doesn't make them any less spectacular. I'll pay handsomely for one of those things.

Honoring the Original Hokie

O.M. Stull, who came up with the "Old Hokie Cheer" that eventually gave Tech its nickname, will be honored by the Roanoke Valley Hokie Club. A memorial and plaque will be placed at his grave in Lexington, Va., to honor his contribution to Hokie athletics.

Stull won the school-wide contest to come up with a new cheer (and its $5 first prize) in 1896. He said the word Hokie was just something he made up to draw attention to the cheer.

Hokie Face Baylor in NIT

I'll be having breakfast with the Hokies when they host Baylor at 11 a.m. Saturday at Cassell Coliseum on ESPN. Coach Greenberg is certain the fans will be loud despite the early start time:

We are excited about Saturday's game. It's another national television game and we want to show the country that the "Hokie Nation" is ready to go, 24/7. Regardless of whether it's a 10 a.m. or midnight tip, we are ready to go. Thank you for your support throughout the season and we look forward to seeing you in the Cassell on Saturday morning.

The key for the Hokies will be stopping Baylor point guard Curtis Jerrells. After watching Duquesne's Aaron Jackson drive to the hoop at will against Tech's awful perimeter defense, I worry the same will happen when Jerrells takes on the Hokies.

Jerrells won't put up the same 46 points Jackson had because he has a better supporting cast. If the Hokies can't contain Jerrells, he'll be able to drive, dish and dominate Saturday morning.

The Hokies will need a big game from Jeff Allen to win this one. He can make a difference inside against a Baylor team that isn't great on the boards.

Linkage

Hokies

- KT is in St. Louis covering the NCAA Wrasslin' Championship.

- Coach Beamer will compete in a celebrity NASCAR race Saturday in Bristol, Tenn.

- Tech Hoops thinks the Baylor game will come down to three-point shooting.

- Blogsburg thinks Baylor poses problems for us and is glad the game starts at 10 a.m. CDT.

- BCO gives it up to Aaron Jackson.

- TV Theme Madness continues at The North End Zone. Vote Fraggle.

Atlantic Coast Conference

- Tar Heel Fan is in G'boro cheering on the Heels.

- All Canes thinks Kirby Hocutt should keep his pimp hand strong when dealing with the Irish.

- BC faces BU in a critical hockey showdown this weekend.

- Joe Ovies and Adam Gold interview public enemy No. 1 in Chapel Hill, Jeff Goodman.

- Why didn't you tell me Barnhart was back in the blogging business?!?

Randomness

- Doug thinks brackets can solve anything.

- Buffalo is actually talking about firing Lindy Ruff. I never thought this would happen.

- Ow-ah pitchahs cowntinue to dawminahte in Fahrt Meyahs.

Stuff to Read While Drinking and Filling Out Brackets

It's St. Patrick's, so I'm doing what I do best all day today. It's not even Noon and I'm on my third Guinness. I'm not an alcoholic, I'm just honoring my heritage.

I'm also filling out what will likely be the worst bracket in the history of filling it out brackets. Seriously, this thing is terrible. I'll reveal my picks tomorrow so you can point and laugh at them.

Everyone has advice on the NCAA Tournament and how to pick it. Well, I can only offer two pieces of advice.

First, the serious part: Fill it out backwards. Look at each regional, select the team you feel is strongest or has the best match-ups to get them to the Final Four and put them in Detroit. Then, fill out the rest of the regional. If you start from the beginning, you're bound to put the strongest team in a tough match-up in the Sweet 16 and then go against your better judgment and pick against them. Well, more often than not, that Sweet 16 match-up doesn't happen and you're stuck when you're original team ends up in the Final Four.

Finally, the fun part: Pick one huge underdog and have them winning in the first round. This way, if you're like me and your team isn't in the field, you at least have one rooting interest on Thursday or Friday. It's an added bonus if the underdog you picked is playing a team you hate.



Linkage

Hokies

- TSL has the Labatt Hokie Hotline notes. Greenberg on the officiating: "It is what it is."

- Tech Hoops went to the ACC tournament and naturally visited The Varsity. "What'll ya have!?"

- Niemo also previews the Duquesne game.

- Blogsburg has its unique take on the Dukes. With cheerleader photo!

- A-Line wonders aloud why Tech fans are complaining about the officiating Friday's hoops game after the officiating in September's football game. Good point. [stereotypical Hokie fan] I'll take the football win over a basketball win any day. [/stereotypical Hokie fan].

ACC

- Joe Ovies and Adam Gold interview Tom O'Brien about Irish Christmas.

- Blogger So Dear has advice on filling out your bracket. Don't look at the RPI, folks.

- Jeff of BCI took time out from being a neutered married pussy to attend the ACC tournament.

- TrueCubbie of Tomahawk Nation takes a preliminary look at The Tournament.

- Probably the best read of the week (even if it's from a dirty 'hoo) comes from From Old Virginia with his take on Dave Leitao's ouster. Good stuff. You know, for a 'hoo.

- Doug dissects Dabo.

Randomness

- Tulsa is finally better than OKC at something. Too bad it's making meth.

- Remember when Winfield of The Legacy x4 and I traded texts during the GT-Miami game last November? This is what it would have looked like if we were women. Notice the complete lack of swear words. And neither of them is drunk.

- Woo hoo!

- Double woo hoo!

Less than 1 month away...

I couldn't agree more. Previews begin mañana.

Why Boston College Won't Win the ACC in '08

This is part of our preseason breakdowns of the ACC teams that aren't Virginia Tech. I'll tell you why all the teams that aren't the Hokies are colossal failures that won't win the ACC. I'll also give each of them one redeeming value.

Boston College

Why Boston College won't win the ACC in '08:

1. No Boston sports fans will know the team is playing until early November.

2. By November, this team will have four losses.
3. No Matt Ryan.
4. Coach Jagoffaduzumszinski is the new Chuck Amato. One good quarterback does not a good coach make.

Boston College's One Redeeming Value:

The game's in Boston this year. I'm told I had a good time there in '06. Somehow, I managed to rack up an $86 tab at Cask 'n' Flagon. Good thing there's a Dunkies on every street corner on the next day would have been a struggle. Yes, I run on Dunkin'.

NCAA Football 09 is out July 15

The release of the EA Sports NCAA Football video game used to help me get from July to CALLLAGE FOOTBAWL season. While I'm not much of a gamer these days, I spent countless hours in college playing NCAA Football and Ace Combat 5.

Less than 2 months away...

Today is July 1. Meaning we're about a month away from the start of fall practice and less than two months away from real, actual, sweaty, pants-pleasing football. FOOTBAWL!!! CALLLLLLLAGGGE FOOTBAWL! Hang on, let me calm down...

AL EAST STANDINGS
Tampa Bay 51-32 --
Boston 50-36 -2.5

That ain't gonna get it done. Give me some more time...

/breathes into paper bag

OK, back to CALLLAGE FOOTBAWL. This is going to be the greatest CALLLAGE FOOTBAWL season of all time. Here's why: Unlike previous years where you had maybe one great team and a bunch of really good teams, this year there are a bunch of great teams. You could name 10 teams and still miss this year's national champion.

You've got the front-runners like Georgia, Ohio State, Oklahoma, USC and Florida who have loads of talent tons of tradition. You have upstarts like West Virginia, Texas Tech and Arizona State who have narrowed one large chasms of talent and depth and are on the cusp of breaking through with a national championship.

You have teams like BYU and Utah, who have legitimate shots at going unbeaten and maybe having an argument to play for a national title.

And the list continues: Clemson, Mizzou, Auburn and Texas all of shots at running the table for a national championship. I think this year there will be a glut of teams with legitimate claims to a spot in the BCS title game.

I don't know if a playoff would solve college football's ills. It's ridiculous that the sport with the best regular season has the most ludicrous postseason. But it might be a Catch-22. That playoff might ruin the regular season. We may never know.

But instead, we keep arguing about it to get us through to August 30 when the season begins for most teams. It's what makes our sport the best around. The Red Sox may get me through to August 30, but after that they won't get a whole lot of attention from me until the postseason.

It's because baseball's regular season is like Groundhog Day. Everyday is the same, especially for those involved in it. In CALLLAGE FOOTBAWL, every game is a must-win. If Jon Lester has a bad outing, oh well, he goes again in five days. If Sean Glennon has a bad day, we should bench his ass and put in Tyrod. Unless Tyrod has a bad day in which case we should bench his ass and put in Glennon.



Because every game your national title hopes are on the line.

And by the way: Tampa Bay, you nouveau riches pigs, today is July 1. Not September 1. Not October 1. July 1. When (if?) everyone gets healthy, you'll be back where you belong. Looking up at the word "BOSTON" in the standings.

Go Sox and go Hokies.

Gobbler Country Summer Schedule

Here's what you can expect from this blog over the three most grueling months of the year leading up to football season:

All Summer
- Great Moments in Beamerball
- Goin' Clubbing features
- Hall of Fame inductions
- Random statistical breakdowns
- Random lists
- Analysis of breaking news

June
- Top 10 Hokie Sports Moments of 2008
- Year in Review for most sports
- All-Beamer Team (The best players for Tech at each position since Frank Beamer became head coach. This idea was blatantly stolen from MGoBlog.com.)

July
- Hokie football previews by position
- ACC football unit rankings

August
- ACC football team-by-team previews
- ACC week-by-week predictions
- National predictions