Expectations

BLACKSBURG, Va. — Frank Beamer had a plane to catch. The Virginia Tech football coach and some of the Hokies staff were planning to jet to Canton, Ohio, Saturday afternoon.

They were guests for the induction of former Hokies defensive star Bruce “The Sack Man” Smith into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

First, though, for the 23rd time in Blacksburg, he talked about the season to come at football media day in Lane Stadium.

“The bottom line is, there’s a lot of work left to be done,” Beamer said. “I do feel good about our football team. We’ve got a lot of good players.”

Beamer knew that the Hokies have been picked seventh in the nation in the USA Today preseason coaches’ poll, and were the preseason favorites to win the Atlantic Coast Conference. But he was not about to order championship caps yet.

“It hasn’t been said much, but I think at least 10 teams in the ACC are better (than last season). So we expect a real battle, trying to get this ACC championship again,” the silver-haired coach said.

“We’ve been picked as the (conference) favorite, but I told our football team, we’ve got to be better, each and every Saturday. There’s no question about it, because every team is going to be shooting for us.”

Beamer noted that four 2009 opponents are also in the top 25, and five others received votes.

“We look forward to the challenge,” he said. “We think we’ve got the chance to play good, if things fall into place.”

Dr. Mike Gentry, head of the strength and conditioning program, talked about his observations of the football team’s summer workouts after a brunch with the media.

“I felt good about the character of this football team,” he said. “They really set the table for themselves, this summer.” He described their attitude as “pretty confident, but they’re not cocky. They’re a hungry team. They showed that this summer.”

The upcoming hall of fame induction may have been on the mind of defensive coordinator Bud Foster when he told the media, “USC’s known for their tailbacks, Penn State is known for the linebackers. At Virginia Tech, we’re kind of becoming known for our defensive ends.”

He said, “Our (defensive) end is a position where we really turn those guys loose.” He predicted redshirt junior Jason Worilds as “one of those next great ones that we’ve had here — really a dynamic player.”

He also pointed out that a current contender for the other starting end role is Chris Drager, a new addition to the defense. “Chris probably was our best tight end in the spring,” said Foster, who said the sophomore is “almost a 4.0 student, a very intelligent guy.”

But, Foster said, “We had depth concerns (at defensive end). We asked him to come over and play defense.

“I think that’s a statement about this football team. (It’s) a very unselfish group, that’ll do whatever it takes for the success of this football team. Chris is the perfect example of that.”

Foster said about the defense, “I really like this group. They’re people who care about each other. They know that we care about them, they care about us, and I think that’s indicative of how we play.

“That’s one area that I’m really, really proud of, that these guys trust each other. That’s a big, big part in this business.”

“I know this: The effort is there, the ‘want-to’ is there, the commitment is there. And that’s a big part of it. And I’ve seen that in the first couple of days of practice.”

Offensive coordinator Bryan Stinespring smiled as he spoke of “a strong nucleus” returning on the line and a stable of running backs with potential, led at this point by redshirt sophomore Darren Evans.

Evans’ 1,265 yards last year were the most in ACC history for a freshman.

Stinespring then turned the spotlight on junior quarterback Tyrod Taylor. Gentry had noted that Taylor runs the 40-yard dash in 4.48 seconds, has a 38 1/2 inch vertical leap and set a lifting record for Tech quarterbacks with a 400-pound hoist in the front squat.

“Tyrod has done a great job in the weight room,” Stinespring re-emphasized. “He’s provided great leadership, and I mean great leadership, for us offensively.”

The 2008 campaign, with its awkward dual-QB role between Taylor and senior Sean Glennon, was receding in memory as the 2009 pre-season unfolded this week.

Stinespring said that Taylor “sets the speed for the rest of us. He’s been impressive thus far in camp, as we knew (he would be). He understands it’s his time, it’s his job, and he’s approached it that way.”

For his part, Taylor said, “I feel more comfortable reading defenses and getting the ball away quicker. That’s what I’ve been working on.”

A reporter wanted to know if he would continue his habit of running out of the pocket.

“My plan is not to take off unless I have to,” Taylor said. “The offensive line has been blocking really well.

“My job is to get the ball to people so they can make plays. ... We do have a talented backfield — a lot of playmakers back there.”

Beamer said, “I think the people around him will help him be a better quarterback. I’ll tell you this, as far as a competitor, as far as ‘want-to,’ a great player, a great person, he’s exactly the guy you want leading your football team.”

Taylor also expressed confidence that the Hokies’ occasional “Wild Turkey” backfield, with Greg Boone taking the snaps, is a formation that defenses must worry about.

“You put that in, with Greg Boone and with Ryan Williams back there, you never know what’s going to happen,” Taylor said.

Does that mean the senior and freshman playmakers have been assigned to the “Wild Turkey” package?

Taylor thought for a second. “That’s just me, thinking,” he said. “We haven’t started the ‘Turkey’ yet.”

Senior free safety Kam Chancellor will carry on a Virginia Tech tradition by being the defensive player in charge of the “lunch pail,” to denote the group’s “working-man” attitude.

He said the honor “made me believe that the coaches have a lot of trust in me, that they believe that I can lead the team. ... It represents that I’m loyal to the team, that I’m going to give my best effort every day, and that I’m going to do everything that I can for my brothers.”

Flanker Danny Coale earned the Hokies’ “2009 Ironman Champion” award, Gentry said. Linebacker Jake Johnson and offensive tackle Blake DeChristopher led their groups in the “ironman” competition, which includes lifting categories, vertical jump and 40-yard-dash time.

Chancellor said, “We’re getting back to work right now, back on the field. Everybody’s working hard right now. We’re just trying to step the game up a little more.”

Taylor summed the team’s thoughts up for the reporters. “We believe our guys are talented enough, and can play well enough, to win a national championship,” he said. “But we’ve got to take it one game at a time.”

— Contact Tom Bone at

tbone@bdtonline.com

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