2012.02.15
Bud Foster Q&A, Part II: Benefiting from last year’s injuries, filling out the secondary and finding a spot for Kyle Fuller
If you missed the first part of my interview with Hokies defensive coordinator Bud Foster yesterday, you can read it here. Here’s Part II, which is more about next year’s defensive personnel:
I know the injuries were a real pain last year, but do you feel like you’ll see the benefits of youngsters getting playing time this upcoming year?
“I was concerned with our depth last year. I thought our first 11 was going to be pretty good and be better. I didn’t know how good we were going to be, but I thought we were going to be considerably better [than the previous year]. But we didn’t have a lot of returning starters, per se. But we had some depth coming back. I’m talking the J.R. Collins and James Gayle stepping in there. You had three of the four guys up front were new players. [Jeron] Gouveia-Winslow was very adequate at best the year before. Linebackers were still question marks.
“The strength was probably in our secondary coming back, but I was so concerned about our depth, anybody getting hurt, and then, boom, we get tested right away. And yeah, that was encouraging to see those guys step up and play and play well. [Detrick] Bonner, he played well. Cris Hill, he stepped up and played well for us, who was a senior. You mentioned [Luther] Maddy and [Corey] Marshall and Tyrel Wilson stepped up big too. And we’ll be better because of that and we’ve created some depth because of the injuries.
“My biggest concern last year was getting somebody hurt at safety. After Eddie [Whitley] and [Antone] Exum, that was probably the thinnest spot on our team on our side. And the best thing was we didn’t get anybody hurt there. Up front you can get hurt and miss a tackle and nobody notices. But back there you can get real quickly. But I think that can help us for going into this spring, guys have played, they’ve been in meetings, knowing their position a little bit better and I think it will be just a little bit quicker for them to process things once we start stepping on the field and doing those type of things again.”
Bruce Taylor and Gouveia-Winslow probably aren’t going to be ready for spring, but they will be ready come summer. With Jack Tyler, Tariq Edwards and Alonzo Tweedy there too, how is the linebacker situation going to shake out?
“I think we’ll be fine right there. I don’t mind some of those guys [being out]. Bruce is a dynamic football player. You’d like to get him back just to hone some things and hopefully he’ll be able to move around. We’ll just be precautionary with him. GW is a guy who needs to be out there, in my opinion. But it is what is it is. At the same time, though, that’s going to allow us an opportunity to have Tweedy continue to grow and improve, which, when he played, I thought he played pretty well. Getting Nick Dew, seeing if he’s going to take that next step. To me, that’s kind of a big-play position for us. That guy has been a good blitzer off the edge, he’s been a play-maker where we put him in space quite a bit in a blockable position.
“We’re looking maybe to find another guy. And I’ve talked to the guy, so I don’t mind you saying anything in the paper, but whether we do it or not that hasn’t been decided, but you’re looking at a guy like maybe Ronny Vandyke, who is a big safety but he’s about 220 pounds right now. We’ve got to continue to evaluate his skill set. How is his skill set away from the line of scrimmage? Or is he better at attacking the line of scrimmage and those type of things? So we’ll look at that a little bit more as we look at these guys in conditioning and then we get into some 6 a.m.’s and have some more hands-on type work with these guys. But to me, that rover spot, I think Exum will probably stay right there. But developing depth there but also — because Tweedy is going to be a senior, Gouveia-Winslow is going to be a senior — we need to develop those spots that are our play-making spots.”
Kyle Fuller played so many positions last year. Is he going to be a cornerback this year or will he play other spots?
“Yeah, and we lose Whitley, and Eddie was just really a heady guy back there. And our safety is really a guy who makes a lot of calls and just kind of the quarterback of the unit, looking back. The linebackers call the defense but the safety is a guy who in the heat of the moment, a lot of times we’re getting motion in and he’ll check a coverage if we want to play a certain coverage based on splits and different things of that nature. But I think Kyle is the one guy right now that I would trust back there at that one spot. But he’s so valuable for us.
“I don’t know if he’s going to play corner yet or play safety or if he’s going to be a nickel guy still. You know what I mean? He’s just that good of a football player, and we’ve got to find the right spot for him, I believe. And that’s going to help our football team on the defensive side of the ball. I thought he was our best football player this last year. I mean, I thought he was just the MVP of our defense last year, in my opinion. He just played so many positions and stepped up with big plays. Just a heck of a football player. And we’ve got to get him in the right spot for us and for him.”
Does a lot of that depend on how your young cornerbacks develop this spring?
“Yeah, it’s going to be. And I think Bonner is going to be a really good player. I really do. I think Kyshoen Jarrett, he’s going to be that guy. And I don’t have my depth chart with me right now, but that’s going to be kind of a big thing this spring is getting our best four guys back there. And we’re going to take out of those four or five guys right now … you know you’ve got Donaldven Manning who came in here. I’m anxious to see him. If he’s a corner, that allows us to be flexible with some other guys. So we haven’t decided on a safety yet, but we’ve talked about Fuller, we’ve talked about Jarrett, we’ve talked about even Bonner to be that guy. We’ve still got Michael Cole in the mix too. Is he a safety or is he a rover-type guy?
“Our safety needs to be, because of what we tie into coverage-wise, he needs to have corner coverage-ability but he also needs to be able to tackle like a safety, because of what we expect that guy to do. And it’s been that way since we’ve been running the defense. I think he needs to be one of our better football players. Kyle Fuller is one of our better football players, so I don’t know. But that position needs to be one of those guys. But corner for us, we put a lot on those guys’ plate as far as being out on an island quite a bit. I know this: the quickest way to get beat is out there. I know we need to have our best football players out there. So that’s kind of the dilemma we have with Kyle, whether we put him at corner or bring him in and have him be kind of our general, so to speak.”
Are there any guys who redshirted or didn’t have big roles last year that you’re really looking forward to this spring?
“Yeah. I think we’ve got Dadi Nicolas, the defensive end. Young kid that I think shows a lot of potential to be an explosive guy. There’s Justin Taylor, another defensive end. Kris Harley, the defensive tackle. He was a guy that we kind of vacillated, do we play him or do we play Maddy. And we kind of went with Maddy. I think Kris came in a little heavy, but I really like what he did all fall in mental drills and things of that nature. He’s got some pop and plays with leverage and plays hard. He’s going to be a good football player for us.
“We played all the linebackers primarily, but I do like Chase Williams. We might move him to mike linebacker. I think that might be a position if Bruce is out, we’ll probably have Chase playing mike backing up Jack. I think Telvion Clark is a kid who shows a lot of potential that needs to be consistent. He’s a sophomore, but he needs to be consistent. He had a great spring last year and got hurt, had a high-ankle sprain during the season. Never just came around mentally like I wanted him to. He got caught up in that backup role, which some of those guys do sometimes.
“Last year was a testament: one of my sayings is you’re one play away from being the guy. So in meetings and things of that nature, you’ve got to prepare like you’re going to be the starter. And last year was proof in the pudding that it’s going to happen. We had three or four or five situations where guys had to step up and just not finish games but have impact roles in the game.”
What about the safeties? You mentioned that’s a pretty important position, but those guys haven’t gotten on the field much.
“That’s going to be an inexperienced group. I don’t care even if you move a Jarrett or somebody like that over there. But with Michael Cole, who I think is a very good prospect. Ronny Vandyke, who I think is a very good prospect. We’ve got Boye Aromire, who I think is a very good prospect. You’ve got James Hopper, who is just a good, smart, heady kid that can do some things. But I’d like to see him improve. We had a kid, Cary Wade, a couple years ago that really stepped up and it worked out. Stepped up and really was a solid player for us at that. And I’m hoping Hop can continue to develop that way.
“But yeah, that’s a position for me right now that needs to be one that we need to get better and need to find out some players who can play, because those are play-making spots for us. We’ve got a lot of those, but our free and our rover, those are kind of our free-hitter guys who we spill the ball to and they’re kind of the force players and the alley players, so those are guys who we kind of funnel the ball to one way or another and need to be good open-field players in space as far as tacklers and those type of things but also have good coverage-abilities and then you like to have them nail the blitz and do some things. So that’s a critical spot for us is to find those right guys. I think we’re going to be fine up front. I really do. I think our front seven, I think we’ll be all right. But that’s going to be our biggest rebuilding tool, so to speak, will be on our back end.”
What do you think of the signing class you just brought in? I know you lost Jawand Blue, but it seems like the linebackers are still pretty strong.
“Yeah, it’s hard sometimes. You never know what goes through kids’ minds. I like the signing class. I really do. I thought we helped ourselves up front. That’s where I think, when I talked about Alabama and LSU, we’ve got to get their front where we can go manhandle people. That’s what I want us to get to. And I thought we helped ourselves with this class right here. I hated that we lost Blue. I really liked him a lot.
“But I liked a lot of kids we got there inside with Deon Clarke and I think Devin Vandyke, between those guys will be a mike and a backer out of that group. The Dahmon McKinnon kid is a really good player. Plus, Trey Edmunds, we’ll see where he plays. He could play any one of those three. Or rover even. I just think we helped ourselves. And along with the secondary kids, I like Manning, I like the [Davion] Tookes kid. Those two can really run. I think we helped ourselves at safety with the [Desmond] Frye kid. I think he needs to get bigger, but I like this class. I really do. And a lot of defensive kids. So it was some spots we needed.”
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Same old cock and bull from the god of defensive coordinators! Nothing new here. As long as VT continues to schedule the pansy OOC games and the boring, less than competent other ACC teams, VT will remain defensively killed if playing ANY ranked opponent, their record bears this out.. For that matter, offensively as well. VT needs to clear it’s coaching staff from top to bottom if any chances of achieving the “greatness” and losing the name of the CHOKIE HOKIES! Otherwise they will continue as they always do. As always at the end of the next season the same old war chant of “Wait till next year!” will be there. Meanwhile the empty NC trophy case continues to collect only dust. Go Ausin Peay!
Comment by Mike — February 15, 2012 @ 7:51 am
It seems that Tech now has more depth and better players in the backup positions than in the past few years. Our defense should be good this year.
Hopefully Tech can continue to recruit good players for the defense.
As of now, J R Collins and James Gayle are really good players at defensive end, and both of them will play professional football in the near future.
The defensive linemen are good players, and there is depth to the line.
Things are looking good for the defensive team this year.
Let’s go Hokies !!!
Comment by Frank — February 15, 2012 @ 8:02 am
Looks like a top 10 defense to go along with a bottom 30% offense. Just like the past 20 yrs. Nothing ever changes for the Beamer Hokies.
Comment by Peppers Ferry — February 15, 2012 @ 8:50 am
It will be interesting to see which side of the ball Trey Edmunds ends up on.
Comment by Jackson Furr — February 15, 2012 @ 9:04 am
Quote from Coach Bud Foster, “And we’re always into pressures and I think what we do from a coverage standpoint is a little bit a notch above what everybody else does in the college level,”. Just an interesting stat tidbit…Since 1999 Virginia Tech has an average ranking of 36 in pass defense and 18.5 in pass defense efficiency. A notch above? Really? Just food for thought AB.
VT has the best defense ever in the game of football, it was invented there, even during the 2-9 and 3-8 seasons…Thanks for the articles AB, very enlightening…
Comment by Stack Maroon — February 15, 2012 @ 9:49 am
Personally, I hope the coaching staff remains intact for as long as those guys can stay healthy…not staff changes need to be, just keep doing what they are doing…
Austin Peay is not even a good FCS team…nice scheduling Mr. Weaver. I wonder why no one at the RT presses the schedule maker on this?
Comment by Stack Maroon — February 15, 2012 @ 10:47 am
Yo Mike, Break out the Midol!
Comment by Bill — February 15, 2012 @ 11:32 am
People are so thick headed you can be a notch above with your schemes and pressures but without the talent on the field you won’t have the top stats. You people take things way too literally people hate on the schedule last year but that was the 1st really weak schedule we’ve had in the last few years. They forget about Alabama, USC, Boise St, all losses but top quality teams, and LSU twice 1 and 1 there. Texas A&M who we gave their 1st ever home loss to an OOC team, and Nebraska twice, both wins. Austin Peay this year was beyond our control it’s hard to pick up a quality opponent when a team drops you after it’s been scheduled. The weak schedule excuse doesn’t hold water anymore.I’ll never understand Trolls why come to a site about a team you don’t like just too hate on, I don’t see the point. I don’t go to UVA’s site because I could care less what they are doing, I guess some people just want to be connected to a winner so bad they have to come here to vicariously feel what it’s like to be a winning program.
Comment by Mike — February 15, 2012 @ 11:35 am
Mike must be a wahoowha and he cannot stand seeing his hoos continue to be whipped by the Hokies, but it will CONTINUE !!!!! Hey, Mike, get out this spring and watch the beloved hoo rowing team, now that is excitement !!
Comment by other Tony — February 15, 2012 @ 12:46 pm
Hey Mike, by the way, I saw the all ACC academic football team and of the 52 members, the hoos had ONE member, way to go with student athletes !! Looks like the academic excuse is not good anymore, they are too busy being thugs !!
Comment by other Tony — February 15, 2012 @ 12:51 pm
If you want to see how hard it is to get someone to play you, look at the article on ESPN about FSU. They have approached “50″ teams to fill the spot vacated by WVU. I am sure the informed probably think the “50″ were the top “50″ in the country.
Comment by SPigninelli — February 15, 2012 @ 1:09 pm
Mike to Mike, w/o “trolls” as you call me, all you VT fans will never get out of Wonderland, Alice! 1 win ooc like Texas A & M must be enough to keep you hanging onto a degressing program. Wake up and smell the turkey scat! Mental health therapy might be considered by you and the VT coaches, certainly wouldn’t hurt. Bill, no Midol for me, valium would be preferable when VT plays and looses year after year after year as they have in the big games for the past 20+ years. When is enough? It’ll never change under the Boo Boo Beamer regime. Impeach the bum and his “good ol boys” and hire some winning coaches. ACC a consistently great conference? Go into the SEC and see where VT lands….at the bottom of the heap! Gimme a break!
Comment by Mike — February 15, 2012 @ 1:31 pm
When folks dis Tech I ask them to let us know what their team is and ask which is the only ACCteam to win a BCS bowl game since VT joined the conference, and I get no answer. True, our record there is not good, but at least we make it there.
Good read Andy, thanks.
Comment by scott whitaker — February 15, 2012 @ 1:36 pm
VT defense the best that ever has been in the history of college football and my Lord, invented there? Thanks for making my day, been needing a good laugh and thank you for it Stack Maroon! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Comment by Mike — February 15, 2012 @ 1:38 pm
That Mike guy is brilliant. I wonder if he lives in mom’s basement with Glen.
Comment by Dexter — February 15, 2012 @ 1:43 pm
Mike…London? Is that you? Eight in a row is hard to take isn’t it. VT’s D looked pretty stout to me when holding a top 15 Michigan team under 200 yards.
Comment by Rich — February 15, 2012 @ 2:33 pm
Great comment Mike and excellent story Andy! I am really enjoying this type of quality reporting on the Hokies, especially at this time of year. I am excited about next year’s team, especially the defense. I still remember that beat down of Syracuse in Blacksburg on a Saturday night. Everyone was talking about Mike Vick being the next Donovan McNabb; but it was the defense that was the star of the show. During Vick’s second year as a starter someone claimed that he was bored-he probably was because the defense kept the hokies in such outstanding field position the offense barely had far to go the get to the end zone! People will say afresh-defense wins championships!
Comment by ken86 — February 15, 2012 @ 3:00 pm
Mike, are you sure who drop who? Did ECU back out for 2 years or did vt back out? As far as schemes and pressures, it really the opposite. If you have a lot of talent you don’t really need to do a lot of different things, just line up and play. Especially when it comes to pressure, if all you need to do is rush four guys, then who needs to bring the extra guys. See FSU and Miami in the 1990′s and early 2000′s…trying to have schemes a notch above what other colleges do is really crazy. Coach Foster is not the only Defensive Coordinator out there that can mix coverages and pressures together…I’m sure there are other egotistical DC’s out there that think what they do is a notch above everyone else.
Comment by Stack Maroon — February 15, 2012 @ 4:08 pm
Awesome post #8 Mike. It’s a shame the haters can’t have an ounce of class and dignity and stay the H#@% off this blog. We get it already, poor scheduling, weak schedule, Beamer is overrated and horrible blah blah blah. Haven’t you beaten the poor dead horse enough?!? GO HOKIES!!
Comment by I'm in DC — February 15, 2012 @ 4:15 pm
Andy, I am increasingly impressed with your information postings! Another fan of your here….
I’m also enamored with the sideline comedy act coming from Mikey. His spelling is a clue as to who and what he really is. However, in the grand scheme of things, this is what occurs to the great programs…the haters come out of their jealous little cocoons and take their shots…ask FSU, Notre Dame, Southern Cal, Miami, Texas, Michigan, Ohio State, Bama, LSU, and so on….while many are no longer at their peaks, the haters hang for a good while after. We must expect the same.
And a limitless humor from the less privileged is not a bad thing!
Comment by Hokies laugh @ silly mikey — February 15, 2012 @ 6:05 pm
Mike, Mike, Mike, no one, least of all me is in wonderland. I don’t expect VT to compete every year for the NC but I do expect them to compete for the ACC title and a BCS Bowl and they do, every year. Now can you say the same about the Who’s? Beamer and his “good ole boys” have completely changed the football program from a team that couldn’t fill a 35,000 seat stadium to a team that sells out every game, who went from a 3 win season being good to a 19 year bowl streak. You can hate all you want but thanks to Beamer VT is a Nationally recognized and respected football program. I don’t claim we’re the best thing since sliced bread but I was a fan when we couldn’t tie our shoes right and I’m still a fan, only I’m enjoying myself a lot more now, but if we ever fall back down to the incompetency of the Who’s? I’ll still be a fan. Now get your hot pocket out of your mom-ma’s microwave and crawl back to her basement to wait on Lacrosse season.
Comment by Mike — February 15, 2012 @ 6:32 pm
Mike,
You are an idiot
Comment by Bob — February 16, 2012 @ 8:04 am
Just ignore the haters and the trolls
Comment by justafan — February 16, 2012 @ 8:41 am
Never even met me and called me an idiot. Now I would say that’s an inference you would need some information on to come to such a judgemental conclusion. The fact that you don’t know me or my academic background and would still reduce yourself to such base comments seems to leave little doubt of your mentality. Oh and by the way I’m rubber and you’re glue whatever you say bounces of me and sticks to you. Go Beamer, and go Hokies. Changed my tag so as not to be confused with Mike the Troll.
Comment by Marine Mike — February 16, 2012 @ 12:51 pm
Mike,
Do not need to know you to declare you an #*!@&. Your posts give that away.
Best thing that could happen to VT football is for them to go to the SEC. Too late for that though???? At least for now.
They would get slaughtered every Saturday for awhile. The good side is that they would have recruiting options to build from that are not available today. Anybody-who-is-anybody in College Football wants first and foremost to play in the SEC.
Keep Bud Foster and Shaun Beamer, make Frank AD and hire a Head Coach out of the SEC to fill the empty trophy case with a National Title. Send the rest of the coaching staff packing. Also, look to build a stadium that is commensurate with SEC expectations. 90,000 minimum! Built it and they will come.
Go Hokies!!! Go to the SEC!!!! Make us proud again.
Comment by 1oneshot — February 16, 2012 @ 5:34 pm
Mike, the Hoo or Hooever fan, anything someone says about you is close to the truth b/c you come on here and bad mouth VT, but are too chicken to put your last name down as well as where you went to school. What a waste of a life to just troll on a team you can’t beat in 8 yrs. Must be a sad life. More important things in life than football and life CAN be short, so I would just enjoy, be positive to your favorite team and leave your hate at the front door, so you don’t beat your wife or something else stupid. Get a LIFE!
Comment by Mikey3 — February 17, 2012 @ 2:18 am
That you have to be affiliated with the $EC to be proud says all we need to know about you 1oneshot and done. The rampant cheating and low academic standards are nothing to be proud of. I’ve heard of fair weather fans before but this is ridiculous, the weather has been nice in Blacksburg for quite a while. True fans who pull for their team win lose or draw are a dieing breed. If you are a Hokie fan you should be proud of the kids who give it their all every Saturday and leave it all on the field no matter the outcome. People put way to much importance on a Game that has no bearing on real life. Our guys play their hearts out, have a good graduation rate and stay out of trouble (for the most part), and we do our recruiting the right way. As far as if we would compete in the $EC there is no doubt we wouldn’t win the league every year, but we would be one of the top 4 or 5 teams every year.
Comment by Marine Mike — February 17, 2012 @ 10:09 am
If I am the troll…which I am not, I only present you thickheads with some reality. No, I am not a Woo fan nor any other ACC team. SEC all the way! I post what I do when I read such absurd comments about Boo Boo Ball because that’s what it is. Get real folks, VT WILL probably win their division this year but doubt if they win the ACC title. By chance, if they do, another bowl loss. VT is just not a complete, top notch competitive program, their records bear this out and who is to blame….has to start at the top. Just more dust in the empty NC trophy case, maybe a bust of your Lord Beamer would be more appropriate there.
Comment by Mike — February 17, 2012 @ 10:30 am
Mike, Mike, Mike. You are a sad little person with nothing intelligent to add.
I don’t think your mother would let you live in her basement. You are an embarrasment. I think you live in a cave.
Comment by SPigninelli — February 17, 2012 @ 12:16 pm
Mike is 17 yrs old. I know this kid. He plays on the football forums as well. He lives in Bluefield, WVa and sent a portfolio to VT of his “highlights” as a freshman, but has played nothing but spec teams for the past two years and was respectfully declined to be interviewed by the VT admin. Humiliated, he has had it in for VT for the past year. He has several other aliases and sometimes posts as a “booster” or golden hokie club member.
Comment by hokiedave5000 — February 19, 2012 @ 10:36 am