Odds and ends: Four players moving on from Virginia Tech
Just got off the plane in Roanoke to find that Frank Beamer‘s website has a few updates with some end-of-season odds and ends. Here are the notable ones:
* Four players with eligibility remaining won’t return to the team next season: QB Ju-Ju Clayton, DT Isaiah Hamlette, DT Courtney Prince, DT Dwight Tucker. Prince graduated and will transfer to Eastern Kentucky. Hamlette has graduated but plans to continue at an FCS school in his final year of eligibility. Clayton and Tucker will graduate in May, although neither plan to continue playing football.
* Of the four, Hamlette was the only one to get any real playing time this year, making seven tackles in 13 games in backup duty. Clayton, Prince and Tucker were third-stringers.
* The website also said two of the Hokies’ mid-year enrollees are ready for the second semester — RB J.C. Coleman and DE Dewayne Alford. Coleman, a 5-foot-7, 175-pound four-star recruit from Oscar Smith High in Chesapeake, could be a contender for carries at tailback if David Wilson turns pro. He’s the No. 4-ranked all-purpose back in the country, according to Rivals, and the fifth-ranked player in the state.
* Two other mid-year enrollees could not be announced on the site because they have not yet signed their letter of acceptance.
* Speaking of Wilson, he’s requested that Beamer attend tomorrow’s press conference.
* Also, the site has this exact quote: “Virginia Tech expects to have an 11-man Senior Class for the 2012 season: Nick Becton, D.J. Coles, Marcus Davis, Randall Dunn, Jeron Gouveia-Winslow, Antoine Hopkins, Vinston Painter, Dyrell Roberts, Bruce Taylor, Alonzo Tweedy and Michael Via.” You’ll note that Wilson isn’t in that group. Probably gives you a good indication of his plans.
* The spring game is scheduled for April 21 at 4 p.m.
* What’s next for Virginia Tech? The Hokies have recruiting weekends on Jan. 20 and 27. Players on the roster return to campus Jan. 17 with winter workouts beginning and running through March 12.
January 5, 2012 - 5:51 PM
I don’t believe David Wilson will go to the NFL, because I think he was dissapointed of the performance he gave in the last two games of the season.
WDBJ-7 confirms Wilson going pro…..I’m surprised Beamer did not mention that on the website.
As I predicted – it has leaked that David Wilson is going pro.
http://www.wdbj7.com/news/blogs/wdbj7-news7-learns-that-david-wilson-is-turning-pro-20120105,0,5520864.story
6:46 p.m.
I can understand Ju-Ju not playing. He been a bench warmer since he arrived, although he was once Tyrod backup until Thomas unseated him last year.
Thanks for the info about the spring game. I’ll be looking forward to that, especially to see how the o-line, receivers, and running back will look.
I have no doubt that Wilson is going pro, but that report is pretty weak.
Unnamed source that the station must have some reservations about citing, since it puts “barring a last minute change of heart.” Just saying that’s a lot of outs for a news outlet.
Nobody has told me what Wilson will do. But I think he’ll go, just based on the circumstances. He’ll let everyone know tomorrow.
David is his own man, but I think another year would enhance his draft status – I see him a late 2nd round!
Hosley certainly didn’t show me that much this year – I think a middle 3rd round – In my opinion he needs another year.
How about that TOUCHDOWN CATCH by Danny Coale in overtime – Even using your imagination one could not find a way to overrule the replay. Still it should have never come down to that, we should have won in regulation -
What an effort put forth by the Team – Proved to me they belonged in the Sugar Bowl as a BCS Team!
HOKIES forvevr!
Have to agree with you, Bob, about Hosley. He didn’t match his performance from last year. Granted, he played hurt with hamstring, tough to come back from, but his production was noticably down. He seem to get flagged more for pass interference, something I think need to be more defined than just jostling for the ball (see: Michigan), and he did subpar with the punt return. Of course, that’s because Beamer decided to block punt instead of focusing on creating opportunities for Hosley to take it back to the house.
As for David, I think he needs to just go ahead and announce instead of playing the tease. Ugh…
The players going or coming is of no concern. Who should be going is Beamer! His play calling lost the Sugar Bowl. But, in the long run, who cares. It’s just a shame that a football coach should get so much recognition and money for producing nothing of importance.
Gotta agree with Lone Ranger. Can’t see that Beamer does anything and accepts no blame for it. Trevor, when was Beamer blocking punts instead of setting up returns? Maybe the lack of blocks was the players’ faults, too.
This is for the Lone Ranger regarding his statement that ” It’s just a shame that a football coach should get so much recognition and money for producing nothing of importance” and seconded by “Steve”. Before making such statements, would you guys kindly check out the facts. I’m not sure how old you guys are but here’s a bit of history for you. Being a ’64 grad, I was already aware of this, but looked it up in Wikipedia anyway just to ensure I got the year right. Prior to Beamer taking the job, Va Tech earned one…. repeat ONE…. championship, which was the Southern Conference championship in 1963. We’ve earned how many during his tenure in the big East and ACC? If it weren’t for him, we’d still be playing occasional Liberty bowls.
Thanks for the factoid Paul. These people also probably want some hot-shot flavor of the month C-USA/MWC coach to come in and take VT to the promised land. Be careful what you wish for and be thankful for what you’ve got. My take is that someone like that could just as easily drive VT back into mediocre rather than clear that one last hurdle that is the NC…
We will never miss the four that will leave, that is the hard, cold facts of the matter.
We will miss David Wilson. Good luck to him.
IT ALL DEPENDS UPON YOUR EXPECTATIONS. IF YOU WANT TO WIN 9 TO 10 GAMES A YEAR, BE THE ACC CHAMPION EVERY COUPLE OF YEARS, BE A TOP 25 TEAM, AND LOSE IN BCS OR OTHER “SIGNIFICANT” BOWLS, THEN BEAMER AND STINESPRING ARE YOUR COACH. ON THE OTHER HAND, IF YOU WANT NATIONAL RECOGNITION AND BE IN THE TOP 10 TEAMS CONSISTENTLY, THEN YOU NEED A “REAL” OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR AND A SPECIAL TEAMS GUY. IF THAT DOESN’T WORK, GET ANOTHER HEAD COACH. V.T.’S FAILURE ON THE “BIG STAGE” DOES NOT HELP US GET THE REAL BLUE CHIPPERS ESPECIALLY FROM OUTSIDE VIRGINIA AND WITHOUT THOSE WE WILL NOT ATTAIN NATIONAL RECOGNITION. ANYWAY: GO HOKIES
I agree with Mr Kohler. I am sure most of the negative comments come from those under 40 years old who are use to playing video games and looking for high scores. That is not reality. It takes hard work and many years to build a program. It also takes people putting their money where there mouth is. The “big time” programs have money to run their programs that VT can only dream of. How much do these “know it alls” contribute? Coach Beamer EARNED his money over many years. He is the reason we have the facilites that you cry babies get to enjoy.
Paul, Yes, let’s go back 40 yrs and see how Beamer looks. Listen Ole Tymer I have watched Tech for 45 yrs (1978) and Beamer has much better talent than prior coaches. He is failing ! ! ! Not doing his job. Wake up! Look around at the rest of the world. Opponents are stealing our signals. Our talent isn’t being developed or utilized. WV got 70 pts against Clemson, we got TEN !! Yet, VT will send more player this year to the NFL. Yes, Beamer is better than Sharp & Dooley. It is you people living in the past that are keeping Beamer here. And VT with 1-9 in Big Games.
I still have to laugh at the small minded who think that ONLY Beamer can be a successful football coach at VT. Whether it is Frank, or his anointed successor that the lemmings have already deigned as the only one capable of succeeding his dad, the small minded seem to think that VT is the only school in college football history that can NEVER have more than one coach that builds upon past success.
I’ve listed them before, and nobody touches the subject. Notre Dame – Knute Rockne, Ohio State – Woody Hayes, Michigan – Bo Schembechler, USC – John McKay, Texas – Darrell Royal, Oklahoma – Bud Wilkinson, Nebraska – Bob Devaney, Auburn – Pat Dye, LSU – Charlie McClendon, Georgia – Vince Dooley, Florida – Steve Spurrier, Florida State – Bobby Bowden, Miami – Howard Schellenberger… I could go on for dozens of more names. Those names above I listed? Heck, over 75% of the schools listed above won national championships after the legendary coaches retired.
How about repeats? Notre Dame – Ara Parseghian then Lou Holtz, Oklahoma – Barry Switzer, Nebraska – Tom Osborne, USC – John Robinson, Texas – Mack Brown, Florida – Urban Meyer, LSU – Nick Saban, Miami – do I need to list them all?
Let’s not forget the ultimate, the unspoken one everyone compares every coach to – The Bear. How many people forget about Gene Stallings winning a national championship at Alabama? What about Nick Saban? Got one at Bammer, going for two.
Yeah, only Frank Beamer, or Frank Beamer’s son could ever field a successful program at VaTech. Ever. No other coach anywhere in the history or in the future of college football could ever crank out 10 win seasons in a weak BCS conference and consistently fail in virtually every crucial game he coaches? Yeah, we’re supposed to cling to the Beamer name because VaTech is incapable of ever doing anything successful without a Beamer leading them out of the tunnel.
I disagree.
Dooley in nine seasons at Tech was 63-38-1. Beamer’s first nine seasons he was 51-49-2. Dooley’s Tech team was an independent all nine years, Beamer’s Tech team was independent four seasons. Dooley’s last season went 9-2-1 and beat an ACC team in a bowl game, but, heck anyone can beat an ACC team in a bowl game!
Hokie fans…50% true; 50% “fair-weather” as noted by the idiots above. Everyone is a coach and expert…go ahead and put in for the VT coaching job!
Here’s something folks need to consider about the VT offense and the people in charge of it: Clemson allowed 10 points or less in 2 games this season. Care to take a guess who that was against? Yep, VT…both times.
The next lowest point total Clemson’s defense gave up? 14 to a dreadful BC team, and 19 to Troy. Heck, Wofford dropped 27 on the Tigers. Wofford! They put up double the points in one game thtn VT had in 2 different games, combined.
Clemson opponents averaged 30 points a game…not including the 2 against VT and their pounding at the hands of WVU. So why is it that VT, with all this supposedly great coaching, averaged 6.5 points…a mere 22% of the Clemson average?
Beamer has built the program into a what it is today. He’s won a lot of conference titles. He’s had a bakers dozen of seasons with double-digit wins, including every season since VT joined the ACC. But, at the same time, the special teams have eroded. The offense continues to underproduce for the talent they put on the field. Bud’s defense continues to do their damndest to bail out the rest of the team when they fail to produce points. A lot of top recruits, especially for offense, won’t consider VT because of the way the offense is run.
Yes, we should be thankful that Beamer has done so many good things for the program. But, let’s not kid ourselves. VT has dominated an ACC that, let’s be honest, isn’t all that great top to bottom. The ‘marquee’ programs of FSU and Miami have stunk for years. Clemson, most years, pulls a Clemson. Maryland is a shell of the Fridge-led teams that were competitive years ago. None of the NC schools can consistently field competitive, nationally-relevant teams. GT isn’t much to brag about. UVA is still rebuilding, after many years of ‘rebuilding’. And BC has fallen completely flat after having a few really good years.
VT should really be thanking the rest of the ACC for being so mediocre these past several years, because they’ve been as big a reason for the VT success as anything else. Heck, VT didn’t have this kind of sustained, long-term success in the Big East! That’s saying something…
So while some folks see Beamer and his crew as akin to Jesus and his disciples or something like it, there are some obvious shortcomings now that Beamerball has been figured out and to an extent adopted by the competition. Now, special teams tricks and key plays simply cannot cover up for the fundamental flaws the team has every year…like underutilizing offensive talent, major mistakes that keep perpetuating on special teams, undisciplined play, failing to execute, failing to coach the teams up for the big games…of which VT seems to lose almost every time out, sometimes in rather spectacular fashion.
Loyalty is over-rated in sports. Look what loyalty got Penn State. Look what clinging to the past has gotten Notre Dame. How did keeping a beloved coach for a few seasons too many work out for Florida State? Sometimes, the best thing a program can do to improve is to realize the limitations of their current leadership and part ways. College football is evolving at lightning speed. VT is creeping along at a snails pace…and VT has been exposed on the field for it time and time again. Michigan. Stanford. Alabama. Auburn. Boise State. Kansas. Clemson. I could keep going…but I don’t need to. The stats, records, and box scores from the past speak for themselves.
other john from 1:22pm,
John, NO truer words have ever been spoken. It is time to celebrate the career of Frank Beamer by bronzing his statued likeness in the newly re-named Beamer Stadium. Then, and with great dispatch, promote the soon-to-be hall of fame Head Coach to AD, promote the offensive leadership and the AD to FAN.
It is time to risk some the homespun aw-shucks good old boy image with a coach whose only goal is the national title; not 10 win seasons versus subpar opponents in a watered down conference.
No one has said that Coach Beamer is the only one who can coach VT football and no one has said his son would even want to stay at VT. He has been coaching at much higher profile programs than VT. I don’t know what coach you would like to bring in but the ones you think are so great would not work for the money VT can afford and most of them have been caught cheating and get their teams put on probation while they sneak out of town. You mentioned Dooley. He got us put on probation and Coach Beamer started with a scholarship deficit that hurt the program for several years.Why does a ten and eleven win season count for nothing but the bowl game is everything? A bowl game loss does not define a winning season except for the unreasonable.
Lets get another thing straight about the fans who are under 40 that dont know the game or have real ‘skin in the game’. i started following Virginia Tech from the early days when Jimmy Sharp would come on the air and have 30 long minutes to explain how Alabama beat us by 50. Different times in college football indeed. In the 1990′s upon our ascention to the Big East, Virginia Tech aligned with ESPN on several thursday night games to help the school’s notoriety. During that time from 1987-present, the HOKIES have won Big East titles ACC titles and for nearly every major college program, that a monumental acheivement when you consider where the Virginia Tech program was as early as 1980.
Since playing for the national title, there has been a surge of money infused into the football program where the ‘Vick crowd’ thought the program to be on the precipice of winning a title. It created a level of excitement for a new generation of hokie fans with money to spend whose donations arent paying off in my view.
Lastly, for any donor/ contributor to have a myopic view of Frank Beamer simply because they havent given more money is absurd. As for my ‘skin in the game’, i havent missed non-conference games on a major level on the road, so I have seen the last 10 years devestatingly live and in person when we were supposed to take the last step towards elite status in college football. The only question begs to be answered…”when is 1 win vs a top 5 team in 25 years enough to know he cant win two?