BLACKSBURG – The Virginia Tech football program lost a bunch of talented seniors off last season's squad, and the talent exodus, combined with a lack of depth in the program, has forced an unusual amount of juggling of personnel over the past 18 months.
Some of those on the move in that time span include Kyle Chung (right tackle to center), Vinny Mihota (defensive end to defensive tackle), Xavier Burke (tight end to defensive end to defensive tackle), Divine Deablo (receiver to safety), Caleb Farley (cornerback to receiver back to cornerback), Emmanuel Belmar (linebacker to defensive end) and Devon Hunter (rover/safety to whip/nickel).
Chung's move led a rather large offseason re-shuffling on the offensive line – the spot where a lot of shuffling tends to occur. Most programs lack a true second team on the offensive line, so line coaches move one or two backups to different spots to build depth.
However, in this case, offensive line coach Vance Vice wanted to shore up the important center position, so he moved his most experienced player there – one who has played pretty much every position on the line
"I've played there my entire career except for last year," Chung said at Thursday's football news conference. "Whether I play inside or outside, I'm comfortable either way. I think that's a big part of it, too, just me being able to play all five positions. I start to get comfortable at each one, and if there is something I'm uncomfortable with, I have the opportunity to work on it and get more comfortable as time goes on."
Yosuah Nijman and D'Andre Plantin also moved to different positions because Vice deemed them better fits, at least for the time being, at right tackle and left guard, respectively. Also, Lecitus Smith came to Tech as a tight end, but eventually wound up at left guard behind Plantin after Smith outgrew the tight end spot. Smith weighs nearly 315 pounds.
"We told him to quit fighting it," Tech coach Justin Fuente said a week ago. "Like a lot of us, just let yourself go, buddy. Almost overnight he got to his natural weight and started gaining weight. Obviously, he was going to move inside.
"But that's a big difference between playing guard and playing tight end. But I've been impressed with his talent. He's a big strong, young kid, and is really athletic. Hopefully, he continues to improve and work on his craft every day. He's really matured in the last year or so."
With 10 days left before kickoff, the Hokies appear relatively settled on the offensive line with Chung at center, Braxton Pfaff and Plantin at the guard spots and Nijman and Silas Dzansi at the tackle positions. They have combined to start 51 games in their career and expect to run the ball better than last season when the Hokies ranked 54th nationally in rushing offense (173.4 ypg).
Juggling also has occurred on Tech's defensive line, though most of that occurred before last season. Many fans remain concerned about depth at the tackle position, but line coach Charley Wiles likes what he has seen from Burke, a redshirt junior who has played in 14 games in his career. Burke continues to get better and appears to have found a home.
"Defensive tackle is a little more physical than defensive end," he said. "But I would say where I'm at right now, I'm in a better state mentally and physically, as well as knowing what to do when I'm on the field."
That, too, could apply to Belmar, whom the staff always planned to look at as a defensive end during the recruiting process.
"Moving positions is always kind of a hard thing to do," said Belmar, who watches NFL stars like Von Miller and Khalil Mack to get pointers. "At linebacker, you have to use a little more instincts than at defensive end. The transition, you've just got to put your hand down and play ball. So just putting your hand down and reading things a little differently, I'd say are the biggest [differences]."
So far, the moves have been smart ones, ones that put players in position to take advantage of their attributes. Of course, the final verdict starts to be handed down on Labor Day night when the Hokies open the season at Florida State.
Here are some more notes from Thursday's news conference:
Finding a home
Fuente commented Thursday about the progress of receiver Hezekiah Grimsley, who appears to be a perfect fit for the slot receiver position in Tech's offense. He played several different receiver spots a year ago as a freshman, and he came on toward the end of the season, catching 10 of his 12 passes in the final two games.
"I'm pleased with the decision to move me to slot," Grimsley said. "I feel like it's easy to make plays on the inside. Now that I'm at one spot, I can focus on how to perfect that position and how to like to change different things up and learn slot to its fullest. With Wiggs [receivers coach Holmon Wiggins] and Fuente helping me, just knowing what coverages to look at and how to change routes and what decisions to make in certain game situations … I think that helps a lot by keeping me in one place."
Prepping for a big season
Tech punter Oscar Bradburn averaged 42.4 yards per punt a season ago as a freshman, and behind him, the Hokies ranked third in the ACC in net punting (and 27th nationally). Now the sophomore wants to take it to a different level this season – and he expects to with that year of experience under his belt.
"I definitely needed that first season to become more comfortable with the way I play and stuff, and I think I've come leaps and bounds since I've gotten here," Bradburn said. "Going from one sport to the other has been quite a journey. It started 2.5-3 years ago, and it's working out for me so far. I can't complain."
Walker, Nijman named to Reese's Senior Bowl Watch List
Virginia Tech redshirt senior defensive tackle Ricky Walker and senior offensive lineman Yosuah Nijman were named to the Reese's Senior Bowl Watch List, the game's committee announced Monday.
Walker enjoyed a career year for the Hokies in 2017 as he racked up 41 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in 13 starts at defensive tackle. An All-ACC Honorable Mention selection, his tackles for loss total ranked 15th in the conference and he scored his first career touchdown on a fumble recovery vs. North Carolina (10/21/17). Walker helped the Lunch Pail Defense finish the season ranked fourth in the nation in scoring defense (14.8 points per game), second in third-down defense (26.2 percent) and fifth in first downs allowed (200).
Nijman owns 22 career starts, the most on the offense, and will move over to right tackle for his senior season after playing on the left side the last three years. Th 6' 7", 314-pound Maplewood, N.J., product was named a third-team preseason All-ACC selection by Athlon Sports in May.
The 70th annual Reese's Senior Bowl is January 26, 2019 in Mobile, Ala., at 1:30pmCT. A long NFL tradition, more than 1,000 representatives from the 32 NFL clubs gather in Mobile starting on the Monday of game week (Jan. 21 in 2019) to interview players, attend the National Scouting Weigh-in and watch three practices for the North and South teams.
