By Jimmy Robertson
BLACKSBURG – For years and years and years, Virginia Tech lacked depth on the offensive line, often piecing together a starting five and praying that no one got injured.
Times, though, have changed. Tech's current roster features 19 offensive linemen, and line coach Vance Vice recently sorted out his plethora of options, as evidenced by the releasing of a depth chart Monday.
Of course, everything is subject to change – right up until kickoff.
"I'm not really handcuffed anymore," Vice said. "If you're [one of his players] not doing it, I don't have to watch it, and I can put five more in there if I need to. That's the luxury that you don't get a lot of times, and it's a healthy competition, too.
"Obviously, they've got the right attitude and mindset. They want the offense to have success, so they're competing with each other — not just behind them, but beside them and everywhere else."
Despite seeing the increase in numbers and talent, Tech fans still need to be cautiously optimistic. After all, three starters departed following last season – the trio of Kyle Chung, Yosuah Nijman and Braxton Pfaff – and Tyrell Smith enters this fall as the only senior in the position room.
So the Hokies begin this season with a relatively young group, led by returning starters Christian Darrisaw and Zachariah Hoyt. The latter started nine games at center last season, including the final four, and projects as the starter heading into the opener, while Darrisaw started 12 games as a true freshman at the left tackle spot.
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Darrisaw played well last season despite battling a nagging injury. He earned freshman All-America honors by several publications, but he missed spring practice while taking care of that undisclosed injury. Vice expects a big season from the now-healthy sophomore, particularly after he gained strength and put on 16 pounds in the offseason.
"I'm super excited right now because I think he's healthy," Vice said. "That was not the case for three quarters of the year last year. Obviously, his technique – and he is a sophomore – there is a lot of room for improvement, and he understands that. He's a guy with a lot of pride.
"He's been very consistent in the pass game, and the run game, we're still working on. He did a great job in the offseason, bulking up in the weight room and increasing all his numbers in there. Like I said, he's healthy right now, and it's pretty exciting for him."
Vice listed Lecitus Smith as the left guard beside Darrisaw. The 6-foot-3, 316-pounder started four games last season, including the Hokies' loss to Cincinnati in the Military Bowl, and he arguably ranks as Tech's most physical interior blocker.
On the right side, Vice spent much of August scrutinizing several players. Ultimately, he went with experience, with redshirt junior T.J. Jackson being listed as the top right guard and redshirt sophomore Silas Dzansi as the right tackle.
Dzansi started the final three games of last season at right tackle as a redshirt freshman, and the 325-pounder played well in the bowl game. He possesses the ability to play guard as well. Jackson, who also took reps at right tackle, stands as the biggest player on the roster at 359 pounds.
Head coach Justin Fuente recently raved about the 6-6 Jackson, who arrived at Tech only having played a couple of seasons of high school football.
"T.J. Jackson is maybe the most unique athlete I have seen out there in terms of his size and athletic ability," Fuente said. "Every day, he continues to take steps forward to being a good player. He is just a big, special athlete. He is a really athletic person."
Smith, with 40 career games under his belt (the most on the team), goes into the opener as a backup and gives Vice additional flexibility with his ability to play either tackle spot. Austin Cannon, who recently earned a scholarship, and true freshman Doug Nester are the backups at left guard and right guard, respectively, and redshirt freshman Luke Tenuta, who stands a massive 6-7, 315 pounds, goes into the BC game listed as the backup at right tackle.
"He's had a great, great offseason," Vice said of Tenuta. "I know we were able to redshirt him last year, and he's put on about 50 pounds since I've got to know him. He fits in great with this group — he works every day … Obviously, he's intelligent and understands what we're trying to do. He's able to play multiple positions also, so he's got a lot of value right now."
The Hokies needed to find a backup at center behind Hoyt in the event of an injury to him. Vice played seven different players at the center position this August, but ultimately chose John Harris as the best option for a backup center. Others who have worked there include all of the Hokies' four freshmen – Nester, Jesse Hanson, Bryan Hudson and Will Pritchard.
The staff views Pritchard as a future center, but whether any of those four play this season remains to be seen. Tech's depth along the line affords Vice the luxury of having all of them take a redshirt season.
"With this group of guys, with their mentality and their work ethic, there's legitimate competition at every spot with every person in my room front to back," Vice said. "You have a bad day, and you're going to get shoveled around a little bit. It's legitimate competition.
"You got some guys that have got experience advantages over some others, but just the caliber of the kids we got and more so their mentality and their athleticism give them a chance to do what we're asking of them. You just got to put back-to-back days, and you're right in the mix."
The Hokies hope to run the ball better this season – they ranked 57th nationally and ninth in the ACC in rushing offense (174.3 ypg) in 2018. But the staff attributed that to an array of factors and actually felt that the offensive line played pretty well last fall.
This year's group features 17 players who weigh more than 300 pounds, and several of these players can play multiple positions. That versatility enables Vice to keep his top five linemen on the field at all times.
In short, the group possesses the potential to lead the way again, but it will be young – only one is a senior and only four others are juniors. If these players can mesh into a cohesive unit, they give the Hokies a great chance at starting the season off on the right note.