By Jimmy Robertson
BLACKSBURG – The good news for Virginia Tech football fans is that defensive line coach Charley Wiles likes his group of players and their potential, even though the group lacks a senior.
The bad news: they will get tested early – as in the season opener Saturday evening.
Boston College enters every season with a long-established tradition of playing physical, tough football. The Eagles annually feature a big offensive line, big tight ends and a quality tailback, and this season appears to be no different.
Yes, BC lost four starters from its offensive front, but this program is like a vending machine for offensive linemen. The Eagles released their initial depth chart earlier this week and the starting line features four 300-pounders, including two already with degrees. They expect to pave the way for a 250-pound tailback named AJ Dillon, who ranks as one of the best in the nation.
"We do have to play physically up front," Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster admitted earlier this week. "We do have to be gap-sound up front, and I'm talking linebackers as well. Then we have to do a great job of running to the football and tackling their big back. He is everything that they are writing about. He's a big-time player. We have to do a great job of swarming him."
Any Tech success in stopping Dillon and the Eagles probably starts up front. The Hokies return three starters on the defensive line from last season – tackle Jarrod Hewitt and ends TyJuan Garbutt and Emmanuel Belmar.
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Wiles expects a much bigger season from Hewitt, who stands as one of the leaders on this roster. Hewitt started 10 games last fall alongside of departed standout Ricky Walker and finished with 15 tackles, but Wiles wants those numbers to be more along the lines of what Walker produced last season – 49 tackles, 10.5 for loss.
Like Hewitt, Belmar started 10 games in 2018, and he finished with 29 tackles, including four for a loss, and two sacks. The redshirt junior had two sacks in the Spring Game and gives the Hokies a steady, consistent presence in the lineup.
Garbutt possesses the ability to be a breakout star this fall. A rash of injuries and Trevon Hill's dismissal led to the redshirt sophomore starting four games in 2018. He played in all 13 games and was productive, finishing with 31 tackles, including 6.5 for a loss, and a sack. He also forced a fumble.
"He's really stepped his game up, with being a little bit bigger and is playing at a higher level because of the experience he gained last year," Foster said of Garbutt. "He's kind of where you hoped he would be. I see a guy that has a lot of confidence, knows what he's doing and plays to the speed he should be playing at. He's got a great chance to be a really good football player for us."
The other projected starter in the lineup is DaShawn Crawford, a 290-pound junior college transfer who enrolled in January and participated in spring practice. The additional time in the program allowed Crawford to bulk up, and more importantly, learn Tech's system.
"A lot of quickness, and now he's up to around 290 pounds, and there was a question about how big he could get," Wiles said, sizing up Crawford. "You never see him around here without something to eat in his hand, and he still has his quickness and pop at the point of attack. He has picked it up really well. He had a big advantage coming in January.
"He's getting better, and the good thing is he's being pushed by all of the other guys, which is a good thing. It's hard to play 55-65 snaps inside. It really is. It's very physical, and you can wear down a little bit. You're always chasing the ball, so you can get a little tired. I think he is in the 25-play range and can be productive those plays."
Tech's backups, though, will be young and untested in part to some unforeseen circumstances. For example, Zion Debose suffered an undisclosed injury early in August, and Nathan Proctor entered the transfer portal, thus leaving the position in its current state.
In fact, at the end positions, the Hokies' projected backups feature two redshirt freshmen and a redshirt sophomore whom the staff moved from linebacker to end before the start of August practices. Eli Adams and Jaevon Becton will be making their collegiate debuts Saturday, with Jaylen Griffin hoping to make an impact at his new spot.
Wiles likes the trio despite their inexperience.
"I'm excited," he said. "Eli has come on. He was a real dynamic player in high school – multiple, multiple sacks, very active, and he's a little undersized. He's not very tall, but's 240 pounds, and he's been playing really good at camp.
"It's been a great move for Jaylen Griffin to come down to the defensive line. We've done that before where guys are maybe a step slow and get them a little closer to the line of scrimmage. He's a great kid [and] has a good football IQ. Things have come to him. He's strong and able to eat now. It was all he could do to stay under 250 pounds, and now he's around 260. He's a 400-plus pound bencher.
"Jaevon Becton has all kinds of ability. The more he plays, the better he's going to be. He's long, athletic, and he's in that No. 2 spot behind TyJuan Garbutt … I'm excited about those guys. Adams and Becton have been making plays, and I feel very comfortable with those guys playing half of the time."
The situation behind the starters at tackle is similar to that at end. Tech's staff hopes to get junior college transfer Jaden Cunningham healthy and in top shape. Unlike Crawford, Cunningham did not enroll until later this summer, so he spent much of August trying to adapt to the Hokies' scheme and to Division I training and coaching in general.
At 306 pounds, Cunningham provides a large presence in the interior. It would be a much-needed presence for this group.
"He doesn't get pushed around in there and holds the point of attack well and can run a little bit," Wiles said. "Imagine him in a year when he's in great shape and has a year underneath him in our program. He's going to benefit a lot from that."
The other four backups include just one with any game experience. Robert Porcher, a redshirt sophomore, played in 11 games last season and finished with 13 tackles, including two for a loss. He needs to get stronger, but seems to have a knack for making plays.
The other three listed on the depth chart are true freshmen – 308-pound Josh Fuga, 293-pound Mario Kendricks and 265-pound Norell Pollard. They all bring different skills to the tackle spots, and Wiles plans to play all three at Boston College.
Wiles likes to play five defensive tackles, and he enters the season opener with nine on the roster – the other two are former offensive lineman Aiden Brown and walk-on Maxx Philpott.
"There's some competition out there, and that's the best thing, knowing that you're in a direct competition, and it's a production-based business," he said. "You have to play at a certain level, make plays, be productive, or somebody is going to take your spot."
This group knows the challenge ahead of them. A year ago, Tech's defense held up reasonably well against Dillon, holding him to 96 yards, but BC's backup tailback – Travis Levy – rushed for 75 yards and two scores, and the Eagles finished with 219 yards rushing.
How critical is stopping the run against BC? Well, consider the numbers. Since Tech joined the ACC, the Hokies have allowed BC to rush for more than 200 yards on just two occasions – and lost both games.
In the other 13 meetings, Tech is 9-4 against the Eagles. So winning against BC starts with stopping the run.
And for the Hokies, it starts up front.
"We know Boston College well and what they're all about," Wiles said. "They have a big running back, and they're always good along the offensive line. I don't care if some of their guys have graduated. They recruit well and they're going to be physical. We're going to be ready for the challenge. We have to go in there, play with technique, fundamentals and be physical. We'll be ready to roll."