BLACKSBURG – Heading into its seventh practice of fall camp on Thursday, Virginia Tech football head coach Justin Fuente, assistant coaches and players met with the media for a press conference. Read what Fuente and the others had to say below.
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HEAD COACH JUSTIN FUENTE
Opening statement:
"The guys are doing really well. I mean, they pushed through a long block there of six straight days of practice. Today will be a good test for us to come back from an off day and put in the work. But we got a long way to go and will always continue to develop – and that's really in all spots. Got to do plenty of work with both returners and some of the new guys."
On if there are any updates on the roster:
"As far as the roster goes, just a brief update on Emmanuel Belmar. After he talked to his family and to our medical people, he's decided to step away from football. I feel for Emmanuel because he was a very hard-nosed, tough football player for us for several years. He just couldn't overcome the injury part. But we've encouraged him to be around as much as he would like and emotionally can handle. He's been an instrumental part of our team's culture and work ethic. Obviously, we support him and love him. We wish him nothing but the best."
On the defensive line and where he turns from here for Belmar's backup:
"Yeah, I mean, we'll see. We have one positive and that's the news that TyJuan Garbutt seems to be back. There was a period there when TyJuan was going through some things. So, he's not just with us, but he's actually back, with joking and laughing and having a good time. He's a real asset to what we've got going on. So, it's nice, because there for a while, we didn't know what that was going to look like. So, it's nice to have him back."
DEFENSIVE LINE COACH BILL TEERLINCK
On former tight end Wilfried Pene switching to defensive line and how he's picking it up:
"He's been a great addition to the front row. Every day he gets a little bit better. He picks up one thing every day, and maybe one thing every period. So, he's been able to string together a couple of good days in a row. And the good thing about Will is he's a low-maintenance kid. He's not a try-hard guy, and that's it. Those guys are fun to coach and easy to coach. He's going to find this niche. It's our job to find that role for him. But we're thrilled to death to have him in our room."
OFFENSIVE LINEMAN SILAS DZANSI
On what it means to have super senior Tyrell Smith back:
"When the news came out that he was coming back, the whole team was excited. I love that guy. He was my mentor when I first came in. So, we've been really tight this entire time. When he said that he was coming back, I immediately knew he was going to be right next to me again, which is great. With him coming back, it takes a lot of pressure off the offensive line, with just him having his skill set and his leadership qualities. It really helps the team overall."Gallery: (8-12-2021) FB: 2021 Fall Camp (Day 7)
