BLACKSBURG – Heading into its 12th practice of fall camp on Wednesday, 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:
"Thanks to everybody that came out to Fan Day on Sunday. I know the coaches and the players really enjoyed getting to see everybody. It seems like a long time. Obviously, it has been a long time since we've seen everyone. It's just good to get to fellowship a little bit and see everybody's faces. We had our first real scrimmage on Monday, followed by recovery day and we'll be back at it today. We had some good and some bad, as you'd expect from the scrimmage. We're back on the field today for kind of our last block of fall camp. We've got three practices and then our final scrimmage. Then school starts and then we'll start working our way towards a mock game until it's our first opponent."
On if there were any standout players from the scrimmage:
"I'll try to give you a couple people that I think are coming along. Dax [Hollifield] and Alan [Tisdale] are doing a good job. I'm really excited about them. But usually you all are kind of curious as to the young guys and how they're doing. So, Jaden Keller is a young player that I think has a chance to contribute some this fall. What role and what capacity of how much? I'm not sure. But obviously this isn't an exclusive list. These are just some guys off the top my head."
On the vision of what quarterback Braxton Burmeister and running back Raheem Blackshear will do in the backfield together:
"Well, we'll see as it goes on. I've been pleased with Braxton and the development that he's made. I think Raheem is more comfortable, too. I think Brad [Cornelsen] even said that we maybe gave him a little too much, especially given the circumstances last year with no spring practice. He's had a productive fall, so he seems to be more comfortable, just in general. That's probably a product of reps and us not overloading him right now. So, hopefully this guy can continue and be productive."
OFFENSIVE LINE COACH VANCE VICE
On how open is center Brock Hoffman open to doing other things for the betterment of the offensive line:
"Well, first of all he's very open. He just wants to do whatever it takes to help us win. He's had a tremendous camp, and spring, at that middle spot. He's playing at a super high level right now. And then Johnny [Jordan] is the same way. He came in here and people asked me what I was going to do with two centers, and, well, they both will play somewhere along the O-line."
CORNERBACK COACH RYAN SMITH
On where he has seen the most improvement so far:
"Well, for the cornerbacks specifically, I've preached collective development in my room. So, the growth of going from the older guys to the younger guys has been great. If you look at a guy like Jermaine Waller, he's a guy that didn't play a full season in 2020 and is now refining his technique and discipline, which make you a great cornerback. So, that's the kind of been the message for the older guys – don't get comfortable. Continue to work every day and set the tempo for the young guys."
RUNNING BACKS COACH ADAM LECHTENBERG
On running back Jalen Holston progression in fall camp:
"Jalen is one of those guys that sits in the front row, takes notes and works his tail off, and he's smart. He's that type of guy. This offseason he worked on his mobility and he's leaner. I think he's feeling as good as he's felt since he's been here. He's battled some injuries over the course of his career, so I think he's in a really good place. Then I think getting leaner has helped him be more productive, too."
RUNNING BACK JALEN HOLSTON
On where he has seen himself improve and how fall camp is going:
"Just being back to football has been great. I'm getting more comfortable running inside zone and catching passes from Braxton [Burmeister]. Then being able to hit again, too. But as far as improvement, I would say everything all around. I'm just trying to be the best back I can be for this team."
