BLACKSBURG – Looking towards Saturday's game versus Wofford, Virginia Tech football met with the media Tuesday to discuss the matchup and recall this past weekend's win against Boston College. Read below to see what head coach Brent Pry and defensive lineman TyJuan Garbutt had to say.
Head coach Brent Pry
Opening statement:
"First, I want to thank all the Hokie fans for coming out Saturday night. I can't thank them enough. We're going to continue to do that. The crowd was phenomenal. The weather didn't deter anybody, which was fantastic. A Boston College member on their creative staff tweeted, 'The most impressive entrance for a college football game he's ever been around or experienced.' I did hit the like button. I am super proud of the fan base and what it means to our players. We've got a couple more Saturdays coming up. This weekend is Wofford, and they're a good opponent. I've coached FCS ball. I have tremendous respect for Wofford. I need everybody out there, full force, as well as it is Military Appreciation Day, which is a great opportunity for our staff, our team and our fans to honor those men and women who serve and make great sacrifices for our country. So, I am looking forward to Saturday."
On how the team can keep improving on the defensive side:
"We've got a ton of areas we have to continue to improve defensively. We, obviously, have a high standard, high expectation for me, personally, for what I think that unit needs to look like. And we're certainly not there yet, but I'm proud of the performance and the things we're emphasizing right now. We've got some veterans on that side of the ball. We've got some guys that have been in a bunch of battles, and that certainly helps a lot. We were able to do a little bit more with our package than maybe you normally would in year one because of our arsenal with TyJuan, Dax [Hollifield], [Norell] Pollard, Mario [Kendricks] and there's just a bunch of guys who have played a lot of football, Chamarri [Conner], Armani [Chatman] and Dorian [Strong]. So, we've got the basis for a pretty good group. We've still got some areas that we've got to come along into being well-rounded, complete unit."
Defensive lineman TyJuan Garbutt
On what he improved on most this offseason:
"To consistently work on the technical and fundamentals in my game. Then, having a full year with Coach Pry. He knows what he is talking about; He knows what he is doing because his resume speaks for itself. I think being able to be one of the guys that's been trying to help other guys come along, so just having the intelligence to help others. Just knowing that I trust the system, and if I trust my coaches, trust what they're telling me to do, that they'll bring results. Being one of the veterans and kind of stepping up and being a leader in more of an intense way."
On how he and the team want to build off this performance versus Boston College:
"It was good work. It's the last performance people get to see every week, so we put it together. We cut down on our miscues and improved on our technique and fundamental errors. We took care of the football as a team. It's not where we know it could be, but we feel like we are just scratching the surface. We are cleaning it up and getting back what we have been trying to do."
