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The 2009 football season is upon us and once again we are embarrassed by the Hokies' anemic offense.
The VT Hokies were 103rd nationally last season in total offense and little better Saturday against Alabama. The Crimson Tide outgained the Hokies by better than 3-1 (498-155), had twice as many first downs (22-11) and hogged the ball for 14-plus more minutes (37:02 to 22:58) than VT. Player talent isn’t the problem with the perennial putrid offense so what is the problem? The answer is obvious to any loyal fan of the VT football program but for some reason the loyalty factor of Coach Beamer stands in the way of him making a decision that should have been made several seasons ago.
One can’t help but wonder if the other VT coaches are tiring of their players carrying the load while the offense sputters and hopes the defense can hold so the offense can once again go three and out. VT will never be a national championship contender as long as their offense remains a liability to their football program. Why would any top talent high school offensive player want to come to VT and be stifled by a second-rate college offense? David Wilson is a good example of VT landing a top notch talent and not having a game plan that would showcase his speed as he ignited a stagnant offense. His late appearance in the 4th quarter was indicative of the coaching decisions that accompany an all too predictable unproductive VT offensive game plan.
The VT defense has every reason to be proud of their efforts against Alabama. They were tough as nails and endured 14-plus more minutes on the field than did the VT offense. The VT three and out offensive game plan is a guarantee that their defense must have super human stamina, which even with the talent of Bud Foster isn’t likely to be a possibility. Life is full of difficult decisions and if not now, then when will Coach Beamer make his inevitable difficult decision?
One last word about football, high school football. Giles High School has a relatively new head coach, Jeff Williams, who inherited a program known as a perennial power in the New River Valley. Big shoes are always hard to fill and Coach Williams is certainly a good example of how a good coach can sometimes land a job that will take a while to produce a champion. A count of his players, on and off the field, at the Giles vs. Blacksburg game indicates a shortage of Giles High School students who want to play football. Approximately 30 dressed players are far fewer than the days when 45 plus players eagerly competed for the Spartans. The physical conditioning of some of this year’s players is pathetic. Big players yes, but when they are almost totally physically spent before the end of the first half, a coach would be better off having smaller but better conditioned players. Coach Williams will have to be a magician if he is to have a winning season with this year’s group of lackadaisical athletes. It isn’t too far-fetched to expect nothing better than a three win season for this year’s Spartans.
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