Pre-Shane Recruiting and the Debacle in Chapel Hill

One of the major problems with the defense is not only the lack of veteran depth in the secondary, but also a lack of veteran depth in the linebacker corps. In previous editions of French on the Bench, I have casually mentioned how the defense has been hampered terribly by horrific recruiting classes from 2008-2010 (prior to Shane Beamer's arrival.) Here is a quick breakdown of the defensive recruiting during that period.

Average Rivals Score: 3.08
Number of starters: 3
Number who were in program 4 years: 3
Number of DB's: 1

Average Rivals Score: 3.06
Number of starters: 5
Number who were in program 4 years: 5
Number of DB's: 2

Average Rivals Score: 3.06
Number of starters: 3
Number who were in program 3 years: 6
Number of DB's: 2

With a few exceptions, the Hokies recruited 3-star or less talent, and the number of marginal players or players who left the program is startling. Until Donaldven Manning last season, the Hokies had barely developed enough defensive back recruits to field a secondary, and many talented players were moved away from safety to the whip wasteland.

Even more serious, the Hokies have a major dearth of veteran talent at mike and backer. Bruce Taylor, Tariq Edwards, and Chase Williams (Tyler was a preferred walk-on) are the only players from this three year recruiting period. In 2010, linebacker was a major focus of the staff. However, Bud Foster looked past consensus top linebacker Curtis Grant, a lifelong Hokie fan playing at a Hokie pipeline in Hermitage. (I heard rumors about Grant wanting some incentives for coming to VT, so perhaps a blessing in disguise.) Foster passed on Grant, and devoted resources to recruiting Stephone Anthony and Travis Hughes, both of whom seemed to be great fits in the Foster defense. Anthony signed with Clemson, Hughes signed with UNC, and both have made huge plays that contributed to Hokie losses over the last calendar year.

Now the talent gap has finally caught up. The Hokies have some young talent, but most of it is unpolished or at a position where they have depth (defensive line). Last year's DB class has promise, but prior classes (Bonner, Cole, RVD, Aromire, etc...) have washed out, outgrew the position, or just are not ACC-caliber starters. The lack of linebacker depth forced a worn out Jack Tyler and Bruce Taylor to play every snap today, and the defensive line had to be oversensitive to play fakes because of the poor run support of the secondary, which froze the pass rush.

This season has now become about next year. The Hokies have limited options in the secondary and fewer at mike and backer, but the trigger needs to be pulled on some changes. First, the Hokies need to figure out a way to get Bruce Taylor and Jack Tyler some rest. They can do it, and perhaps match up a little better against the spread by using Ronny Vandyke and JGW at backer and rotating Taylor & Tyler at mike on third downs. Second, at this point it is clear that Bonner and Cole will always be liabilities. They may get better, but neither have ACC starter athleticism and that isn't going to change. Cole would be better suited as a whip/special teams guy, and Bonner as a back up corner. If they feel that Manning can be a contributor, let him make mistakes and get him snaps. Figure out if Tookes and Frye can play. Spend the time and resources teaching them how to contribute next year, because even if the offense plays lights out and the defensive line starts killing the QB, any decent passing offense that can mix in the run will ultimately shred this defense. Besides the front-four, they just don't have the horses, and even with a few very promising guys, the best position on defense (line) doesn't seem to have that superstar who can wreck a gameplan by himself.