Slept On It: East Carolina

One week after writing about how emotionally damaged Hokie Nation is, the Hokies emphatically reinforced our feelings of mistrust and endless delusions of turning that vaunted corner.

Despite jumping out to a quick 14-0 lead thanks to a dominant defense and an efficient offense, the skies opened up and washed away the Hokies' momentum. East Carolina scored 28 unanswered points following the Hokes' early scores and ultimately hung on to defeat Tech for the second consecutive season.

Through the first eight minutes and 14 Tech points on the board, the Hokies looked like they were picking up where they left off a week ago at Purdue. From that point on, it was all ECU for over 30 minutes.

It was a stunning turn of events, as if both teams switched uniforms during the television timeout that followed Joey Slye's extra point. It took East Carolina a few drives to shake off their hangover, but once they settled in and got their sea legs, the Hokies didn't stand a chance.

Starting quarterback Blake Kemp — who turned the ball over in each of the Pirates' first two drives — looked like an All-American after digging ECU into an early hole, effortlessly leading the offense downfield for their first score of the afternoon.

From thereon, it became the James Summers Show. A guy who entered preseason camp third on the depth chart, Summers took over the reins from Kemp and ran roughshod over a hapless Tech defense. Frankly, it was embarrassing. Summers is no doubt a dynamic athlete, but the manner in which he broke tackles and repeatedly converted third-and-longs makes me cringe just thinking about it.

Something about this Tech team was different yesterday. The swagger disappeared almost as quickly as their two touchdown lead. Both sides of the ball looked paralyzed once the weather made a turn for the worse. Murphy's Law took hold and with it came a disastrous turn of events.

Everyone was at fault yesterday. Everyone. This was a team loss, produced not by an isolated gaffe or key injury, but a confluence of mistakes made by both the play callers and those executing them.

Scot Loeffler seemed completely befuddled by the rainy conditions, abandoning his cerebral approach in favor of an asinine recurrence of QB power after QB power. Motley, to his credit, stood up to the challenge and had an impressive game. He wasn't the most accurate passer — missing his spots on a number of key plays, none bigger than a wide open Sam Rogers down the left sideline — but he continued to find ways to make plays and keep the Hokies in the game.

Loeffler's playcalling painted a picture of an underprepared coordinator, unsure of how to use his offensive ammunition in less-than-ideal conditions. Instead of mixing things up and keeping the defense on it's toes, Lefty stubbornly relied on inside zone reads, jet sweeps and flanker screens. It felt like 2013 all over again, causing me to worry that the man still hasn't really figured it out.

Shane Beamer continues to have absolutely no clue what he's got in his running backs, giving J.C. Coleman seven carries despite none of them going for more than three yards. Why Travon McMillian hasn't assumed the starting role by now is unbeknownst to me. Apparently Shane feels the only way to use Travon is on sweeps, which has become stale and predictable through four games but has done little to slow down the talented redshirt freshman. Maybe that says something, Shane.

A year after being bombarded through the air, the Hokies were beat on the ground by an ECU offense that seems to have Bud Foster's defense figured out. Foster struggled to counter East Carolina's dynamic quarterback James Summers, despite the fact that everyone watching knew what was coming from Ruffin McNeill's offense. Summers gashed the Hokie defense to the tune of 179 yards on 21 carries, punctuated by a 41 yard touchdown run late in the third after Tech looked primed for a comeback.

There is no doubt Kendall Fuller's absence was a major problem for Torrian Gray's secondary. Though he intercepted Kemp early, Fuller's replacement Greg Stroman was repeatedly picked on by the Pirates with increasing success. Stroman looked helpless in coverage, unable to stick with his man and make a play on the ball.

Poor coverage. Missed tackles. An inconsistent offense. A week after a promising performance, Saturday felt like this team had taken a dozen giant steps backwards.

Listen, I'm a pragmatist. Heading into this season, I understood that this team was far from perfect and had a ways to go before becoming a perennial powerhouse. But this year's team has so much promise, and with that comes an overwhelming feeling of hope. Saturday's loss to ECU reminded me of one of my biggest concerns heading into the year: That the staff, as a collective, still isn't entirely sure how to put it all together.

I woke up Sunday morning wondering where this program is going. Does the staff even know? Are we even entering each season looking to run the table, or are they content with a strong conference performance?

This program is stagnant, mired in a cesspool of mediocrity. This team has gobs and gobs of talent, but I'm running out of patience as I watch it struggle to put it all together on a consistent basis.

Hokie football has become the crappiest box of chocolates and I'm tired of not knowing what I'm going to get each and every Saturday.

I'm tired of not knowing who this team is and how they're going to beat their opponent week-in and week-out. In recent years, it's been different game-to-game. If something is truly great, it shouldn't selectively come-and-go. It's a staple; a calling card; an identity. What is this team's identity?

This staff needs to get back to basics this week. They need to figure out who this team is; what this team is; and what their biggest strengths and greatest weaknesses are, both individually and collectively. They need to figure out how to put it all together and put each player in a position to succeed.

It's how Virginia Tech became a household name, and it's how it can become one again.