VT's Defense

[Russellm0704]

What is it about Bud Foster that makes us incapable of running our traditional spread? Just rewatched the game, and VT once again shut down our a-backs. JT, Smelter, and our D saved this game for us.

Is VT just very disciplined on defending the option? Our pitch plays yesterday just looked slow and painful. Glad PJ adjusted and let our playmakers take over the game.

 

[GTFan62]

I felt like this was the Justin and Zach game. Those guys did a great job.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

The Aback pitch is typically our big play play. They were doing something similar to what we were by not allowing the big play (so they thought) by taking away the pitch. They wanted to make JT beat them and he did.

 

[Animal02]

What is it about Bud Foster that makes us incapable of running our traditional spread? Just rewatched the game, and VT once again shut down our a-backs. JT, Smelter, and our D saved this game for us.

Is VT just very disciplined on defending the option? Our pitch plays yesterday just looked slow and painful. Glad PJ adjusted and let our playmakers take over the game.

In the past, they could they could stuff the box, had the speed to shut down the A back and our QB didn't have the speed to make the corner......that changed with JT.......when then opened the middle a bit

 

[Declinometer]

If Snoddy would not have been slow off the snap he would have taken the pitch to the house.

 

[southernhive]

The big plays were in the air and JT didn't have time to make an accurate pass. If we hit 2 or 3 over top receivers, then the game turns into a track meet.

 

[Russellm0704]

JT was the difference. No question. Vad is a great talent, but did not have the toughness to get to the sticks. Justin inspires this team. Much like Nesbitt. JT is still a first year QB and you will not see him missing those throws by the end of the year.

 

[Boomergump]

What is it about Bud Foster that makes us incapable of running our traditional spread? Just rewatched the game, and VT once again shut down our a-backs. JT, Smelter, and our D saved this game for us.

Is VT just very disciplined on defending the option? Our pitch plays yesterday just looked slow and painful. Glad PJ adjusted and let our playmakers take over the game.

It doesn't matter what a defense is able to shut down as long as you can take advantage of the holes they leave behind. We did that yesterday when it mattered most. When your QB runs for close to 200 yards and hits the passes needed to win the game, does it really matter that we couldn't get the ABs going? Just do what it takes. The beauty of this offense is that it forces a defense to make up for manpower shortages created by the option. VT is very good at filling the reserves into the space lost by the optioned players, but it STILL creates holes elsewhere. All that matters to me is that we find the holes. We seem to be doing that this year better than prior years. That has me encouraged. I haven't watched the recording yet, but at this point in time, I don't think JT had a very good passing day. We could have had a huge day in the air IMHO. We missed the chance on that, UNTIL Q4.

 

[AE 87]

Imo, VPI's D is not as good this year as last but is still going to be one of the best we face. I'm not worried about our O. JT didn't have a great game passing but made the ones he needed to against a good D. Like last year, some misses were on him and some on protection. He's 23 in passer rating right now (thanks Wofford).

 

[kg01]

"DBU(sic) not living up to it's name"

http://www.roanoke.com/sports/aaron...cle_908e5efd-7e97-5d71-ac7f-8fb604726cb6.html

Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson called a timeout right before that play. He still had two timeouts left after that, so a punt was an option, but he says he never considered it.

“No,” Johnson said. “You could get one-on-one any time you wanted it because they were blitzing.”

And quarterback Justin Thomas? Well, he wasn’t thinking like a 52-percent passer at that moment.

“I had to complete it,” he said. “I didn’t have a choice. If I didn’t complete it, the game was probably over.”

 

[Techster]

If you look back at the 2008 game with Nesbitt at QB, it looked a lot like the VT game yesterday. Against VT, our QB has to make plays to keep us alive beyond what the play call is. When our QB can do it, we have had success. When our QB can't do it, we tend to lose against VT.

The VT game is the ultimate crucible for our QBs...so much of our success rides on them. VT took away our running game, and JeT still found a way to make plays with his legs (to the tune of almost 200 yards). That's Foster's plan...take away everyone, and make the QB win the game. Foster underestimated JeT...and VT paid for it.

 

[texasjacket]

What is it about Bud Foster that makes us incapable of running our traditional spread? Just rewatched the game, and VT once again shut down our a-backs. JT, Smelter, and our D saved this game for us.

Is VT just very disciplined on defending the option? Our pitch plays yesterday just looked slow and painful. Glad PJ adjusted and let our playmakers take over the game.

Bud always has studs on defense. These athletes are what has made their defense tough for anybody. I think plenty of other def coaches have the strategies to stop spread options but don't have the players to make it happen consistently.

 

[AE 87]

"DBU(sic) not living up to it's name"

http://www.roanoke.com/sports/aaron...cle_908e5efd-7e97-5d71-ac7f-8fb604726cb6.html

 

[GTNavyNuke]

Imo, VPI's D is not as good this year as last but is still going to be one of the best we face. I'm not worried about our O. JT didn't have a great game passing but made the ones he needed to against a good D. Like last year, some misses were on him and some on protection. He's 23 in passer rating right now (thanks Wofford).

Maybe the VT D is going to be one of the best we face this year. It definitely was the best rush D we have seen so far. (Their pass D is living on borrowed time with the pass interference they are getting away with.) But about 4* of our future opponents are ranked ahead of VT in Football Outsiders defense stats. (Stats not yet adjusted for quality of opponent.) http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/feidef

*Duke, UVa, Miami, Pitt

 

[Whiskey_Clear]

I was big on Smelter preseason...and he has been exceeding my expectations. Burned VT DBs time n again. Will play on Sundays.

 

[ATL1]

If JT can correct his passing accuracy....
Lights Out !!!
The pitch and somewhat the dive will be taken away against Clemson and UGA too, its important that he corrects it.
I predicted the game was gonna be a JT show and it will have to be against those teams as well. We need to generate more yards out the dive too.

 

[OldJacketFan]

If JT can correct his passing accuracy....
Lights Out !!!
The pitch and somewhat the dive will be taken away against Clemson and UGA too, its important that he corrects it.
I predicted the game was gonna be a JT show and it will have to be against those teams as well. We need to generate more yards out the dive too.

As the year goes along and the game continues to slow down for JT I don't doubt his accuracy will continue to improve. He's already shown flashes of it so I feel by year's end it'll be where Tech needs it to be in the games you mention. Also, the pass pro schemes are getting better which helps JT and the WRs as well.

 

[Jean-Baptiste Rochambeau]

I was big on Smelter preseason...and he has been exceeding my expectations. Burned VT DBs time n again. Will play on Sundays.

He was beating their best CB, Fuller.

 

[Bennett]

What VT does is take away our a backs and usually our Dive which leaves the mid line or qb follow open. Unfortunately the last few years we haven't had a qb capable of making the plays to gash there defense. JT changed that yesterday. When playing this offense you have to pick your poison and hope you picked the right one. We will only get better with time too barring JT stays healthy

 

[GlennW]

The big plays were in the air and JT didn't have time to make an accurate pass. If we hit 2 or 3 over top receivers, then the game turns into a track meet.

THIS. If we would have hit some of those open passes earlier, like the one to Waller for the TD, it would have forced the Hokie defense to start respecting the pass more early, which would have opened up our running game more, which, in turn, would have drawn them back in for our passing attack...

The two things we talked about prior to the game many of us said needed to happen, or we wanted to see happen, to help our offense, DIDN'T as best I could tell. First, we didn't adjust our snap count so their defensive line could jump our snap count like before, and second, we didn't go into our no huddle, which would have forced Bud Foster to call plays more quickly and then give PJ a chance to adjust while he had time.

In spite of all of this, and the terrible calls/no calls, going against them, this young, inexperienced, team, found a way to win against their nemesis Division foe, at THEIR house, and they are 4-0 going into this first break. They made a statement to everyone in the Coastal Divison yesterday.