What do we see first?

[Ash]

What VT did against us last season wasn't a surprised. CPJ and our players said after the game they practiced for exactly what VT did last year. Players just didn't execute. We just got out-coached and out-executed last season by VT. CPJ has been running this offense for 25+ years. VT isn't the first team to shoot gaps and bring pressure before the snap.

Hopefully this year we just execute better, and our coaches adjust better.

Watching the VT game I remember being frustrated, wondering when we were going to make some adjustments to what VT was doing. I guess varying the snap count to throw off the LBs timing resulted in all of those false starts. What ever else we tried didn't see to slow them down much at all either.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

What VT did against us last season wasn't a surprised. CPJ and our players said after the game they practiced for exactly what VT did last year. Players just didn't execute. We just got out-coached and out-executed last season by VT. CPJ has been running this offense for 25+ years. VT isn't the first team to shoot gaps and bring pressure before the snap.

Hopefully this year we just execute better, and our coaches adjust better.

dressedcheeseside said: "Having the right qb makes all the difference in the world."

 

[Techster]

dressedcheeseside said: "Having the right qb makes all the difference in the world."

Yep...Vad had all those false starts as an OL as well. All those guys in the backfield before our backs could turn the corner was the QB's fault as well.

Blaming the QB is the lazy man's way out.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

Yep...Vad had all those false starts as an OL as well.

Good point. My point is valid as well, Vad didn't have one of his better games that day.

My point in the post you responded to was that we saw a concerted effort in spring to duplicate the VT strategy, do you agree? We didn't see that in any other spring game prior. I, for one, hope it pays off.

I agree we got out coached and outplayed against VT last year, but it wasn't just the OL who was outplayed.

 

[Eric]

The whole offense got outplayed and shutdown...even with that we still had a chance late. Oh well...Time to move on and beat them this year

 

[Techster]

Good point. My point is valid as well, Vad didn't have one of his better games that day.

My point in the post you responded to was that we saw a concerted effort in spring to duplicate the VT strategy, do you agree? We didn't see that in any other spring game prior. I, for one, hope it pays off.

I agree we got out coached and outplayed against VT last year, but it wasn't just the OL who was outplayed.

I would assume if CPJ said they prepared for it in practice, the defense made a concerted effort to duplicate during the practices leading up to the game...not just this last Spring Game.

I think the whole offense, not just the QB, was off.

 

[CTJacket]

Guys, I'm going to FTFY (for everyone). It's VPI. Do not concede the Tech name so easily!

That said, VPI still worries me because it's JT's (or TB's) first real road game. Rookie qbs tend to struggle on the road for the first game or two.

 

[Longestday]

1 week preparing for VT with the scout team is not the same as preparing for VT in the spring and in the fall camp with the 1st string D.

Roof did a great job getting the D to bring the VT type of pressure in the spring game.

The only thing missing was Clemson's random CB blitz. (Easy to defeat if it is not random with the WR passes ala 2012)

I also think/wonder if we will use some more "hurry up/non hurry up" get to the line then look for a "check" from the side line. This helps us see where the pressure will come from and allow the experienced coach to make the check call. This also messes up timing the snap and running through the LOS at just the right time.


I think JT and Byerly will be less "excitable" ala TW/Nesbit in games... including road games. No real high highs and no real low lows makes for steady hands! Someone who is excitable has more nerves.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

We saw a lot of timing the snap due to Aback motion. I'm sure we have some plays that are designed to trip this up, but I can't bring any to mind right now. Anybody?

 

[Ash]

We saw a lot of timing the snap due to Aback motion. I'm sure we have some plays that are designed to trip this up, but I can't bring any to mind right now. Anybody?

I have seen Navy run some A-back motion that would be harder to time. I'm sure we could handle it.
I liked what we did in the Spring Game with the "Hurry up". Anything to keep us unpredictable. Ironically that was one of our weaknesses last season.

 

[Techster]

1 week preparing for VT with the scout team is not the same as preparing for VT in the spring and in the fall camp with the 1st string D.

Roof did a great job getting the D to bring the VT type of pressure in the spring game.

The only thing missing was Clemson's random CB blitz. (Easy to defeat if it is not random with the WR passes ala 2012)

I also think/wonder if we will use some more "hurry up/non hurry up" get to the line then look for a "check" from the side line. This helps us see where the pressure will come from and allow the experienced coach to make the check call. This also messes up timing the snap and running through the LOS at just the right time.


I think JT and Byerly will be less "excitable" ala TW/Nesbit in games... including road games. No real high highs and no real low lows makes for steady hands! Someone who is excitable has more nerves.

I seriously doubt that was the first time CPJ or our offense saw the defense shoot gaps and bring pressure like VT did. In fact, Groh did the exact same thing the previous Spring. Like I said earlier, CPJ has run this offense for 25+ years. I doubt VT did anything different than what he's seen previously.

It wasn't for lack of preparing or just prepping against the scout team that caused the issues against VT last year. To a man, from coaches and players, all said they knew exactly what VT was going to do. As fans we like to think VT did something special to offset the fact our team just wasn't prepared, but bottom line is we just stunk it up that day.

 

[Ash]

It wasn't for lack of preparing or just prepping against the scout team that caused the issues against VT last year. To a man, from coaches and players, all said they knew exactly what VT was going to do. As fans we like to think VT did something special to offset the fact our team just wasn't prepared, but bottom line is we just stunk it up that day.

Things like that are the stuff that takes me down a notch or two in my off-season optimism. Not being prepared for the 2nd biggest home game of the season? Really? How is that even possible?

 

[dressedcheeseside]

I seriously doubt that was the first time CPJ or our offense saw the defense shoot gaps and bring pressure like VT did. In fact, Groh did the exact same thing the previous Spring. Like I said earlier, CPJ has run this offense for 25+ years. I doubt VT did anything different than what he's seen previously.

It wasn't for lack of preparing or just prepping against the scout team that caused the issues against VT last year. To a man, from coaches and players, all said they knew exactly what VT was going to do. As fans we like to think VT did something special to offset the fact our team just wasn't prepared, but bottom line is we just stunk it up that day.

Say what?

 

[Northeast Stinger]

I seriously doubt that was the first time CPJ or our offense saw the defense shoot gaps and bring pressure like VT did. In fact, Groh did the exact same thing the previous Spring. Like I said earlier, CPJ has run this offense for 25+ years. I doubt VT did anything different than what he's seen previously.

It wasn't for lack of preparing or just prepping against the scout team that caused the issues against VT last year. To a man, from coaches and players, all said they knew exactly what VT was going to do. As fans we like to think VT did something special to offset the fact our team just wasn't prepared, but bottom line is we just stunk it up that day.

I remember CPJ's woeful expression after the game as he answered more than once, "It is not like we had not spent weeks preparing for that stuff; we knew it was coming and we handled it fine in practice, we just didn't execute." Sometimes the coach can do everything he can but he can't go out on the field himself.

 

[Techster]

Things like that are the stuff that takes me down a notch or two in my off-season optimism. Not being prepared for the 2nd biggest home game of the season? Really? How is that even possible?

I think fans get overly excited because we see things during spring that looks good...but we tend to forget we're playing against ourselves. The fact is, and we've talked about this over several threads, GT may not have the talent that other teams on our schedules have. Our players get used to practicing against each other, but players from other teams have different strengths/weaknesses and tendencies so what our players see in practice may not translate in the game. Sometimes, like against Aaron Donald, you just get your butt handed to you (ask our best OL Shaq Mason about that).

 

[Yoda]

I want to see D coordinators pulling their hair out like they used to. I want them to know what's coming and not be able to do a damn thing about it.

 

[jeffgt14]

I want to see D coordinators pulling their hair out like they used to. I want them to know what's coming and not be able to do a damn thing about it.

I would like to play USCe just to see a Spurrier visor throw.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

I think fans get overly excited because we see things during spring that looks good...but we tend to forget we're playing against ourselves. The fact is, and we've talked about this over several threads, GT may not have the talent that other teams on our schedules have. Our players get used to practicing against each other, but players from other teams have different strengths/weaknesses and tendencies so what our players see in practice may not translate in the game. Sometimes, like against Aaron Donald, you just get your butt handed to you (ask our best OL Shaq Mason about that).

Very true. Our D mimicked the VT defense in the spring game for a reason. Our guys were penetrating the LOS just as fast as VT did. Byerly had to make split second decisions with the football and most times made the right call. The use of the quick pitch was very evident in the spring game. It had a neutralizing effect on the interior gap blitzes. I don't recall us doing that against VT. Maybe we tried...

 

[jeffgt14]

We didn’t have James Gayle in our spring game. Like it or not, he destroyed us.

 

[Longestday]

I only have the 2013 spring game on video. There was not much LB blizing in the gaps or timing the snap. There was no LB jumping on top of the QB at the snap in 2013 like several times in the 2014 game. The 2014 spring game looked much more like VPI 2013.

The 2013 team may have practice against the scout team or did limited preparation with the 1st D in 2013, but the whole 2014 spring game was a LB play ground.