[ad_1]
BLACKSBURG — Virginia Tech receiver Caleb Smith will be an interesting test case pitting former recruits against current ones.
Smith told reporters at the ACC kickoff in July that former receivers coach Jafar Williams recommended he move up a level after the program parted ways with Justin Fuente.
“That rubbed me the wrong way,” Smith said. “This was beautiful before the bowling game or after the bowling game. He was still in the office.
Smith, who earned a scholarship in one year with a walk-on record, was the team’s third-leading receiver all-time for Williams. He had 453 yards with four touchdowns in 32 games (20 starts).
That view may explain why the staff avoided featuring Smith in the game plan last fall.
Smith said they’ll be running one-way plays all week in practice, where he’s going to be the intended target in the other half of the game, moving the ball around.
The new staff has a very different opinion of Smith.
He brought veteran wide receiver Pry as one of three players to represent Virginia Tech at the conference’s annual media day. Tech’s new head coach spoke about the Bumpas native this summer as he began winter workouts.
“As a defensive play caller, guys like that are tough to defend against. It’s smart. He has length. He has ball skills,” Pree said.
Tech’s new receivers coach Fontel Mines offered similar praise in June.
“He uses his body and his size,” Mines said. “He’s a smart player. The sky is the limit. I feel really good about it. He’s grown up and played a lot of football. I think he’s set up for a good season.
If he has a few performances like he did in the spring game — he had a long string of touchdown catches with 103 receiving yards in the exhibition — that would go a long way to proving the Pryor staff evaluated him correctly.
Free for all
Spring camp didn’t produce much separation among Tech’s backup receivers.
The team includes returning receivers Jaylen Jones, Dalan Wright and Christian Moss along with North Carolina transfers Stephen Gosnell and true freshmen Tucker Holloway and Xayvion Bradshaw. Holloway got a head start on his classmate by enrolling mid-year.
Despite their lack of experience, the explosives were surprisingly disruptive to the team in June.
His optimism may explain why the open scholarship spot the staff talked about using at receiver went to Cole Beck, a former running back who spent last year only in track and field for the Hokies.
Beck, who was moved to receiver when he joined the team in June, isn’t the experienced option initially envisioned.
Jones, Gosnell, and Wright are probably in the best position to land on the two-deep since they have the most accomplished practice reps under their belts, but he could shake things up here as he hasn’t really had a standout performance in fall camp. Spring.
A shooting star?
The clamor around Dwayne Lofton has not died down.
“It’s special,” Mines said in June. “I really believe.”
The former staff thought Lofton was the real deal after pushing to get him to play as a true freshman last season.
Lofton showed similar lows last year when he caught five passes for 70 yards in the final two games of the regular season. His diving one-handed raid against the Hurricanes was particularly impressive.
His highlight reel might have been a little longer if not for tech issues at quarterback.
One of the solutions new offensive coordinator Tyler Bowen has to help spark Tech’s passing game is to make Lofton stand out more.
Tech has all of its top pass catchers — Trey Turner (NFL), James Mitchell (NFL) and Tyveon Robinson (Kentucky) — but that part doesn’t matter because Lofton is a dynamic athlete who is coveted as a power five.
Tech wants to go with the old buzz.
Proposed depth chart
- Caleb Smith, Jaden Blue and Da’Wayne Lofton.
- Jalen Jones, Stephen Gosnell and Dalan Wright.
[ad_2]
Source link
