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Last year's redshirts filled with promise

February 4, 2000
By Jimmy Robertson

After losing 22 seniors and a couple of underclassmen, the Hokies find a few shelves in the cupboard a little bare.

But hopefully, that's only a temporary problem.

Tech figures to replenish the losses off a team that went 11-1 and played for the national championship this past season. With so many losses, it stands to reason that many of the freshmen who redshirted while Tech made its march to New Orleans will see tons of action when spring practice begins April 1. And a few may start.

Out of last year's recruiting class, Tech played only receiver Shawn Witten and offensive tackle Anthony Davis. Four other players - Joe Simington, Kevin Lewis, Charles Hattan and Sam Fatherly - enrolled in January. That meant the rest of the class participated on the scout team and worked out hard in the weight room.

Several of the kids who redshirted really took advantage of the time by working hard in the weight room. The numbers proved that too when Mike Gentry, Tech's assistant AD for athletic performance, and his staff tested all scout team players this past November.

On offense, Tech returns nine starters and one of the open spots is at center, where freshman Jake Grove and rising senior Steve DeMasi figure to be the favorites to win the job. Grove, who enrolled at Tech last January, earned Super Iron Hokie honors in November after benching 420, squatting 575 and recording a 35-inch vertical jump.

"I don't think there's any question he took advantage of the redshirt year," offensive line coach Bryan Stinespring said. "We were able to double dip too. Because of our injuries at center, we kept Jake in our positional meetings and he practiced more with the varsity. He even traveled with us some. So really, it was the best of both worlds."

When Grove enrolled, he needed to put on some weight. At the time of the testing, he weighed in at 280. But the experience he gained from practicing with the varsity squad might prove more beneficial than the added weight he needs.

"I learned a lot," Grove said of his redshirt year. "I'm real pleased with how things went. I didn't want to play this year, but I am glad I got to travel to a couple of games [when centers Keith Short and Tim Schnecker were injured], though I wish the circumstances had been different.

"I'm anxious for spring practice to begin. I'm going to go out and give it all I've got. Right now, it's Steve's position, so I'm going to have to work hard to beat him out."

Grove and DeMasi also may get some competition from Joe Marchant, a senior who redshirted this past season while rehabbing a wrist injury. Marchant, who weighs almost 300 and has played center in the past, earned Iron honors mainly by benching 360 and squatting 605. Another offensive lineman, Anthony Nelson, showed some strides by losing 18 pounds this fall. He weighs 320 and benched 360 to go with his 505-pound squat.

The other opening on offense comes at receiver where Ricky Hall leaves some big shoes to fill. Emmett Johnson figures to be the starter since he started six games there this past season. But don't be surprised to see Ernest Wilford getting lots of playing time.

Wilford may be the cream of the freshmen crop. At 6-foot-5 and 200 pounds, he possesses a ton of athletic ability, reminding many of former Virginia receiver Herman Moore. He needs to get stronger - he benched 300 and squatted 425 - but his 36 1/2-inch vertical helped him earn Hokie honors.

"He has a lot of potential," receivers coach Tony Ball said. "He's very comfortable catching the ball. But the reason everyone is talking about him is because he works so hard. Wide receiver is where he wants to play and he wants to be good. That's a great attribute to have."

Meanwhile, on defense, Tech lost six of its front seven and two members of its secondary. Playing time is there for any freshman who wants to grab it.

Figure on defensive end Nathaniel Adibi being one of those. Adibi, a 6-3, 226-pounder, benched 340, squatted 485 and recorded a 32 1/2-inch vertical jump to earn Orange honors. He needs to get a little stronger, but a spring and a summer filled with workouts will help.

Also, linebackers Chris Buie and Vegas Robinson drew rave reviews for their work on the scout team this past season and figure to challenge returning linebackers Jake Houseright, Brian Welch and Benny Wolfe for playing time. They also took that same work ethic into the weight room, with Buie earning Iron honors and Robinson earning Orange honors.

Buie is the bigger of the two, weighing in at 226 pounds. He also possesses more strength, having benched 400 and squatted 530. He also recorded a 331-pound push jerk and a 35-inch vertical. Expect defensive coordinator Bud Foster to work Buie out at mike linebacker this spring.

As for Robinson, he possesses a little more athleticism than Buie, recording a 35 1/2-inch vertical at 213 pounds. Robinson also benched 320 and squatted 500, but he doesn't quite have the strength of Buie.

"I didn't get all of my goals in the weight room," Robinson said. "I've got to get stronger, so that I can maintain my speed.

"Chris and I want to get that chemistry like Jamel [Smith] and Mike [Hawkes] had. We're trying to be even better than those guys were."

There were other solid performances in the weight room this spring as well. Cols Colas - the guy many compare to All-American Corey Moore because of his height (6-1), weight (219 pounds) and speed (4.5) -earned Iron honors, benching 350, squatting 500 and recording a 34 1/2-inch vertical. Colas played some tailback early on this past season and then moved to whip linebacker. But he'll probably be coming off the edge as a defensive end this spring mainly because he runs so well.

And fullback Marvin Urquhart also earned Iron honors. Urquhart probably needs to shed a few pounds off his 270-pound frame, but there's no question about his strength and power. He benched 350 and squatted 550 in recent testing and he also recorded a 351-pound push jerk - second only to Grove's 370-pound mark in scout team testing.

With the entire team working out several days a week, one can expect the numbers from the freshmen to go higher. With the strength and power they already possess, they need only to learn the intricacies of their respective positions.

And if that happens this spring, the Hokies' cupboard may be full again by next August.

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Jimmy Robertson is the editor of the Hokie Huddler at Virginia Tech. The Hokie Huddler is the athletics department newspaper that is printed 33 times a year - weekly during football and basketball seasons and bi-monthly during the spring.

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