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Hokies ready to replenish defensive front as spring practice begins

March 31, 2000
By Jimmy Robertson

A player like Corey Moore: 60 tackles, including 11 for a loss, and 17 sacks

An end like John Engelberger: 53 tackles, including six for a loss, and seven sacks

Tech's starting defensive line last season: 195 tackles, 20 for a loss, and 28 sacks

A deep, talented, experienced defensive line: Priceless

Tech knows all about the value of a great defensive line. The Hokies' defensive line - along with the obvious great play from the quarterback - nearly carried the Hokies to a national championship. That group served as the main reason the Hokies led the nation in sacks and ranked in the top 10 nationally in nearly every defensive category.

But after losing five of those linemen, possibly six, and with little experience returning, the Hokies won't be auditioning for Nike or credit card commercials. Instead, starting April 1, they'll be holding auditions for starting jobs. And by the end of spring, they figure to find the cost of losing all those great players.

"We've got three guys coming back out of our top eight," defensive line coach Charley Wiles said. "And Derrius [Monroe] isn't here [suspended indefinitely], so I don't think you can include him. So really, we've got just two."

Those two, though, provide a good base. Tackles David Pugh and Chad Beasley played a lot last year in reserve roles. In fact, Pugh, a 6-foot-2, 270-pound rising junior, showed a propensity for making plays, finishing with 34 tackles, including seven for a loss, and four sacks. Beasley, a 6-5, 285-pound rising junior, recorded 39 tackles and two sacks.

"Both of them played well last year and both of them had outstanding winters," Wiles said. "We're going to ask them to be leaders. They're both very talented. I'd say you could pencil them in as No. 1s. But after that, it's very much up in the air."

Particularly at tackle, which may be the most crucial position in Tech's defense. Those guys plugged up the middle against the run and Moore and Engelberger got a lot of sacks because teams focused so much on Nathaniel Williams, Carl Bradley, Beasley and Pugh. A lack of production from the tackles leaves the Hokies vulnerable at that position.

FINDING REINFORCEMENTS
Departing playersTacklesTackles for
a loss		Sacks
Corey Moore601117
Chris Cyrus5743
John Engelberger5367
Carl Bradley5132
Nathaniel Williams3102
Totals:2212431
 
* Returning playersTacklesTackles for
a loss		Sacks
Chad Beasley3942
David Pugh3474
Dan Wilkinson1211
Ron Cook902
Derek Piniella900
Lamar Cobb400
Thenus Franklin300
Totals:110149
* Doesn't include Derrius Monroe
(Nathaniel Adibi, Cols Colas, Marc Costen and Ken Keister all redshirted)
And that's why Wiles plans to take a close look at a plethora of players at that position. The list starts with Thenus Franklin, a 6-3, 281-pound rising sophomore; Dan Wilkinson, a 6-0, 259-pound rising junior; Marc Costen, a 6-3, 253-pound walk-on who redshirted this past season; and Kevin Lewis, a 6-2, 271-pound freshman who enrolled this past January. Wiles wants to develop depth with this group to be able to rotate guys in and out like he did last year.

"Thenus has gotten bigger and stronger," Wiles said. "He's worked very hard. He wants to do well and he knows that this is his time in the barrel.

"And I've been impressed with Dan and the way he's worked. He's gotten bigger, so at least he can hold his own in there. Whether he plays is up to him.

"We're going to play the guys who give us a chance to win. We played four guys there last year. We might play four this year. We might play three or just two. We're going to play the guys who give us the chance to be the most successful."

The Hokies, though, got a bit of a break at the end of the recruiting process. After losing out on several defensive linemen, Wiles snagged little-known Channing Reed, a 6-3, 285-pound tackle from Montgomery County (Md.) Community College, at the last minute. Reed plans on coming to Blacksburg this summer to start working out and getting in shape.

"When we first watched him [in mid-October], we thought he was OK, but we thought we were in on some guys who were better," Wiles said. "But he really improved throughout the season, and when we watched him in the bowl game [the Georgia Bowl, part of the junior college playoffs], we thought he was better than the other guys we were recruiting.

"I'd be surprised if he's not in the two-deep. He can make some plays."

Finding someone to make plays at end figures to be an even bigger priority for Wiles. No one will be able to replace All-Americans Corey Moore and John Engelberger. Chris Cyrus, another steady player, departs as well, and as stated earlier, Monroe has been suspended indefinitely for a yet to be resolved off-the-field matter. Thus, his status remains uncertain.

So this spring, Wiles must rely on a host of young players. And the guy everyone keeps raving about is freshman Nathaniel Adibi - for good reason. He now weighs 242 pounds. He ran a 4.48 and earned Iron honors in recent winter workouts. Without question, he seems poised to keep up the Tech tradition of great defensive end play.

"He's as talented as anyone we've had," Wiles said. "He's big. He can run and he's athletic. He's everything you want in a defensive end."

But he hasn't played a snap. In fact, few of the players vying for starting jobs played much last season, if any.

Two returning players, Ron Cook and Lamar Cobb, played just 57 and 27 snaps, respectively. Cook recorded just nine tackles and two sacks last season. Cobb, meanwhile, possesses the most potential of anyone and gave a glimpse of his talents in one of the junior varsity games when he recorded 14 tackles and two sacks.

"This is a huge spring for him," Wiles said of the former SuperPrep All-American. "He's gotten bigger [226 pounds] and stronger. He plays with leverage. He showed in that junior varsity game he can make plays.

"I think he's grown up a lot. He realizes it's his time. Last year, he knew he wasn't going to beat any of those guys out and he didn't work as hard. But in fairness to him, we've moved him around a lot. He played a lot of positions in high school and we were trying to find the best position for him. He sees he's got a chance to play and he's worked hard this winter. I think he'll do a nice job for us."

Other players on the list at end include Derek Piniella, a 6-1, 240-pound rising junior with good numbers in the weight room (300-pound bench; 535-pound squat, 4.6 40); Cols Colas, a 5-11, 233-pound freshman who ran a 4.45 but has yet to play with his hand on the ground; and Ken Keister, a 6-0, 228-pound walk-on from Radford.

And if those guys fail to impress, they leave the door open for freshmen Joe Simington, who enrolled this past January, Jim Davis and Jason Lallis. Expect one, maybe two, to play even though the Hokies want to redshirt all three.

"No one has won those spots," Wiles said. "We're going to play a lot of combinations of guys. The depth chart will change daily. We'll reward the guys who practice hard that day by making them No. 1s the next day. And it could be that they get passed that next day. At the end, we'll see who's the most consistent and that's who will start.

"It all comes down to playing and fundamentals. If we're fundamentally sound, I think we'll be alright. I want to see us get better and better this spring, carry that over into fall camp and then go out and play well against Georgia Tech. And hopefully, get better from there."

Wiles compared this group to the 1996 group. Only Cornell Brown and Waverly Jackson returned on the defensive line after Tech's win over Texas in the Sugar Bowl. The next year, the Hokies, behind a rebuilt defensive front, played in the Orange Bowl.

"Kerwin Hairston came through big that year and that was a surprise," Wiles said. "So did Nat Williams, Carl Bradley, Danny Wheel ƒ all those guys stepped up.

"That's what we need for this group to do. This group has more talent than that one did. But do they have the commitment and work ethic? That's the question."

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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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