After two weeks of competition, both Virginia Tech track and field squads remained ranked in the latest USTFCCCA NCAA Division I National Rankings. The Tech men stay at No. 13, while the Hokie women sit at No. 18 in the country. In the preseason poll, both squads were ranked 13^th in the nation.

Five Hokies currently own NCAA marks on the men’s side. Senior Yavgeniy Olhovsky (pole vault), junior Hunter Hall (pole vault), sophomore Marcel Lomnicky (weight throw), sophomore Keith Ricks (60m dash) and freshman David Wilson (triple jump) all established NCAA provisional marks at the Hokie Invitational last weekend.

On the women’s side, seniors Queen Harrison and Kristi Castlin finished one-two in the 60-meter hurdles with NCAA automatic-qualifying times at the Hokie Invite. Harrison provisionally qualified in the 400-meters, and freshman Ogechi Nwaneri earned a provisional mark in the 60-meter dash as well at the meet.

The Hokies hit the road this weekend for the Penn State National in University Park, Pa., on Friday and Saturday. Results will be available on hokiesports.com.

Former Virginia Tech football star Pierson Prioleau will be the lone Hokie in this year's Super Bowl XLIV when he suits up for the New Orleans Saints on Feb. 7 in Miami. Prioleau, who lettered at Tech from 1995-98 and earned third-team All-America honors from The Sporting News in 1997, is a back-up safety and special teams player for the Saints.

He will become the first Tech player to suit up for the Super Bowl in seven years as Eric Green was on the Arizona Cardinals' roster last year, but did not dress in the big game. Todd Washington represented the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII (2003), Nick Sorensen played for the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI (2002) and Cornell Brown played for the Baltimore Ravens in Super Bowl XXXV (2001).

Prioleau plays for defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, who is the father of Tech freshman linebacker Chase Williams, who enrolled at Tech in January.

A trio of Virginia Tech senior football players help lead their team to a 13-10 victory in the East-West Shrine Bowl Saturday in Orlando, Fla. Safety Kam Chancellor led the East squad with seven tackles (six solo)and a pass break up while cornerback Stephan Virgil was credited with one solo stop. Offensive guard Sergio Render also played well and was the right guard on the East's game-winning, last-second touchdown drive.

The Virginia Tech Sports Medicine Association and the Edward Via Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM) will be holding the annual Eddie Ferrell Memorial Clinic for physicians, athletic trainers, physical therapists, physical therapist assistants, physicians, chiropractors, and any other interested allied health professionals on Jan. 29 and 30.

The goal of our clinic is to provide an opportunity for learning and sharing techniques in managing current issues in athletics. Participants will have the ability to spend time in the state-of-the-art cadaver laboratory at VCOM, where we will be working with prosected cadavers to identify major anatomical structures and injury scenarios that relate to the topics discussed. There will also be lectures and breakout groups that cover evaluation techniques, bracing, and rehabilitation tips. This year’s clinic will feature Lenny Macrina, who is a sports certified physical therapist by the American Physical Therapy Association and a certified strength and conditioning specialist for Champion Sports Medicine in Birmingham, Ala.

His interests include rehabilitation of the shoulder, elbow and knee joints. Along with maintaining a full clinic schedule, he actively participates in clinical research with the American Sports Medicine Institute in Birmingham, Ala., and has co-authored various current concept papers, book chapters, research papers and a home study course for the APTA’s Orthopaedic section. Macrina also participates in yearly spring training physicals and data collection for the Tampa Bay Rays baseball organization. He has presented at various national conferences including APTA’s Combines Sections Meeting, ASMI’s “Injuries in Baseball Course”, and also is a course lecturer on “Shoulder Rehabilitation” for Physiotherapy Associates. Macrina received his Bachelor’s degree from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (MA) and his Master’s degree in physical therapy from Boston University.

For more information or for registration materials, please visit the website or feel free to call Katie Baer at (540) 231-2711.

Tech football players Brent Bowden (punter), Kam Chancellor (safety), Stephan Virgil (cornerback) and Ed Wang (offensive tackle) are on the initial list of invites to the 2010 NFL Combine, to be held Feb. 24-March 2 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Additional seniors, and select underclassmen who declared for the Draft, will be invited at a later date.

The 2010 NFL Draft takes place April 22-24 in New York City. The first round of the 2010 NFL Draft will start on Thursday, April 22 at 7:30 p.m. ET, with the second and third rounds on Friday, April 23 at 6:30 p.m. ET, followed by Rounds 4-7 on Saturday, April 24 at 10 a.m. ET.

Virginia Tech junior pitcher Jesse Hahn has been named a preseason All-American by PGCrosschecker.com, a Web site that is a division of Perfect Game USA, an organization that is recognized as one of the nation’s leaders in showcasing and scouting of the nation’s top high school-age baseball talent.

This preseason All-American team is made up of players who rank among collegiate baseball’s best pro prospects.

Hahn went 1-2 with a save and 23 strikeouts in 24 innings pitched as a sophomore. He then went 1-1 with a save and 17 strikeouts in 15.1 innings of work over the summer for the Harwich Mariners of the Cape Cod League, where he was named the eighth-best pro prospect in the league by Baseball America.

Here is PG Crosschecker’s opinion of Hahn:

“An absolutely electric arm has Hahn rising up draft boards after impressing scouts last summer as he continually approached triple digits on the Cape. His arm action leads many to believe that he will be able to maintain that velocity deep into his baseball career, but he is going to have to learn to command the strike zone better, and it may take him a while to learn that pitching in the zone is more effective than not. He also throws a good curveball and changeup, which will tempt teams to try him as a starter before keeping him in a closer’s role. His size and stuff are very similar to that of Justin Verlander at a similar stage in his career.”

To view the entire team, click here.

The Virginia Tech women's basketball is in New York City this weekend to participate in the St. John's-Chartwell's Holiday Classic. The Hokies visited Manhattan on Friday morning and stood outside the Today Show set during the program's fourth hour hosted by Hoda Kotb and Kathy Lee Gifford. Several members of the team could be seen in the background during an interview with Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York. After the program, Kotb, a 1986 Tech alum, came outside into the NBC Studios lobby to meet the team along with her co-host.

Tech will face UAB on Saturday at 3 p.m. in the first round of the tournament. The game can be heard locally on SuperSports 101.7 and on Hokies All-Access with Jerry Massey calling the action.

   Former Tech receiver Justin Harper made his NFL debut when he played in the Baltimore Ravens’ easy victory over Detroit on Sunday. Harper, who did not catch any passes in the game, spent all last season on the practice squad and spent the better part of this season on the practice squad before being activated for Sunday’s game.

Harper became the 24^th former Tech player to play in a game this season. Eighteen of those 24 have started at least one game.

Only two other former Hokies on NFL rosters have not played this season – Kevin Jones, with the Chicago Bears, has missed the entire season with torn ligaments in his ankle, while Carlton Powell has bounced between the practice squads of the Cleveland Browns and Denver Broncos.

   Tickets are available to the public for the 2009 Chick-fil-A Coaches Luncheon featuring Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer and Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin. The luncheon will be held Thursday, Dec. 17 at the Marriott Marquis in downtown Atlanta starting at noon and going until 1:30 p.m.

Tickets cost $35 a piece or $350 for a table of 10. Tickets will be available for pick-up at will call on the day of the event. Reservations must be received by 5 p.m., Monday, Dec. 14.

Please call 404-586-8537 to make reservations.

Former Hokie golfer Brendon de Jonge finished with a final round 66 and finished tied for fifth in the final stage of the PGA Tour Qualifying School at the Bear Lakes Country Club in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Dec. 7.

De Jonge was the 2008 Nationwide Tour Player of the Year and recorded four top 25s and two top 10s on the PGA Tour in 2009. His best result was a tie for seventh at the U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee.

In Monday's final round, de Jonge had birdies on #14, 16, 17, & 18 to finish the 108-hole PGA TOUR Qualifying School at 17-under par and earn one of the 25 cards to the PGA TOUR for 2010. He shot rounds of 70-68-71-69-71-66=415 to finish tied for fifth and is exempt for the 2010 PGA Tour season.

He joins former teammate Johnson Wagner as exempt members of the PGA Tour for 2010. Wagner earned his exemption with his victory at the 2008 Shell Houston Open.

On Monday, Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor and linebacker Cody Grimm met with the media to discuss the Hokies' Chick-fil-A Bowl selection and upcoming game against Tennessee. Here's a sampling of what was said.

Tyrod Taylor
Is it good that you have been on a roll going into the bowl game?
“The last couple games we put up a lot of numbers on the offense. We just have to keep continuing to get better in practice heading into the bowl game.”

Does heading back to Atlanta bother you, with you all being 0-2 there this year?
“This is just another game that we get to play on our schedule. I am looking forward to going in there and turning it around from the first [two] times we went to Atlanta.”

Do you think this is a good example to showcase the ACC?
“This is a very good example to showcase our talent, and show what the ACC has talent-wise. In the ACC, we know we have a lot of talent and we are just looking to go out there and prove it.”

Does this game get that much more hyped with how energized both fan bases are?
“I didn't know this was going to be as big as it was when it comes to the fans. I'm looking forward to this challenge. I know a couple guys on their team, and it is going to be a great game.”

Two teams are very hot going into this game, how great of a game is this going to be?
“It's going to be a great game. I'm looking forward to it because they have a lot of talent out there, and it is all going to come down to who wants it more at the end of the day.”

How do you feel now that the regular season is behind you, and you had such a good year?
“I don't think the season is over. I am just still trying to continue to be the best quarterback I can be going into this game. They have a very talented defense, and I think I can go out there and try to showcase my talents against their defense.”

How much does a win in this bowl game propel you next season?
“I think [it would] be big for the confidence of the team. To go out there with 10 wins and finish on a strong note heading into spring ball with everyone on the same page. Just getting pretty much the same team we had last year, it gives everybody a lot of confidence.”

Cody Grimm
The fan bases have wanted this match-up for a long time. Can you talk about that?
“You always hear the rumors about us and Tennessee playing, all the hype that would be around it if that game were to ever actually happen. Now we actually get a chance to play them. Just being around Blacksburg for five years now and meeting people from Southwest Virginia, you are either a Tennessee fan or a Tech fan. We are excited for an opportunity to play them, and we just have to go play our heart out.”

What is the importance of going out on a good note?
“It is exciting to play a good team, and there will be a bunch of fans there. This is going to be a big game for us. Some bowl games are bigger than others, but as for getting to 10 wins, that will give us momentum heading into next year. It will kind of sum up our season if we can get a win, we can come out and finish with 10 wins against and finish as a top-10 team.

Does both teams hot streaks factor into this game?
“It definitely factors in a little bit, but bowl games are different. You have that break in between that is a month long where you are not playing football and practicing every day. What we need to do is just come back and try to pick up where we left off, and try to do everything as quickly as we possibly can.”

How do you feel about playing in Atlanta?
“Being to Atlanta three times, you think you would get sick of it, but it is a great place. We went to a bowl game there four years, and the Georgia Dome is a fun place as well. When you go during the season, you don't really get to experience it, all you really see is the hotel and the stadium. So its not like going to Atlanta and getting sick of it, it is kind of going on a little vacation.”

SKILLAM, N.J. – Virginia Tech head men’s tennis coach Jim Thompson has been named as the winner of the United State Tennis Association (USTA)/Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Community Outreach Award for the Mid-Atlantic Section. Thompson was one of ten sectional winners of the award from around the nation.

The USTA/ITA Community Outreach Award honors ITA coaches for significant contributions in developing community-based tennis programs through community centers, schools, parks, community tennis associations, inner city or rural programs. Thompson was instrumental in establishing a junior tennis program at Virginia Tech’s Burrows-Burleson Tennis Center which has shown tremendous growth. A junior tennis challenge ladder was also created along with several tournaments for New River Valley juniors. For more information on NRV junior tennis, go to www.nrvtennis.org.

Several Hokie pole vaulters will begin their 2009 track and field campaigns, competing unattached at the Liberty Kick Off in Lynchburg, Va., on Thursday.

Senior Yavgeniy Olhovsky, as well as juniors Hunter Hall, Joe Davis, Michael Miller and Jared Jodon will compete on the men’s side, while junior Elise Birnbaum and freshmen Emma DeJarnette and Leigh Allin will vault in the women’s competition. 

Former Hokies Brian Mondschein, Adam Bingaman and Erin Mahoney will also take part in the pole vault at the Liberty Kick Off. The event is scheduled to begin at 6:45 p.m.

All Hokie athletes are competing unattached, meaning they will pay their own way at the meet, will not be representing Virginia Tech and the results do not count toward NCAA Championship competition.

  Here is a look at the postgame depth chart from the Virginia game. The number before the slash indicates plays from scrimmage, while the number after the slash indicates plays from special teams. The number of plays, the grades and the tackles came from the coaching staff.

OFFENSE

QUARTERBACKS

5 Tyrod Taylor (6-1, 216, Jr.) – 61/0. Graded out at 92 percent. Completed 8-of-15 for 185 yards, with an interception. Also rushed for 34 yards on six carries.

12 Ju-Ju Clayton (6-1, 208, r-Fr.) – 2/0.

16 Jeff Beyer (6-5, 227, r-Sr.) – 0/0.

 

TAILBACKS

34 Ryan Williams (5-10, 206, r-Fr.) – 50/0. Rushed for a career-high 183 yards on 24 carries. Broke 11 tackles. Broke the ACC single-season record for touchdowns by a freshman with 20 (N.C. State’s T.A. McLendon had 18 in 2002). Tied a school record with his ninth 100-yard game (Kevin Jones, 2003). Needs just 110 yards in the bowl game to break Jones’ single-season rushing record of 1,647 yards set in 2003.

25 Josh Oglesby (5-11, 210, r-Soph.) – 10/0. Rushed six times for 26 yards.

4 David Wilson (5-10, 200, Fr.) – 8/4. Rushed five times for 54 yards and scored a touchdown.

37 Zac Evans (5-10, 190, Fr.) – 0/0.

 

FULLBACKS

42 Kenny Jefferson (5-10, 240, r-Sr.) – 18/0.

31 Kenny Younger (6-0, 223, r-Jr.) – 9/6.

27 Joey Phillips (5-11, 215, r-Fr.) – 0/0.

 

SPLIT ENDS

81 Jarrett Boykin (6-2, 215, Soph.) – 42/4. Scored a touchdown when he recovered a Williams fumble in the end zone.

7 Marcus Davis (6-4, 236, r-Fr.) – 15/4. Rushed once for seven yards.

29 Xavier Boyce (6-4, 223, r-Fr.) – 4/8.

80 Brandon Dillard (5-11, 176, r-Sr.) – 3/0.

FLANKERS

19 Danny Coale (6-0, 206, r-Soph.) – 40/4. Tied a career high with six catches and set a career high with 135 yards. It was his first 100-yard receiving performance.

11 Dyrell Roberts (6-2, 190, Soph.) – 36/4. Caught one pass for 38 yards. Returned two kickoffs for 43 yards.

83 Patrick Terry (5-11, 190, r-Soph.) – 0/1.

90 D.J. Coles (6-3, 223, Fr.) – 0/4.

35 Austin Fuller (6-2, 218, r-Fr.) – 0/4.

 

Left tackles

77 Ed Wang (6-5, 309, r-Sr.) – 60/0. Graded out at 88 percent, with eight knockdowns.

54 Nick Becton (6-6, 311, r-Fr.) – 3/7.

 

Left guards

70 Sergio Render (6-3, 313, Sr.) – 56/7. Graded out at 82 percent, with 10 knockdowns.

75 Greg Nosal (6-6, 284, r-Soph.) – 27/0. Graded out at 81 percent, with four knockdowns.

 

Centers

60 Beau Warren (6-3, 288, r-Jr.) – 60/0. Graded out at 83 percent in his first start back from an earlier knee injury. Had four knockdowns.

67 Michael Via (6-7, 284, r-Fr.) – 3/0.

64 Richard Graham (6-6, 306, r-Sr.) – 0/0.

 

Right guards

68 Jaymes Brooks (6-2, 300, r-Soph.) – 37/7. Graded out at 84 percent, with three knockdowns.

64 Richard Graham (6-6, 306, r-Sr.) – 3/0.

71 Vinston Painter (6-6, 322, r-Fr.) – 3/0.

 

Right tackles

62 Blake DeChristopher (6-5, 313, r-Soph.) – 60/7. Graded out at 80 percent, with two knockdowns.

72 Andrew Lanier (6-5, 279, r-Soph.) – 3/0.

 

TIGHT ENDS

8 Greg Boone (6-3, 283, r-Sr.) – 38/9. Caught one pass for 12 yards.

88 Andre Smith (6-5, 268, r-Jr.) – 25/16.

18 Sam Wheeler (6-3, 259, r-Sr.) – 11/11.

87 Prince Parker (6-6, 251, r-Jr.) – 3/1.

85 Rob Stanton (6-5, 236, r-Jr.) – 3/0.

 

DEFENSE

Stud ends

47 Nekos Brown (6-2, 248, Sr.) – 48/5. Recorded three solo tackles, including one for a loss, and three assists. Also had three hurries.

33 Chris Drager (6-3, 249, r-Soph.) – 10/13. Had a solo tackle and a sack. Caused a fumble and recovered a fumble.

55 Isaiah Hamlette (6-4, 245, r-Fr.) – 0/0.

 

Ends

6 Jason Worilds (6-2, 262, r-Jr.) – 48/3. Finished with three solo tackles, including one for a loss, and two assists. Had two hurries.

82 Steven Friday (6-4, 240, r-Jr.) – 10/0. Had two assists.

 

Nose tackles

56 Demetrius Taylor (6-0, 273, r-Sr.) – 32/3. Registered a solo tackle and seven assists.

91 John Graves (6-3, 277, r-Jr.) – 26/3. Had an assist.

93 Kwamaine Battle (6-0, 281, r-Soph.) – 6/0.

 

Tackles

95 Cordarrow Thompson (6-2, 301, r-Sr.) – 31/0. Tallied three solo tackles and four assists.

98 Antoine Hopkins (6-0, 301, r-Fr.) – 20/0. Had three solo tackles and an assist.

53 Dwight Tucker (6-1, 280, r-Fr.) – 0/0.

 

Mike linebackers

52 Barquell Rivers (6-0, 237, r-Soph.) – 56/3. Recorded five solo tackles and three assists.

51 Bruce Taylor (6-2, 237, r-Fr.) – 4/0.

94 Mark Muncey (5-11, 218, r-Sr.) – 0/4.

 

Backers

39 Lyndell Gibson (5-11, 220, r-Fr.) – 56/3. Finished with four solo tackles and five assists.

36 Jake Johnson (6-1, 231, Soph.) – 4/0.

38 Quillie Odom (6-1, 233, Soph.) – 0/0.

 

Whip linebackers

26 Cody Grimm (5-11, 210, r-Sr.) – 56/10. Registered four solo tackles, including one for a loss, and four assists. Also broke up a pass and had a solo tackle on special teams.

41 Cam Martin (6-1, 209, r-Sr.) – 4/11. Had two solo tackles.

43 Jeron Gouveia-Winslow (6-2, 200, r-Fr.) – 0/4.

28 Alonzo Tweedy (6-2, 186, r-Fr.) – 0/13. Had two solo tackles and an assist on special teams.

44 Zach Luckett (6-3, 209, r-Jr.) – 0/4. Tore the ACL and MCL in his knee and is finished for this season. Had an assist on special teams.

 

Rovers

2 Davon Morgan (6-0, 196, Jr.) – 55/11. Tallied eight solo tackles and two assists. Also had a sack and had two assists on special teams.

24 Dorian Porch (5-11, 209, r-Sr.) – 5/7.

23 Matt Reidy (6-1, 217, r-Sr.) – 0/17. Had a solo tackle and three assists on special teams.

 

Field corners

21 Rashad Carmichael (5-10, 186, r-Jr.) – 56/3. Recorded four solo tackles, including one for a loss, and an assist. Also broke up a pass.

9 Cris Hill (5-11, 183, r-Soph.) – 4/7. Had a solo tackle and an assist on special teams.

 

Boundary corners

22 Stephan Virgil (5-11, 189, Sr.) – 56/3. Finished with seven solo tackles, including one for a loss, and an assist.

20 Jayron Hosley (5-10, 170, Fr.) – 4/13. Returned one punt for 24 yards. Had a solo tackle and an assist on special teams.

15 Eddie Whitley (6-1, 183, Soph.) – 0/0.

37 Jacob Sykes (6-0, 193, r-Soph.) – 0/0.

 

Safeties

17 Kam Chancellor (6-4, 230, Sr.) – 56/7. Graded higher than any defensive player. Had five solo tackles and an assist. Broke up two passes and recovered a fumble.

15 Eddie Whitley (6-1, 183, Soph.) – 4/11.

 

SPECIAL TEAMS

Kickers

49 Matt Waldron (5-11, 198, r-Sr.) – 0/7. Made all his extra-point attempts. Missed on a 40-yard field-goal attempt.

48 Justin Myer (6-1, 210, Soph.) – 0/7.

 

Punters

97 Brent Bowden (6-3, 206, r-Sr.) – 0/9. Averaged 46.5 yards per punt on two punts, with a long of 54 yards.

30 Brian Saunders (6-0, 199, r-Jr.) – 0/0.

 

Snappers

50 Collin Carroll (6-3, 240, r-Soph.) – 0/7.

63 Matt Tuttle (6-0, 229, r-Sr.) – 0/2.