By Bill Roth

The sellout crowd gasped in amazement and cheered, as the young quarterback sprinted down the field leaving tacklers gasping at air, and they marveled at the rocket-like darts he threw to receivers.

The anticipation and buildup for Tyrod Taylor's debut as Virginia Tech's starting quarterback was met with smiles from even the harshest critics. Fans streamed out of Lane Stadium to their postgame tailgate locations smiling and confident, as if they had just seen the premier of Les Miserables on Broadway. They sensed this show is going to be a hit for quite a while.

And yes, Taylor was sensational at times, throwing for nearly 300 yards and running for a touchdown in his first college start in leading the Hokies to a 28-7 win over preseason MAC favorite Ohio. He was flashy, electric and poised on the field, and then humble, quiet and polite to the media following the game. A perfect debut? Not quite.

After a few hours of watching the tapes and breaking it down, Tech quarterbacks coach Mike O'Cain remains quite confident in Taylor's future, but his optimism is justifiably tempered.

"Physically, Tyrod was very good," O'Cain said in his office Sunday afternoon. "But mentally, he wasn't very good."

So, let's look at both sides of this coin, keeping in mind that Taylor is just three months out of high school and celebrated his 18^th birthday only six weeks ago.

"Physically, he is very good, and he was very good against Ohio," O'Cain said. "He has a live arm and a quick release. He can make all the throws to any part of the field."

Taylor was 18-of-31 passing in his first start for 287 yards. But (and there's always a 'but' when you break down tape the next day) ... O'Cain smiled and paused before answering.

"He didn't fake one time, not once," he said. "He has to carry out his fake, not just hand the ball off, turn around and watch. That's something that can be fixed quickly and easily because he can help block another defender by carrying out the fake. Make that linebacker chase you on the bootleg whether you have the ball or not."

In high school, Taylor could simply hand the ball to a running back and watch the play. That's not going to work at this level and will be one of the main items of focus this week in practice.

What's not as easy to fix is footwork and mechanics.

"About seven or eight times, he threw the ball to the wrong spot or at the wrong time, and that goes back to footwork and routine," O'Cain said. "He's been here a month, so how can any player have the habits and routines that takes years to develop?"

That's one reason the Hokies pared back their passing game during the Ohio week and expanded the running game.

"(Taylor) has a pretty good understanding of what we're doing and he has a basic understanding of what other people are trying to do to him," O'Cain said. "And what they're going to try to do is confuse him and trick him."

As a result, the Hokies want to keep things as simple as possible for Taylor and let his athletic abilities shine.

"We can spread the field with him and make defenses more honest," O'Cain said. "We have another potential ball carrier back there, so the linebackers can't be as aggressive on each play."

The Hokies used a spread offense and four wideouts on the goal line against Ohio and plan to continue using the 'pistol' formation, with Taylor lining up in front of a tailback in that unusual 'I-formation' set.

"It's what Nevada does a lot and what LSU did some against us," O'Cain said. "When you offset your running back, the defense knows what the backside is. They know which way the play might be going. That's the advantage of running out of an I-formation. Again, you're keeping them honest."

In the pistol formation, Taylor can take the snap and run a play fake to a tailback and throw the ball, run an option play to either side, or scoot downfield on a quarterback draw. It all goes back to making the linebackers and safeties play honestly, which will help open up holes for Tech's running backs.

"As he gets more plays, and gets better at carrying out his fakes, he'll help our guys block up front by spreading out the defense," O'Cain said.

What O'Cain wants to see is linebackers chasing Taylor - whether he has the ball or not.

"He's going to be very good. He's special," O'Cain said. "What I like most about him, though, is his poise. He is going to make mistakes, but so far, he hasn't made any 'stupid' mistakes by throwing the ball into a crowd or throwing a 'stupid' interception. I'm really comfortable coaching him because of his poise, and I think that, more than his arm strength or his foot speed, is what makes him special."

Saturday, Taylor will make his second career start when the Hokies battle William & Mary. After that, it's eight straight conference games.

The focus now becomes the fundamentals: carrying out those fakes and footwork on his passing game.

"Fakes can come quickly," O'Cain said. "The footwork takes a while to become routine, but he'll get there."

Things are happening fast for Taylor. Just a few months ago, he was hoping Principal Chambers liked his tux at the Hampton High School prom. Now, he's trying to win football games under the microscope that is Virginia Tech football.

His debut was a hit. Act II is coming up against William & Mary.

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The Voice's Mailbag

Bill,
Are our backs and receivers embarrassed to truly pretend they have the ball after taking/giving a fake handoff? These kids should read Stanislavski or Strasberg about method acting. I'm only halfway joking. If you don't go all the way, why even do the play fake?

I'm in Pac-10 country, and out here, they seem to understand and embrace these fully performed fakes, like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady do. It's a no brainer. Defenders don't compromise their valuable momentum because of a minimal gesture by the QB - it's got to be a whole energy to make them really commit a couple crucial pounds of inertia the wrong way. And this may not be a visible result (a huge play) every game, but it works, and it seems too easy a thing not to do each time.

Please look at a couple plays of the game and tell me I'm wrong, and that we really are going all out for this deception. Thanks. Ethan, Los Angeles.

Ethan,
Excellent pick-up on you part, and yes, this has become a focus in recent days. No, the Hokies aren't showing Godfather, Part II, where Lee Strasberg in a rare on-screen role played the role of Hyman Roth along with one of his former students, Al Pacino. Instead, it's been a focus at practice and in the meeting rooms. As mentioned above, I think you'll see the quarterbacks, receivers, and running backs selling their fakes much better in coming weeks. Even more excited are Theatre Arts' majors who can now tie Stanislavski to Hokie football. Thanks for your note.

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Bill,
During the ECU game, I noticed that two players for ECU were wearing the same number (33). I was wondering what the rules are about that. I do not think they were ever on the field at the same time. Mark, Martinsville.

Mark,
This is not uncommon and we usually see this every week. If a team dresses 105 players for a game, there will be at least six duplicate numbers. Sometimes, they both will play in the same game. For example, USC starting linebacker Brian Cushing wears No. 10. So does starting quarterback John David Booty.