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Thursday, October 31st, 1996 Grand Jury to Meet Next Wednesday Batten down the hatches, Hokie fans. The Montgomery County grand jury is going to meet next Wednesday, and the Blacksburg Brawl is on the docket. Indictments will be handed down concerning the brawl, and the buzz I've been hearing indicates that some big names on the football team will be arrested. It is unsure what Beamer's response will be, but he is expected to suspend any players who are arrested as a result of The Brawl. Whether or not he'll go so far as to kick players off the team remains to be seen. I will be glued to the TV next Wednesday night, and I'll provide you with all of the information I have next Thursday morning. More About Jennings It's not just me that's irate about the fact that Bryan Jennings only has 6 catches in 6 games so far this year. Other than the upcoming Brawl indictments, Jennings has been the hot topic of conversation around here this week. Beamer was quoted in the newspaper yesterday as saying words to the effect of, "Yes, we'd like to get him the ball more, but we're winning, anyway. He is a valuable blocker in our scheme, and the NFL scouts know about him." Perhaps that's Beamer's way of saying that he's tired of getting asked about Bryan Jennings? I was listening to my favorite radio call-in sports show yesterday, Sports Talk With John Hale, and Hale was also complaining that Jennings wasn't getting the ball enough. A few minutes later, a caller said that he had been to the Blacksburg sports luncheon, where the Tech tight end coach (Bryan Stinespring) had spoken, and Stinespring had said that Tech was "desperately trying to get the ball to Jennings." John Hale almost went ballistic, and he's a very mild-mannered guy. "Desperately??" He railed. "Desperately? Six catches in six games? I think I need to go get a dictionary and look up the word 'desperate,' because it doesn't mean what I thought it did!" That Kiper's a Genius I saw draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr.'s forecast for the fullbacks in next year's NFL draft, and Kiper proved his worth by not including Brian Edmonds in his list of top 10 fullbacks. Edmonds can run, he can catch, and he can most certainly block. He's better than Tony Paige was at this stage in his career, and Paige went on to a long career in the NFL. Too small? Edmonds may only be 5-10, but he weighs an NFL-caliber 235 pounds. Look for Kiper to be proven wrong by a lucky NFL team. SW Louisiana Look for the Ragin' Cajuns to come out firing. Their quarterback, Jake Delhomme, has over 8,000 yards passing in his career, and this year alone, he has racked up more yardage than Jim Druckenmiller and Donovan McNabb combined. They also feature a sophomore receiver named Brandon Stokley (who was born in Blacksburg) who, if I heard it correctly on the radio yesterday, set the NCAA freshman record for catches last year. That's at all levels - 1-A, 1-AA, etc. On the defensive side of the ball, SW Louisiana is extremely soft against the run. They used to play in the Big West, a passing conference, so they recruited a breed of small, fast players who don't stand up very well to a good, strong, rushing attack. Hopefully, the Hokies will pound it down the Cajuns throat and keep that powerful offense off the field, although you never know when Ricky Bustle is calling the plays. Other News Game time for the ECU game has officially been set at 7:00 P.M. Look for the Tech fans who imbibe before the games to be good and roudy for that one. I don't think we're in danger of matching the alleged behavior of WVU fans, though ... Tony Morrison has been reinstated for the SW Louisiana game, so the Hokie D will be at full strength.
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