This time of year is very slow in collegiate athletics, of course, and whenever things are slow, it gives the fans and scribes a chance to bat around conference realignment ideas.  I've never been one to sit around and dream up different scenarios, but a lot of people really get into it and have a lot of fun with it.   They construct scenarios that are five levels deep in their complexity, consisting of one major movement by a team from one conference to another, which then ripples through the rest of the college football world, until there's a brand new landscape.

Many of the articles and posts written on the subject are interesting and informative, some are moronic, and some are just sheer folly - people having fun and dreaming of their own little perfect world, even though it may not have a snowball's chance of ever happening.

A recent article written for a UNC on-line publication called The Tar Pit fits into the last category.  Late last week, a HokieCentral message board poster found the article and linked to it on the message board.  The article is fun and interesting, and unique for two reasons:

1.  It speaks of Virginia Tech in a positive light.
2.  Almost all of the message board posters liked it.

Item #1 rarely happens in conference realignment articles, and item #2 rarely happens, period, so I thought I would pass on the article to the News and Notes section.  Without further ado, check out The Tar Pit's idea of what the ACC should look like:

Conference Realignment: Will the South Rise Again? - The Tar Pit

Did you catch the line "Virginia Tech deserves better than its current Big Least affiliation"?  It's a lighthearted article, but that line was serious.  You could have knocked me over with a feather.  That's high praise, coming from a Tarheel writer whose overriding impression of VT football (you would think) would look something like, oh, 42-3.

Time for a Jim Druckenmiller update (like, it's always time for a Druck update).

When we last left Druck, he had finished a mediocre rookie season as the third string QB for the San Francisco 49ers.  Then, during the off-season, the Niners signed QB Ty Detmer, an experienced veteran in the "West Coast Offense" scheme that the Niners use, to a free agent contract.

This of course led to speculation that the 49ers have given up on Druck.  As an aside, I still have no idea why the Niners drafted Druck to run their offense.  He's a big, strong, relatively slow-footed brute of a pocket passer, and hey, when was the last time you saw a 49er quarterback just stand in the pocket and throw the ball?  1978?

By all indications, though, the Niners are still counting on Druck, and they're still pleased with his progress.  Last year, his attitude left a little to be desired, as the fun-loving Druck did what any fun-loving guy who has just reached millionaire status will do:  he went out and, uh, had fun.  He tooled around on a motorcycle, starting dating a Playboy Playmate (no, I don't have a link to pictures), and appeared on Howard Stern's radio show.

This year, though, the most popular athlete of all time at Virginia Tech - I have proof, which I'll reveal later this week - has returned to what made him great in Blacksburg:  hard work.  He's putting in more time working out and studying film.  This is the word from the latest article about Druck, this one appearing in The Sporting News on-line:

San Francisco 49ers Team Report - The Sporting News, June 26, 1998

At the very least, it sounds as if those of you who can catch the 49ers preseason games will be seeing a lot of Druck.  I'm looking forward to seeing what he can do in the offense, so perhaps we can find out once and for all if he can master it, or if he's better suited for a team where the QB gets to stand still and fire rockets.  Along those lines, I'm still mad at my Miami Dolphins for drafting Yatil "Ouch, my hamstring hurts" Green instead of Druck.  Druck would have been perfect for Miami, except, uh ... the Dolphins receiving corps is terrible.

• After I talked about Roscoe Coles's new coaching job at Kecoughtan High, a relative of former Tech QB Steve Casey was quick to email me and tell me that Steve recently accepted the head football coaching job at Kofa High School in Yuma, AZ.  It's a long haul from Arizona to Virginia Tech, but maybe Steve can convince his top-notch players to at least take a look at the Hokies.  But that's a tall order, down in Sun Devil and Wildcat country.

• I haven't forgotten you, HokieCentral members.  I'll be doing some Members Only updates this week, so hang tight.  If you haven't visited the Members Only page lately, be sure to drop in and participate in the on-line poll.  I'm going to try and compile the results this week for an article.

• Don't miss the latest Merryman Center pictures.

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