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The Preseason is Almost Here
by Chris Coleman, TechSideline.com, TSLMail #493, July 15, 2011

It's the middle of July, which means football practice will begin in less than a month. The action gets started later this month with the ACC Media Kickoff in Greensboro, NC. Just over a week later, practice will begin.

Here's a look at the big dates of Virginia Tech's preseason.

Summer Calendar
Date Event
July 24-26 ACC Media Kickoff
Aug. 3 Players Report
Aug. 4 Practice #1
Aug. 6 Media Day
Aug. 13 Open Scrimmage, 4pm
Aug. 20 Open Scrimmage, 2pm
Aug. 22 Fall Semester Begins
Aug. 26 Closed Scrimmage


From July 24 through 26, the media will meet with ACC coaches and players in Greensboro. The media will make their preseason predictions for the ACC, as well as select their preseason All-Conference players. Danny Coale and Eddie Whitley will represent Virginia Tech at this event. It's expected that the media will pick the Hokies to win the Coastal Division.

All players have to report to Blacksburg by August 3. That won't be a problem, since most are enrolled for the second summer session anyway. Practice will begin on August 3, and the first of two open scrimmages will be held in Lane Stadium on Saturday, August 13 at 4pm. Another open scrimmage will be held a week later at 2pm.

Fall semester will begin on August 22, the Hokies will hold a closed scrimmage on August 26, and then they will begin game week preparation for the Appalachian State Mountaineers.

TSL is very close to beginning our own preseason as well. Next week we'll have updates on recruiting targets for offense and defense, and we'll take a look back at another past Virginia Tech football game. After that, the preseason previews will begin in earnest.

We'll begin our positional previews on Monday, July 25 and continue them up through the beginning of practice. We'll be at both open scrimmages and will have reports on them, and we will also provide a weekly practice update every Wednesday.

Each Monday beginning August 8, we'll also have a Monday Thoughts article on various topics surround Tech, the ACC or college football in general. At some point in August, we'll also take a detailed look on first year starting quarterbacks under Frank Beamer, from 1993 through the present.

Here's a quick look at what our preseason content will look like before practice begins.

Preseason Content
Date Preview
July 25 Quarterbacks
July 26 Running Backs
July 27 Wide Receivers
July 28 Offensive Line
July 29 Tight Ends/Fullbacks
August 1 Defensive Line
August 2 Linebackers
August 3 Defensive Backs
August 4 Special Teams


Once practice begins, we'll start our Monday Thoughts features, provide Wednesday practice updates, as well as a Friday Q&A each week. Tuesdays and Thursdays will be filled with other features, such as the first year starting quarterback feature that was mentioned above, closer looks at the Atlantic and Coastal Divisions, recruiting target updates, and perhaps a few other things as well.

All of these features will be available to TSL Pass Subscribers only. If you've been thinking about a TSL Pass Subscription recently, now is the time to jump on board. Click here to subscribe ... or to renew, if you've let your subscription lapse.

 

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   TechSideline.com Updates From the Past Week

The Hokies' Recruiting Rush: Different, or the Same?

July 15, 2011
The Hokies have had a busy July in recruiting, racking up seven commitments, and the month isn't even half over. The Hokies have 20 commitments now. A flood of commitments like that generates a lot of buzz, but underneath the buzz, some Hokie fans are asking questions about whether the numbers are really more significant than in recent years, and more important, if the recruits that are committing are more highly rated than past classes. Other than being strung close together, which generates a lot of buzz, is anything different about this year's commitments? We did some research to find the answers.
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Conte To Decide Between UVa and VT
July 15, 2011
This week has been a good one for Blessed Sacrament Huguenot (Powhatan, VA) offensive tackle Augie Conte. On Tuesday he received an offer from Virginia Tech, days following an impressive performance at Tech's July 9 one-day camp. Shortly after, he learned that the University of Virginia was offering as well. In less than a week's time, the 6'6", 270-pound rising senior will have committed to one of those two schools.
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Lafayette WR Earns Offer From Hokies
July 15, 2011
Following Virginia Tech's one-day camp last Saturday, primary recruiter Curt Newsome "said I did really well," said Lafayette (Williamsburg, VA) wide receiver Thomas Smith. "He said that's what they want at Virginia Tech. He told me he would contact me on Tuesday, but I was shocked when he offered me a full ride."
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A Look Back: The 1998 Miami Game
July 14, 2011
The 1998 meeting with Miami isn't a game to remember because it was a big one on the national stage; it wasn't. It is memorable because of how the Hokies won it, the gutsy effort their injured quarterback showed, and the fact that it was the fourth time in a row Tech had beaten the mighty Canes. Back then, that was a huge deal.
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TSL Audio: Chris Coleman on ESPN Radio Blacksburg, July 13th, 2011
July 13, 2011
On this week's edition of the Sean Bielawski Show, TSL's Chris Coleman discussed last weekend's football camp and the 2012 recruiting class as it currently stands.
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Hokies Offer Riverbend Lineman
July 13, 2011
Riverbend High School (Fredericksburg, VA) offensive tackle Adam Taraschke attended Virginia Tech's camp on Saturday in hopes of earning a scholarship offer. He received good news on Tuesday when he got that offer, and he's looking to head back to Blacksburg soon.
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Irick Verbals to Virginia Tech
July 12, 2011
Multiple internet reports are indicating that Calhoun County (SC) wide receiver Mark Irick has given his verbal pledge to Virginia Tech. He is Tech's 20th commitment of the 2012 recruiting class.
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Conte Impresses at Camp, Earns Tech Offer
July 12, 2011
One of Virginia Tech's goals on Saturday was to find a few offensive linemen worth of a scholarship offer. There were some quality linemen at the camp, and on Tuesday the coaching staff extending a scholarship offer to rising senior offensive tackle Augie Conte.
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Hokies Gain Valuable Transfer
July 11, 2011
Virginia Tech got a huge pledge on Monday night, and it wasn't from a high school player. University of Georgia offensive lineman Brent Benedict announced his decision to transfer recently, and after visiting Virginia Tech on Friday, he felt like Blacksburg was the best place for him. Instead of taking planned visits to Florida and Clemson, he committed to Tech and will enroll in August.
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Clark Camps at Tech, Earns Offer
July 11, 2011
Kings Fork High School (Suffolk, VA) athlete Charles Clark camped at Virginia Tech last summer before his sophomore season, and he caught the eye of the coaching staff. He camped in Blacksburg again this summer, and left with a scholarship offer.
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Camp Observations: Hokies Have a Big Weekend
July 11, 2011
Virginia Tech had a great weekend, landing four verbal commitments and putting themselves in better standing with many other prospects. The Hokies also extended some new scholarship offers on Saturday following the camp.
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Nigel Williams Makes his Pledge
July 10, 2011
Virginia Tech picked up another big defensive line commitment on Sunday night when Benedictine School (Richmond, VA) standout Nigel Williams gave his verbal pledge over several other major offers.
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Reports: Woody Baron a Hokie
July 10, 2011
Reports indicate that Brentwood Academy (TN) defensive tackle Woody Baron has committed to Virginia Tech. He is the 18th verbal of the 2012 recruiting class, and the second defensive tackle in as many days.
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Will Smith Enjoys First Visit to Blacksburg
July 10, 2011
Christchurch School offensive tackle Will Smith took his first visit to Virginia Tech on Saturday, and performed well during camp drills in front of the Tech coaching staff. Holding one offer from Hampton, Smith hopes to see his offer list expand soon.
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Alston Smith Comments on his Decision
July 10, 2011
Virginia Tech picked up two defensive line commitments at camp on Saturday. The first came from Cox High School defensive tackle Alston Smith, son of Hokie great and NFL Hall of Famer Bruce Smith. We caught up with Alston this afternoon for a few comments on his visit and commitment.
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