Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, September 5, 1993 TAG: 9309050261
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Jack Bogaczyk
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
He actually came down I-81, from Syracuse. However, there are some Hokies who wanted to deify their new defensive coordinator and secondary coach after Saturday's impressive 33-16 opening victory over Bowling Green.
Too late. He already has been dubbed "The Savior," by some of his buddies. Elmassian laughs about that, but the funny thing is, they may be right.
Of all of the staff changes made by Tech coach Frank Beamer in the last two off-seasons, the hiring of Elmassian was the most inspired - and inspiring. A team that went 0-7-1 in its last eight games in 1992 needed an attitude adjustment.
He is in his 20th year of college coaching and he's moved eight times. That's not a big deal for a guy who has trouble just standing still.
On the practice field or in the coaches' booth during games, Elmassian is a flood of emotions. Surely, Miami doesn't have the only hurricane in the Big East Conference.
"Working in the [coaches'] booth with Phil is like being in a storm," said Tech defensive ends coach Rod Sharpless, another staff addition who sat in the sky next to Elmassian for the first time Saturday. "But, he stays focused. There's more adrenaline there than in anyone I've ever worked with, but it's a good adrenaline."
Tech's defensive change from the wide-tackle six to a 4-3 alignment is well-chronicled. The attacking defense the Hokies sent onto the field against the Falcons included only three returning starters. Of those, only All-Big East cornerback Tyronne Drakeford was in the same position he played last year.
It wasn't just who was sent onto the field by Elmassian and his fellow defensive aides. It was that they stayed. Personnel changes on defense were few.
Elmassian, from the coaches' booth upstairs, didn't substitute in his secondary until free safety Antonio Banks was injured in the last minutes.
Some coaches rave about having depth. Elmassian says that having depth, and using it, means that it's likely the first unit isn't so great.
"You hope your first group is so good that the guys learning behind them have to sit," Elmassian said. "We're not that good yet. We played hard. We hope the starters get better and better. The way they do that is to play.
"If you're just into participation, go out for intramurals."
The limited substitutions brought an improved organization to Tech's performance. The Hokies' offense followed suit, and it was very noticeable that the number of players dressed for Tech was about one-third less than in recent years.
Linebackers coach Bud Foster said the message the defensive staff is trying to send is that "to be on the first team, on what we call the Big Orange, you have to be a good football player. We have a lot of new people out there, and we need to get them game experience."
It would seem impossible to miss Elmassian's message. Maybe it's delivered with a yell, maybe with a hug. Defensive end Hank Coleman thinks he has figured out the new coordinator.
"He's back there in the secondary in practice, going through the plays with those guys," Coleman said. "I think he actually wants to play again.
"Intense doesn't describe it. It's never-ending. He demands two things - that you think and that you play as hard as you can.
"After our practices, it was so nice to play a game."
One day last week, Elmassian took the mouthpiece of strong safety Stacy Henley and threw it to the ground in practice. Fortunately for Henley, it wasn't in his mouth.
"Coach Elmassian is very vocal, and he'll be in your face if you do something wrong. But he brings us a winning touch. We haven't been with teams that have won 10 games and gone to bowls. He has. I'm glad he came here."
Elmassian has coached in five bowls in the last seven seasons. A career that began in 1974 at William and Mary after he played at Ferrum and W & M has wound through Richmond, Ferrum again, East Carolina, Minnesota, Tech, Virginia, Syracuse and back to Blacksburg again.
"The way I am might be different to the players, but I'm not doing things any differently than back when I was at Ferrum," he said.
Tech's defense had better not rest.
During August, on the days the Hokies went through preseason two-a-day drills, Elmassian arrived at his office at 5:30 each morning, and left at 1 o'clock - each morning.
He and his wife, Diane, have built a home near Blacksburg Country Club in recent months. Not that Elmassian is that familiar with his latest zip code. The day they moved in was only the second time he had seen the house since construction began.
This human buzz saw is too busy with a rebuilding job at Lane Stadium.
by CNB