Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, October 5, 1994 TAG: 9410050091
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SCOTT BLANCHARD STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Long
Tech coach Frank Beamer said Tuesday at his weekly news conference that redshirt freshman Baron Spinner will start at one cornerback over sophomore Larry Green, one of several Hokies victimized by the Orangemen in a 28-20 loss that dropped Tech from 14th to 20th in The Associated Press Top 25.
Spinner, from Jefferson Forest High School, was the Timesland offensive player of the year in 1992 after rushing for 1,750 yards and 30 touchdowns, but was moved to defense during his redshirt year in Blacksburg. The 5-foot-8, 181-pounder has played mostly on special teams this year.
Beamer noted that Green had trouble against Syracuse's speedy Marvin Harrison, who caught five passes for 113 yards. Until then, Beamer acknowledged, Green had been playing better than he had last year when he started six games.
As he did when he named Ken Oxendine the starter at tailback over Tommy Edwards, Beamer's spin on Spinner is that the old starter isn't playing poorly, it's just the new starter is playing better. He did admit the staff thinks Spinner might fare better in tough matchups (like Harrison).
``In my opinion [Spinner's] a little quicker, a little bit faster and a little bigger,'' Beamer said.
The cornerback position lost its No. 4 man when freshman Quinton Waller, whom the staff is planning to redshirt, underwent surgery for appendicitis Monday. Beamer said redshirt freshman Aaron Layne, a converted tailback, may move into the No. 4 spot.
INJURIES, ETC.: Guard Damien McMahon's sprained foot will keep him out of at least one more game; trainer Eddie Ferrell thinks McMahon has a chance to play against East Carolina on Oct. 15. True freshman Dwight Vick is backing up Jared Hamlin at McMahon's position, but Beamer said Vick won't play unless absolutely necessary ... Tailback Dwayne Thomas, Ferrell said, could be close to returning by Saturday but the staff doesn't want him to play unless he's 100 percent ... Backup linebacker Tony Morrison will return Saturday from his one-game suspension for breaking a team rule ... The Carquest Bowl, which takes a Big East team after the bowl coalition has selected two league teams, will scout Saturday's game. Second-tier bowl coalition teams are not necessarily selected according to the bowl coalition poll, meaning, for example, that Syracuse could finish behind Tech in the polls but be chosen over Tech into a second-tier coalition bowl. That, presumably, would leave Tech in the Carquest ... Freshman linebacker Chris Frith will be redshirted.
FLAGS: Beamer claims Tech committed only nine of the 12 penalties it was called for against Syracuse and worries that Tech, the most-penalized team in the Big East Conference, is getting a reputation. The Hokies had the fourth-most penalty yards per game in the league in 1991, the second-most in '92 and the most (73.2) last year.
``I'm concerned right now what's in [officials'] minds right now will start entering into their judgment on the field,'' Beamer said. ``You're going alongO and haven't thrown a flag, and you think you ought to because this is the most-penalized team.''
As for what Tech is doing about it, Beamer said the offsides, holding and blocking penalties indicate ``lack of poise'' and ``lack of effort.''
PLAIN LUCK? Oxendine, the freshman tailback, on winning a starting job in his sixth collegiate game: ``At this time, I had some key things happen in the game, holes, blocks, I was able to do what I had to do. The same thing could happen to anybody. I lucked out.''
LOGIC TEST: Temple coach Ron Dickerson, a former Penn State assistant, said last week before the Owls' game against Penn State, ``Penn State's Penn State. To us, they're the best team in the country, hands down.'' Monday on the Big East coaches' teleconference, Dickerson said of Virginia Tech: ``They're just as strong and just as talented as Penn State.''
FOUR RECEIVERS: Beamer said the four wide-receiver set will remain part of Tech's offensive package. Unofficially, Maurice DeShazo was 8-for-12 passing (he was 20-for-37 overall) out of the formation for 74 yards; all but one of the passes came from a shotgun formation. Tech also rushed four times for 26 yards, including DeShazo draws for 16 and 4 yards.
``It's not exactly the same [as last year],'' Beamer said. ``Some things are a little bit different. The concepts are the same, though.''
THE ENDS: Tech defensive end Hank Coleman said Syracuse's up-the-middle runs took Tech's speed at defensive end out of the game Saturday. On Kirby Dar Dar's game-winning touchdown run on an option pitch, Coleman was blocked out of the play, but said: ``I defeated him and he grabbed my ankle. That [Dar Dar, the pitch man] wasn't my man. I had the dive [responsibility].''
ETC: Tech kicker Ryan Williams, who tied a Big East single-game record with his four field goals against Syracuse, was the league's special teams player of the week ... Temple, the only Big East team that hasn't played a league game yet, is 0-18 against Big East opponents ... Tech is expecting a crowd of about 45,000 for Saturday's 1 p.m. game.
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by CNB