ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, August 2, 1996 TAG: 9608020031
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B5 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: BIG EAST NOTES
DATELINE: EAST RUTHERFORD, N. J.
SOURCE: RANDY KING STAFF WRITER
Virginia Tech's chances of winning a second straight Big East Conference football title aren't good.
Who says? The media who cover the league on a regular basis.
Despite a 1995 season in which they won a school-record 10 games, including the Sugar Bowl, the Hokies garnered only two of 24 first-place votes in the 1996 Big East preseason poll released Thursday at the league's annual Media Day at Giants Stadium.
Syracuse, which finished third last season, was tabbed the favorite for the league crown, with Miami a close second.
The Orangemen received 12 first-place votes in totaling 177 points. Miami, which got 10 first-place votes, was second with 170 points.
Tech was third with 152 points.
West Virginia (120), Boston College (95), Pittsburgh (73), Temple (39) and Rutgers (38) rounded out the poll.
Although Tech lost 11 starters (counting kicker Atle Larsen) through graduation compared to six for Miami and seven for Syracuse, the biggest factor in the Hokies being tabbed third was that they must play both the Hurricanes and Orangemen on the road.
``From our standpoint,'' said Tech coach Frank Beamer, ``the schedule certainly favors the other two [Miami and Syracuse].
``When you play in that Carrier Dome, it's different. It's not just another game. And when you play in the Orange Bowl, with them people screaming at you down there, it's different. I think those are two difficult places to play. Both those teams really have advantages at home.''
Tech quarterback Jim Druckenmiller and center Billy Conaty weren't surprised the poll's results.
``We just don't get the respect,'' Druckenmiller said. ``We play the game. We're the ones who are going to decide what happens. How we stand at the end of the year is all that's important.''
Conaty said the media balloting could prove to be a positive omen for the Hokies.
``You picked us third last year and we saw what happened,'' Conaty said. ``If you guys picked it, hey, we're probably going to come in first.''
Beamer, who agreed with the writers' picks, also couldn't resist a humorous barb at the media.
``This poll has convinced me that sportswriters haven't completely lost it,'' he said, laughing.
POLLSTERS: Miami and Syracuse were unanimous selections, and Tech was listed in all but one of the eight preseason Top 25 polls released by various publications.
The Hurricanes were rated as high as seventh by GamePlan and as low as 19th by Athlon. The Orangemen were picked as high as seventh by Bob Griese's College Sports and and as low as 17th by Street & Smith's.
Tech was tabbed 11th (Athlon), 14th (Griese), 15th (Football Writers Association of America), 17th (Football News), 18th (GamePlan), 19th (The Sporting News), and 22nd (Street & Smith's). Lindy's, which had Miami and Syracuse Nos. 8-9, failed to give Tech a Top-25 nod.
CORNELL A NO-SHOW: Tech All-America defensive end Cornell Brown remains as elusive as ever - off the field as well as on.
Brown was scheduled to be one of three Tech players attending Media Day. But Brown backed out out of the assignment at the last minute, claiming he had ``a prior commitment,'' according to Jack Williams, Tech's director of media relations.
Linebacker Brandon Semones replaced Brown and joined fellow seniors Druckenmiller and Conaty at the Tech table.
``Cornell just doesn't like doing these type of things,'' Beamer said.
SURPRISE VISITOR: Former Tech coach-athletic director Bill Dooley turned more than one head in the Hokies' traveling party when he and his wife, Marie, showed up at Thursday's gathering.
Dooley, who preceded Beamer at Tech, attended on behalf of the Blue-Gray postseason all-star game played in Mobile, Ala.
``I'm in charge of recruiting players and coaches for the game,'' Dooley said. ``I'm hitting a lot of the conferences preseason deals to talk to some of the players we'd like to have come and play in our game.''
Dooley's primary recruiting target Thursday was West Virginia coach Don Nehlen.
``I'd love to have Don as one of our head coaches if his team doesn't go to a bowl game,'' Dooley said.
LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: chart - Big East Football Poll KEYWORDS: MGRby CNB