ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, December 26, 1996 TAG: 9612260096
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: COLLEGE NOTEBOOK
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY
If it had come sooner, Chad Beasley's commitment to Virginia Tech might not have been as satisfying.
Beasley, son of Hokies' football great Tom Beasley, put an end to the suspense when he committed to Tech earlier this week.
In addition to Beasley, Tech also received a commitment from 6-foot-4, 265-pound Matt Lehr, an All-Group AAA and All-Metro offensive guard from Woodbridge High School.
Beasley (6-6, 235) was named first-team All-Group AA as both an offensive guard and defensive lineman for Gate City High School. He was rated the No.10 prospect in Virginia by The Roanoke Times.
Beasley took visits to Tech and Tennessee and was offered scholarships by North Carolina State and some smaller schools. His connections to Tech include his sister, Kerri, who plays for the Hokies' volleyball team.
``They're staying out of it,'' Beasley said of his parents several days before his decision. His coach, Nick Colobro, is also a Tech alumnus who was careful not to discourage any prospective suitors.
Beasley said Tech was recruiting him as a defensive end but could move him to defensive tackle, the position his father played at Tech and with Super Bowl winners in Washington and Pittsburgh.
Lehr, who was offered a scholarship by N.C. State and also was being pursued actively by Wake Forest and Memphis, said he has been leaning to Tech for the last six months. He and Beasley bring to 15 the number of players who have committed to the Hokies.
LINE FORMS: If Virginia Tech recruit Wayne Ward plays next year, as he says he has been told, it would increase the likelihood that running back Shryone Stith will be redshirted.
Stith, a true freshman, probably would have been redshirted this year if not for an early-season injury to Ken Oxendine and the suspension of Marcus Parker because of a shoplifting arrest. Next year's Tech running backs include Oxendine, Parker, Ward and Lamont Pegues, who becomes eligible after transferring from Clemson.
'HOOS AND HOKIES: Only Florida State and Florida have more victories over ranked teams this season than Virginia Tech, which beat Top 25 teams in three of its past four games. Florida State had five Top 25 victories and the Gators four.
Virginia was one of 15 teams with two victories over Top 25 opposition and one of seven teams with wins over higher ranked teams. The Cavaliers beat Texas and North Carolina and the Hokies beat UVa, Miami and West Virginia.
FENCES MENDED: Former prep All-America quarterback Bobby Sabelhaus, who left Florida this summer and transferred to Pierce (Calif.) Community College, reportedly has made an oral commitment to Maryland.
There were hard feelings between Sabelhaus and former Maryland coach Mark Duffner that apparently have been patched up with the Terps' hiring of Ron Vanderlinden as head coach. Virginia was high on Sabelhaus' list when he decided to transfer, but the Cavaliers showed little interest in him.
SEMINOLE SETBACK: Florida State running back Rock Preston, the heir apparent to two-time All-ACC selection Warrick Dunn, has flunked out of school and will not play in the Sugar Bowl or return next season.
Preston rushed for 7.9 yards per carry this season, the ACC high, and scored 17 touchdowns as a part-time player for three seasons. Sophomore Dee Feaster, who had 20 rushing attempts all season, becomes the backup.
COACHING CORNER: New Boston College coach Tom O'Brien, formerly the offensive coordinator at Virginia, has named Tim Rose as his defensive coordinator. Rose was the defensive coordinator at Cincinnati when the Bearcats upset Virginia Tech in 1995.
There was some thought that O'Brien might keep Phil Elmassian, a former UVa colleague who was the Eagles' defensive coordinator this past season. However, Rose became available when Minnesota did not retain his 1996 boss, Jim Wacker.
Among the assistants left looking for a job when head coach Dan Henning resigned was running backs coach John McGregor. McGregor, under whose direction Omari Walker became a 1,000-yard rusher, formerly was the head coach at William Fleming High School.
BROTHER ACT: Boston College's search for a new head football coach was of particular interest to Roanoker Duke Edsall, an ACC basketball official and the brother of Jacksonville Jaguars assistant Randy Edsall.
Randy Edsall, once considered a leading contender for the BC job, was the Eagles' secondary coach before joining head coach Tom Coughlin in the move to Jacksonville two years ago. Duke Edsall returned to officiating this year after reconstructive knee surgery.
BECOMING ELIGIBLE: Reigning ACC regular-season men's basketball champion Georgia Tech, which has suffered lopsided losses in its past three games, got a much-needed boost when sophomore guard Gary Saunders regained his eligibility.
Saunders, who averaged 6.6 points during the 1995-6 season as the Yellow Jackets' sixth man, was academically ineligible for the first five games and Georgia Tech coaches had feared he would miss the entire season.
*The NCAA has given instant eligibility to 6-8, 225-pound West Virginia freshman Marcus Goree after it was determined a ninth-grade reading class had been left off Goree's transcript at Hillcrest High School in Atlanta.
Goree, who had sued the NCAA after it rejected two other classes, missed five regular-season games and two exhibitions, but had been allowed to practice with the team.
LENGTH: Medium: 97 linesby CNB