THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 22, 1995 TAG: 9509220626
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Long : 118 lines
The stakes were high when Virginia Tech prepared to play at Miami last October.
The Hokies were 7-1 and had ascended to their highest ranking ever in the polls - 13th by The Associated Press, 10th by USA Today-CNN. With a win over Miami, a program that appeared to be on the rise would be in line for a major bowl bid.
Tech lost. It has lost ground ever since.
As the Hokies prepare to play Miami Saturday at Lane Stadium (12:07 p.m., WPEN), the stakes are high again. But this time, rather than competing for a major bowl bid, the Hokies are trying to avoid being labeled a major disappointment.
Two weeks ago, the Hokies were No. 20 in the nation. Now, they're 0-2.
``I would say it's a mild crisis,'' defensive end Hank Coleman said. ``Big crisis would be 0-5.''
Two losses at home. Two opponents they were favored to beat, including 14-point underdog Cincinnati. Too much backsliding.
The failures date back to that last Miami game. The Hokies have gone from a team on the verge of a breakthrough to one that has broken down. Tech has lost five of its last six, and was soundly beaten in four of them.
``It's kind of a shocker the way we've started out,'' free safety William Yarborough said. ``Especially compared to where we were the last time we played Miami. It kind of makes you think, `What happened to this team?' ''
Good question. There are no answers, just hypotheses.
For starters, four of the five teams that have beaten Tech since Oct. 29 - Miami, Virginia, Tennessee and Boston College - are regulars in polls and bowls. Only Cincinnati, which Tech lost to Saturday with a putrid performance, doesn't have a national reputation.
Still, the Hokies played poorly in many of the losses. What happened to the team that sailed through most of 1993 and the first eight games of 1994, winning 16 of 20 games?
``Maybe there's a lack of concentration, that might be different,'' Yarborough said. ``We're going out there and making a lot of mistakes and not playing as good as we can play.''
Lack of concentration can be a euphemism for lack of preparation. Offensive guard Chris Malone said some Tech players have not been practicing hard enough, and began to take success for granted. After back-to-back bowl seasons, could it be Tech players believed they were entitled to a sunshine destination in December?
``We practiced terrible last week,'' Malone said. ``I guess we thought we could show up on Saturday and beat that team. It's frustrating to put so much into it and start off this way.''
Tech may take another step toward big crisis Saturday.
No. 17 Miami is the Big East's best team and has won 71 consecutive games against unranked teams, a streak that dates back to 1984. The Hokies have scored five points on the Hurricanes in their last two meetings.
Tech has never lost four in a row at Lane Stadium, but Miami could change that. The Hokies last lost four consecutive home games in 1950-51, 14 years before Lane opened.
Rick Campbell, who has handled football statistics for the NCAA for nine years, said he does not know of a team that went to a bowl game after an 0-3 start. There are no records to back him up.
The Hokies are feeling backed up to the wall. What happens to a once-promising season if they fall to 0-3?
``Let's play the game and then we'll talk about that,'' coach Frank Beamer said.
``Phew,'' quarterback Jim Druckenmiller said. ``Good question.''
``We'll see what the hell we're made of if that happens,'' assistant head coach Billy Hite said.
Following Miami comes a road game at Pittsburgh, the only team in the dreary Big East (5-11 nonconference record) off to a good start. The Hokies play six of their final eight games on the road, and after Miami have just one more league game at home.
It's hardly a sure victory tour. Especially when you consider the Hokies:
Have not intercepted a pass since the third quarter of last season's Rutgers game, a string of 117 consecutive opponents' passes without a pickoff. During that time, Tech has thrown 10. In the last six games, the Hokies have made just two interceptions while throwing 12;
Have had one sustained scoring drive in their last eight quarters;
Have gained three yards or less on 38 of 65 first-down plays this season;
Have set up 23 of the 36 points scored against them with turnovers. Tech has punted 18 times, turned the ball over six times and missed two field goals.
Are last in the nation in scoring offense (7 points per game);
Have the lowest-ranking quarterback in the Big East in passing efficiency.
The one thing Tech is doing well is stopping the run, a stat in which it leads the league and ranks sixth nationally. But the Hokies are ranked seventh in the league and 86th nationally in stopping the pass.
Beamer said the Hokies have not lost confidence, although offensive coordinator Rickey Bustle admitted ``That's another battle we're fighting right now.''
Another battle could be that Tech is playing under a different coordinator for the fourth consecutive season. It was Steve Marshall in 1992, Bustle in '93, Gary Tranquill in '94 and Bustle again in '95.
``But there haven't been wholesale changes,'' Hite said.
And there is a new defensive coordinator tandem in Bud Foster and Rod Sharpless in place of the departed Phil Elmassian.
Elmassian was a fiery, acerbic personality who brought discipline to the defense at a time it was sorely needed. But several Tech players have acknowledged his act gets old quickly, as Elmassian's coaching resume of 10 stops in 22 years attests. Still, Elmassian was a competitive inferno the Hokies may be lacking.
The Hokies are quick to point out West Virginia started 1-4 last season and ended in the Carquest Bowl. Beamer insists Tech is a good football team that hasn't played well yet. A win would erase the bad vibes of the Hokies' 0-2 start.
``Sure would,'' Beamer said. ``Winning takes care of a lot of things.''
Especially if it's a win over Miami. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by V.W. VAUGHN, Landmark News Service
Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer...
Photo by V.W. VAUGHN, Landmark News Service
Virginia Tech quarterback Jim Druckenmiller is the lowest-rated
passer in the Big East.
by CNB