THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, October 28, 1995 TAG: 9510280446
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 118 lines
In the visitor's locker room at Mountaineer Field today, ``Death Row'' will be scrawled above a bank of lockers occupied by Virginia Tech's defensive linemen.
The Hokies' defensive front peers from behind face masks, but to opposing running backs, they must look like executioner's masks.
``We feel each opponent is another victim coming up on death row,'' Hokies defensive end Cornell Brown said. ``We want to execute them all.''
Tech brings one of the nation's top defenses into Morgantown, W.Va., for today's game against the Mountaineers (noon, WPEN). The Hokies rank fourth nationally in rushing defense (85.7 per game), fifth in scoring defense (14.7 points per game) and 15th in total defense (298.9 yards per game).
``They're on a roll,'' said West Virginia coach Don Nehlen, whose team leads the Big East in total defense. ``Defensively, they're probably playing better than anybody in the league right now.''
Tech's defensive strength is up front. Coach Frank Beamer said the Hokies' line is better than any group he's had in nine seasons in Blacksburg - even better than the 1989 team, which finished third nationally in rushing defense and fourth in total defense.
``The guys up front are very active, very aggressive, they all can run and they all are tough guys,'' Beamer said. ``Overall, it probably is the best.''
Appropriately, the denizens of ``Death Row'' have been there a while.
The Hokies go two deep at virtually every defensive line position except for the two end spots, which are manned primarily by three players. Five of the seven players who have seen significant time on the line are seniors, and two are juniors.
Those seven have accounted for 121 of a possible 124 starts along Tech's defensive front during the last three seasons.
Brown has the most starts with 29, followed by end Hank Coleman (24), tackle J.C. Price (23), tackle Waverly Jackson (22), tackle Jeff Holland (9), end Lawrence Lewis (9) and tackle Jim Baron (5).
They boast production as well as experience. Tech is holding opponents to an average of 2.1 yards per carry.
``This line has been together three years now,'' Price said. ``The stats don't lie. The main thing we concentrate on every time they run the ball is keep it under 3 yards.''
Four linemen are among the team's top seven tacklers - excellent output for a defensive front. Price is second in tackles, Brown is third, Jackson is sixth and Coleman is seventh.
Price leads the Big East in tackles-for-loss with 11, and Brown is tied for fourth. They are tied for second in the league with six quarterback sacks apiece, while Coleman is fourth with five.
Price, a senior, and Brown, a junior, are the kingpins of ``Death Row.''
``You've got a couple of guys who are real talented, and then a couple others who are good players,'' defensive line coach Todd Grantham said. ``There's a good mix there. The ones that stand above have brought the others up. It's a chemistry deal, they all just work well together.''
Several members of ``Death Row'' referred to themselves as a lively, close-knit group. Brown said each guy brings something different to the mix.
Everyone also has a nickname. Brown's is ``Monster,'' appropriate when you consider how frightening he must be to opposing teams. He is regarded as Tech's best defensive player since Norfolk native Bruce Smith, who won the 1984 Outland Trophy and was the top pick in the NFL draft.
``Cornell's an incredible player,'' Price said. ``He's one of the best players I've played with. Probably one of the reasons I'm having a good year is because he had such a great year last year, and people are paying more attention to him than they are to me.''
Brown said he pays no attention to talk he may move on to the NFL after his junior season. His brother, offensive tackle Reuben, was the Buffalo Bills' first-round pick last year out of Pittsburgh. Brown said he would consider the NFL this year if he could be a first-round pick, but then insisted in the next breath that he will complete his eligibility.
``No doubt, I'll be back,'' Brown said. ``I've got a lot to prove still. I feel I've got another year of growing to do to get ready.''
New Orleans Saints scout Tom Marino agreed.
``It's easy to see Cornell Brown is going to be a very fine player,'' said Marino, who scouts the East and has seen Tech in person and on tape. ``But if he comes out, he's nuts. He'd be making a bad mistake. Anyone who would be advising Cornell Brown to come out of school early would not be looking out for his best interest.''
Marino said Price and Baron - sidelined half the season by an ankle sprain - will receive the most interest from the NFL in the spring.
Baron, who came to Tech as a junior college transfer, is a bit of an unknown because he hasn't played a lot of football. Marino believes Price will be drafted despite being on the small side (6-foot-3 and 275 pounds) for a defensive tackle.
``He doesn't look like a player,'' Marino said. ``He doesn't look like he's spent a lot of time in the weight room. But he has, and he can flat out run.''
Collectively the Hokies' linemen are relatively smallish at an average of 6-2 and 256. But they make up for it with speed.
``Our mold is to get linebackers and feed them, and put their hand on the ground,'' Grantham said.
Of the top seven linemen, Grantham said only Holland was a lineman when he came to college.
``I don't think anyone's intimidated by us,'' Coleman said. ``But we do see frustration by the end of the game because a lot of teams haven't faced our team speed on the defensive line.''
You want frustration, ask Terrell Willis about the Hokies. The Rutgers tailback led the Big East in rushing with 110 yards per game. Tech held him to minus-2 yards.
Or ask Navy quarterback Chris McCoy. McCoy was 10th nationally in rushing with 133.3 yards per game when he faced the Hokies. They held him to 1 net yard on 21 attempts.
``I think we're playing pretty good,'' said Holland, a senior who graduated from Chesapeake's Western Branch High School.
``This defensive line has had a lot to do with the turnaround at Tech,'' Holland added. ``This year we'll probably go to a bowl, and it will be three in a row. Then it will be four in a row and five in a row.
``We expect to contend for the Big East title and go to a bowl every year. Three or four years ago, you couldn't say that.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by Mike Heffner, Landmark News Service
J.C. Price, left, and Cornell Brown...
by CNB