Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster called it a “slap in the face” that none of his players made the All-ACC first team. The slight, however, also could be perceived as a big kiss on the cheek of Foster, a former national assistant of the year who has done more with less than in perhaps any of his 16 seasons.
Three starters from his front seven were lost for the season. After that, two of the replacements went down. When the Virginia Tech defense lined up Saturday against Virginia, it was with two freshmen and seven sophomores. Still, the Hokies pitched a shutout, holding Virginia to 241 yards in a 38-0 victory.
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| Up next |
| No. 5 Virginia Tech vs. No. 21 Clemson |
| When » Saturday, 8 p.m. |
| Where » Bank of America |
| Stadium, Charlotte, N.C. |
| TV » ESPN |
When No. 5 Virginia Tech (11-1) faces No. 24 Clemson (9-3) in the ACC championship game Saturday, the Hokies somehow will look to their depleted, young defense — now starting just one senior and one junior — as a source of strength.
“Certainly he’s earned his pay this year,” coach Frank Beamer said of Foster. “The injuries he got and the people that are out — there are some key guys there.”
Through September, Virginia Tech started the same 11 players on defense. Then in October, all heck broke loose. Junior linebackers Jeron Gouveia and Bruce Taylor were lost for the season with lizfranc (foot) sprains, and junior tackle Antoine Hopkins went down with a torn ACL. Complicating the job for Foster were injuries to two of his best players — junior cornerback Jayron Hosley (hamstring) and sophomore defensive end James Gayle (sprained ankle) — who have since returned.
The result has been a different starting lineup in each of the last nine games but with little loss of efficiency. According to senior safety Eddie Whitley, Foster puts the Hokies in position to succeed.
“It’s basically the scheme [of] Coach Foster,” Whitley said. “He caters to our abilities. We just go off what we have.”
Replacing top tackler and spiritual leader Taylor was the most daunting task for Foster. But he has settled on Jack Tyler, a former walk-on from Oakton High, who starred Saturday, recovering a fumble and making a momentum-shifting fourth-down stop.
“I think a lot of it comes down to the way things are done around here,” senior wideout Danny Coale said of Tyler’s rise. “The mentality around here is that once you sign your letter, whether you be a walk-on or a scholarship guy, it’s kind of an even and clean slate.”
Helping the Virginia Tech front seven thrive despite the injuries has been a stellar secondary that includes three players selected to the All-ACC second team. In any other year, cornerbacks Hosley and sophomore Kyle Fuller would have been appropriate first-team choices. But those honors went to FBS interception leader David Amerson of N.C. State and senior Chase Minnifield of Virginia, who received a lifetime-achievement nod.
Another Virginia Tech cornerback, senior Cris Hill, was instrumental in helping contain explosive Clemson freshman wideout Sammy Watkins in Virginia Tech’s 23-3 loss in Week 5. The Hokies look to do it again Saturday night.
“We have to do the same thing again,” Foster said. “They haven’t changed.”
