James Madison 21, Virginia Tech 16: Embarrassing

I don't know how to start this, write this, or finish this.  I'm sick to my stomach with what I just saw.  Even if the Hokies had pulled a rabbit out of their helmets at the end, I'd still be beyond disgusted.  I just sat in the pouring rain to watch one of the most pathetic attempts at playing the game of football that I've ever seen. 

Congratulations to James Madison, I'll tip my cap to them.  I'll tip my cap to their fans, that traveled in droves and were seated throughout Lane Stadium today.  I'll tip my cap to their coaching, their players, their will to win.  Because today, all of theirs trumped all of ours.  On this day, the better team won.  I don't necessarily believe that they are better than Tech.  But, I absolutely believe that they were today.  That's all that matters.

Now that credit has been given where it's due, it's necessary to discredit where it's due.  Here are a few things that are contributing to my sickness:

Lethargy- Absolutely no spark in this team.  Terrible body language, bickering amongst players and coaches (I actually sat not far behind Tech's bench, and the disconnect was quite obvious all game long).  I didn't see a team today.  I saw trash.

Ball security- Just horrendous.  Tyrod's interception had to have been intended for the James Madison defender.  As i scanned the field on the play, I knew that there was no possible way for a pass to the outside to be completed.  I looked elsewhere, and what do you know?  Tyrod threw where there was no where to throw.  The Darren Evans fumble was courtesy of an excellent hit, helmet to ball.  With that being said, the ball has to be protected, especially at such a critical juncture of the game. No excuses.  The same goes for Tyrod's fumble.  JMU protected the ball admirably, our attempt at doing so, if you can even say there was one, was terrible.  Rain is no excuse either, because obviously, JMU hung onto the ball.  

Defense- I could write about four or five posts on the defense.  The tackling is absolutely atrocious.  The routes to the ball that we take are embarrassing.  The defense is young, I understand.  Too bad.  Grow up. Remember the years of counting on our defense, game in, game out?  Change your habits.  This defense is an abomination to Bud Foster's style.  Which really stinks for him, because he's the one coaching them.  The inability to stop one play is what cost Tech the game.  It's a QB zone read.  Make it mandatory to watch that film everyday. 

Offensive Line- All the hype about how great Tech's backfield was going to be this year seems to disappear pretty quickly, doesn't it?  If the line can't create a decent push, you won't see highlight reel runs from Evans, or Williams, or even Adrian Peterson.  Our best offense right now is : Call a pass play, watch the line get obliterated and stand around, and hope that Tyrod can make a play.  The offensive line has to be much better than it has been. 

There are more things to address with the team's performance today, but quite frankly I don't think I can stomach writing anymore about it.  This team is not good right now, their play indicated that today.  They should have come out with smoke coming from their nostrils after last week and they didn't.  They rolled over and played dead.  Although they left it all on the field, they left it on the field in Landover.  The effort today was hideous, and not worthy of Hokie Respect.  That team should have been booed out of the stadium.  I am fully aware that we as Tech fans must stick behind our team through good and bad, but when your team hangs you and every other fan out to dry, let them hang with you.  People pay good money to fill the stadium, to have all the new merchandise, to see a product of stability that Frank Beamer provides.  Today, the team didn't hold up their end of the bargain.  It seemed to me that they didn't even try to hold up their end.  In fact, they dropped, kicked, fumbled, and stomped on their end.  

I'm proud to be a Hokie, and a Hokie fan.  The team on the field today was not anything that deserves my pride.  The team on the field today embarrassed all Hokies, no matter how loyal or proud they may be.  Loyalty and refusal to criticize are not the same thing.  Today's game was worthy of only one of the two.

I'm beyond embarrassed.     

I hope the Hokies in the jerseys and headsets feel the same way times ten.  

Feel free to send me an email at marktrible@gmail.com or follow me on twitter @Mtrible