I wasn't in Blacksburg today, so we'll get to the people who were in just a second. All reports from the scrimmage indicate that freshman defensive end James Gayle dominated the Hokies' scrimmage Saturday, recording three sacks. Gayle, a sophomore from Hampton, is listed as one of the starting DE's on Tech's spring depth chart, along with J.R. Collins.
Tech is replacing both starting defensive ends from last year's team, so Gayle's development was going to be an important for the defense, which needs QB pressure from the front four. Coming into the spring, the coaches said Gayle was "strong and explosive" and had "gained a better understanding of the position." It looks like he proved them right, at least in the first full scrimmage.
After the jump, we'll recap the scrimmage through the magic of Twitter.
Offense
Logan Thomas
Thomas has a Very crisp throwing motion, making some nice throws #Hokies
QB Logan Thomas went 2 of 4 on first series but had a nice 22 yd completion to Marcus Davis against 2nd team D.
On 4th and 16 against 1st team O Thomas connects with Marcus Davis on a 16 yard completion. Logan's 2 best throws today were to Davis
Logan Thomas today: 8 of 14 for 75 yards. They aren't done here at Lane Stadium yet though. Getting near the end.
Running Backs
Nick Becton working with No. 1 O-line at left tackle some on that opening series. RB Josh Oglesby alternating with David Wilson.
Wow! David Wilson explodes through the line, breaks a tackle and goes 56 yards for a TD. Called back for holding.
Oglesby rumbled 12 yards up the middle his first carry. Frosh CB Detrick Bonner with a nice hit, nice sideline break and pass breakup.
Others
Nick Becton and David Wang making a strong case for starting spots. Future is bright on left side of the O Line
Joey Phillips is showing off nice hands with two good receptions today. Blacksburg native in good position to become the starting fullback
Walk-on RB Daniel Dyer rips off consecutive runs of 46 and 14 against No. 2 defense. Hmmmm
Defense
Defensive Line
The defensive line is manhandling the o-line right now. James Gayle is a superstar in waiting.
That's James Gayle's 3rd sack by my count. Looks like Wiles wasn't messing around with the bell cow label.
Gayle with 3 sacks today and just slung down a RB with one arm. Monster.
James Gayle stood out today. He had a few sacks. The first team secondary also was solid, as expected.
After a DT Nick Acree bulled into backfield and slung down a RB with one hand, grad assistant Orion Martin rushed in to hug him.
Linebackers
Barquell Rivers had 7 tackles, 1 sack today. Very good sign for VT.
I'm almost exclusively watching Gouveia on every play, and he looks much more confident now. He's moving to the ball quickly.
Secondary
Backup corner Detrick Bonner with two nice plays today: a pass break-up and well-timed bang-bang hit to stop Coale short of first down.
Detrick Bonner star of the day so far. Broke on a 3rd-down pass from Thomas to Coale, almost broke it up, but stopped play short of 1st.