Yeah, the Hokies lost 24-11 to South Carolina, and I don’t think anyone was shocked by it.
But there was one nice surprise that emerged that could help the Hokies finally forge an identity unique to the Brent Pry era, and in the process, possibly allow for a pretty good season.
The surprise was the play of the defense, and to be honest, I wasn’t expecting new defensive coordinator Sam Siefkes to have such an impact so soon. His defense gave up an easy touchdown on South Carolina’s first drive, but then immediate changes were made in schemes, rotation of as many as 10 different linemen to keep the defense fresh, and a “keep ‘em guessing” play calling approach that kept South Carolina’s offense back on its heels.
So effective was the defense in the first three quarters that it limited the Gamecocks to only 3 more points. While the D bent during those three periods, they finally broke in the fourth quarter, something you kind of expected when the defense spent so much time on the field due to the offense’s lack of any long consistent drives.
The defense simply got tired and ran out of gas.
But the performance gave you some feelings of déjà vu for the 1990s teams and made you feel for the first time in years that the team was building a cornerstone. If you looked at last season (or any of the Pry years for that matter) was the team consistently good on offense? Not really. Could you rely on the defense to always make a key stop? Hardly. Were they uniquely good on special teams? No.
I point this out because programs grow around first being good at one facet of the game, then slowly bringing the rest of the game into focus. Frank Beamer made special teams his initial focus, calling them his “Pride and Joy.” In 1995, the team lost its first two games, then Bud Foster’s defense was the deciding factor in a 13-7 win over Miami, which would be the first of 10 straight wins. The offense struggled for several more games before coming around, but fierce defense was the bedrock that carried them in the interim before gelling into a good all-around team.
Pry’s teams have not had an offense, defense or special teams to hang their hat on, but that seemed to change today. And if that can continue, it can buy a lot of time – like back in 1995 – for the offense to catch up.
The Hokie offense certainly has a lot of catching up to do after today’s performance. On the positive side, quarterback Kyron Drones threw some nice 50-50 balls that gave his receivers a chance to make a play. Receivers Ayden Greene and Donavon Greene showed great hands and made some spectacular catches. The talent is there for the Hokies to have a more robust passing game.
But there were also receivers who dropped balls thrown right between the numbers. Drones himself was inconsistent, at times throwing balls behind a receiver, over the head of a receiver or at the feet of a receiver. Several times they were wide open too. In a game where you lose by two scores but don’t score an offensive touchdown, those are huge missed opportunities. Against lesser teams you can get away with a bunch of field goals by John Love and a safety by the defense, but against the No. 13 team in the country, it means you have no chance.
The reaction to the game on social media was a glass half full/half empty scenario. Since many thought the Hokies would go to Atlanta and get beat 48-7, the opinion “it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be” was a popular sentiment. Clearly the defense was an unexpected bonus, and you can explain the mostly non-existent running game and inconsistent offensive line play to the fact South Carolina has a very strong defense.
But the funny feeling I have right now is about the quarterback position. I know Drones can play at a higher level, and with a few games under his belt, perhaps I can talk myself into believing he’s going to return to his 2023 form. But he regressed last year before succumbing to injuries, and today’s mistakes didn’t seem to be from the confusion of a new offense. They were more a failure to execute what he knew he was supposed to do, including an interception in the end zone so ugly if you went on a date with it, you would gnaw your arm off to get away.
The big question then becomes if the trend line on Drones reverses and goes back up to 2023 performances, or if this year it regresses further. I thought after this game today, I’d know the answer.
I can’t say as I’m writing this that I do.
In any event, you can make a case that the loss today will not matter that much. Everybody except the truly over the edge Hokie fans thought they’d lose regardless, with the real fork in the road coming this week when they play a home game against Vanderbilt. It’s a 50-50 game and given the schedule left to play, could be a key win that could get them as far along as an 8-win season.
Lose it and it could be 6-6. Or worse.
With another performance by Sam Siefkes’ defense holding Vanderbilt’s offense in check, I think if the offense can complete some of those passes that were dropped or inaccurate today, the running game might be better, and the combination of the two could push the team over the top to win. Which could change the dynamics of the rest of the season.
If not, the barbarians may be at the gate, along with questions about who is playing quarterback.
