Virginia Tech Spring Football Preview: A Look at the Wide Receivers

Virginia Tech was forced to play four freshmen at wide receiver in 2008, after the exodus of their top seven wideouts from the 2007 roster.

Eddie Royal, Josh Morgan, Justin Harper and Josh Hyman all went to the NFL then Zach Luckett, Ike Whitaker, and Brandon Dillard all didn’t play last season for different reasons. Luckett was suspended for a DUI, Dillard tore his Achilles tendon, and Whitaker was kicked off the team for “repetitive violations.”

So against ECU, the Hokies started four freshmen, including three true freshmen in Jarrett Boykin, Dyrell Roberts, Xavier Boyce, and the lone redshirt freshman Danny Coale.

Freshmen wide receivers very rarely make an impact there first year in school mainly because very few of them are physically strong enough to hold their own against junior or senior corners.

However, the young Hokie wideouts improved week after week and really came into their own in the final two games of the season.

After a 2008 campaign that was a learning experience for everybody, 2009 should hold bigger and better things in the passing attack for this group.

First String:

The starting rotation didn’t change much last season, so heading into the spring I’m guessing that rotation will remain the same with sophomores Danny Coale and Jarrett Boykin getting the first team reps this April.

Coale led all receivers last year with 36 receptions, however Jarrett Boykin won the receiving yards title with 441 yards, 33 more than Coale, on just 30 receptions.

Chemistry between the wide receivers and the quarterbacks was a problem at times last year, especially since the Hokies played two different quarterbacks. With Tyrod Taylor being the lone signal caller, you should see better timing between Tyrod and the top four wide receivers.

Second String

The Hokies normally boast a three or four wide receiver set on offense, but since I’m breaking this down into two’s, Dyrell Roberts and Xavier Boyce will be listed as second team wideouts, although they’ll get as many reps with the first team as Coale and Boykin.

Roberts held his own last season with 17 catches for 227 yards, including the longest passing play from scrimmage in 2008, a 62 yard “pass-n-catch” from Sean Glennon.

Tech fans saw the best and worst out of Dyrell last year as he was a very good punt returner, yet dropped two or three easy deep balls early on in 2008. However, Roberts really came on at the end of last year and should be able to carry that momentum over to this spring.

Xavier Boyce played the first three games of the season until injuring himself against Georgia Tech.  Xavier should be able to gain a medical redshirt and be able to play this fall as a freshman once again.

The question for Boyce is whether he will stay on offense or move over to safety, where he might be needed more after Kam Chancellor graduates?

Third String

Last year, the Hokies played the whole season with just three wide receivers and if one of them had to come off they just slid their two tight ends, Greg Boone and Andre Smith out wide instead of lining them up next to the offensive tackle.

This year, the coaches won’t have to worry about doing that, as Tech should have four players that can step in right away and contribute if needed.

Freshman Austin Fuller was a star at Richlands High School and after a year on the scout team at wide receiver, it appears he’ll be ready to hit the gridiron inside Lane Stadium this fall.  Austin has by far the best hands of any wide receiver on the team right now, and he will be an excellent possession receiver for the Hokies down the road.

Freshman Marcus Davis will begin spring practice at quarterback but could move back to wide receiver after the first week or two. Davis has not played wide receiver since his junior season of high school so it will be a learning process for him.  That is, if he does, in fact, move back to wide receiver. The Hokies are a bit thin at quarterback, so he may very well stay there.

Freshman Randall Dunn is an intriguing player that played just two years of football before enrolling here at Virginia Tech.  Dunn is a strong player out on the edge and could wind up being a good possession wide receiver down the road. Randall weighed 235 lbs back before the 2008 season, so if he has bulked up any, he could move inside to tight end this spring as well.

Junior Brandon Dillard should be able to gain a medical redshirt after tearing his Achilles last summer, but the real question with Brandon is will he be able to play at 100 percent again. Achilles injuries are tough to overcome because you never fully regain your speed, and since Dillard is a speed player, it’s going to be interesting to see how he performs this spring.

Summary

Most fans knew that 2008 was going to be a season of growing pains with the Hokies starting four brand new wide receivers.

However, Tech faired pretty well with such a young receiving corps that this groups ceiling might be even higher than the one set by the “Fantastic Four” before them. 


Lost from 2008

Zach Luckett: (DUI)

Ike Whitaker: (Dismissed)

Enrolling in Fall

Nubian Peak

DJ Coles

Logan Thomas