Rivalry Week, Volume 4 (Reheat and Eat edition) ...

I didn’t want to leave you Hokies hanging today, but I don’t have much time to talk. I have about nine hours of driving in front of me from Tennessee to Charlottesville.

So, in the spirit of the day after Sacrificing Your Mascot Day, I’m going to give you guys and gals some leftovers from the trusty tape recorder.

I wish I had time for more, but tune in tomorrow morning before the game. I’ll post extended interviews and some fun facts from a story I just finished on the importance of Cornell Brown signing with Tech in 1993.

A little preview: Did you know Frank Beamer was 1-5 against Virginia before signing Brown? Or that he’s 12-4 against the Hoos since then?

Did you know Virginia Tech was 24-40-2 in Beamer’s first six seasons before signing Brown (who played as a true freshman and became a two-time All-American) and that Virginia was 48-22-1 in those same six seasons (including 10 wins in 1989 and a No. 1 ranking in 1990)?

And did you know that since Brown’s freshman season, the Hokies are 161-52 with 10 seasons of 10-plus wins, a national title game appearance and six BCS bowls ... while the Cavaliers are 120-87 with zero 10-win seasons and zero BCS bowls in the same span?

Before Brown, Beamer had signed only one player ranked top-five in the state. Since then ... well ... things have changed. Check back tomorrow for more.

Now for the leftovers from this week’s interviews ...

DE NEKOS BROWN

ON BEING FROM MARYLAND BUT STILL GETTING INTO THE RIVALRY AND WHAT IT MEANS TO HIM: “Oh, it’s big. They haven’t beat us in a long time, but we don’t take them lightly. We respect them like every other team. They recruited me heavily before I came here. They were the only offer I had before Tech offered me. But yeah, it’s a big rivalry and we take pride in it.”

ON WHETHER HE EMPATHIZES WITH VIRGINIA’S PLAYERS, WHO HAVE SUFFERED THROUGH A LOT OF LOSING: “Yeah, it’s real tough. I couldn’t imagine it, really. That played a part in my decision to come here. They had a lot of stuff going on when I was getting recruited by them. For them to be going through this right now, at the end of the season, through the whole season really, it’s tough. I’ve got sympathy for them when it comes to that – emotionally – but when it comes to the field, it doesn’t matter.”

ON THE THOUGHT OF HAVING NEVER WON AGAINST HIS RIVAL: “I really couldn’t imagine it. I don’t know how they feel over there. I know it’s hard going through all that. But I really couldn’t imagine it.”

ON HOW TECH PULLED HIM FROM HIS INTEREST IN VIRGINIA: “Tech swayed me away from them when I actually came to Blacksburg and spent some time here. The environment in Blacksburg is like a family environment. I never met any nice people like this until I came here. The whole town, I couldn’t find a mean person. Everyone was kind, really. It was just a lot different environment than Charlottesville. The coaching staff was well-knit. They’d been together for at least nine years. Everything just seemed right here. And I know I can go to the NFL from here, too. But yeah, that (visit) really changed my decision.”

ON HOW, THEN, HE WOULD DESCRIBE THE ATMOSPHERE IN CHARLOTTESVILLE: “I don’t know. I didn’t really spend that much time in Charlottesville. I went to U.Va. a few times, but I didn’t really notice the difference in people until I came here. It was real obvious when you come to Blacksburg. No matter where you come from, you’re going to notice that the people here are nice.”

ON NOT GETTING AS WARM A WELCOME AT UVA: “No, not really. It’s really different in Blacksburg. It’s obvious.”

ON WHETHER THAT MADE IT EASIER FOR A GUY FROM OUT OF STATE TO GET INTO THE RIVALRY: “I really got into it when I wanted to make my decision – this was before I got an offer from Tech. I was about to commit to U.Va. but they wouldn’t let me because I didn’t have my ACT score yet. When I got it, they weren’t answering the phone for a couple weeks. Then I got an offer from Tech. Then (the Cavs) called me back in case I wanted to change my mind. They had a lot going on over there. The coach that recruited me, Coach London, he left. And they were losing a lot of players that I looked up to, like Ahmad Brooks and Kai Parham. They had players I knew I could learn from, and all that was getting really messed up. Some of them left school and the coaches left. And when I came to Blacksburg, there was nothing else to think about.”

ON UVA NOT ANSWERING THE PHONES: “I don’t know what exactly was going on. I just know I was calling and nobody was calling me back. I was e-mailing and everything. That went on for a couple weeks. I think that was when Coach Prince was going to Kansas State. He was my recruiter that took over when Coach London left. When he left, too, it was just like I was lost, really.”

ON BEING TRULY READY TO COMMIT TO THE CAVS: “Yes, sir, I was. That was very early in my recruitment. They showed so much interest in me and other schools really didn’t. I felt that way about Virginia Tech (that the Hokies weren’t interested) until I talked to Coach (Tony) Ball (former VT receivers coach). He sat down and showed me how I fit in the defense and why they recruited me. It really didn’t have anything to do with U.Va. I was glad I got the offer from Tech. It made me look at myself as a better player, because I really didn’t have that type of confidence until coaches actually told me how they felt about how I played.”

ON WHETHER THERE WERE EVER TIMES IN HIS TECH CAREER – MOST OF WHICH HE SPENT AS A BACK-UP BEFORE THIS YEAR – THAT HE WONDERED WHAT A CAVALIER CAREER WOULD’VE LOOKED LIKE: “No, not really. You can’t look at it like that. I wasn’t in the best shape I could’ve been the whole time I’ve been here. But I knew we were a great team and I was sitting behind great players. We were winners. We won the ACC twice. We were always right there on the cusp of being champions the whole time I’ve been here. At U.Va., they haven’t had the same success. So I couldn’t look at it like, ‘If I did this ...’ Everything happens for a reason. God doesn’t make mistakes.”

ON THE INTENSITY OF FELLOW D-END JASON WORILDS: “Jason eats, breathes and sleeps football. I haven’t seen too many players who spend all their time on football like he does. You go to his house and he’s got DVDs and everything laying around – it’s all football. He’s got a medicine ball and an aerobic ball and a roller and he’s constantly working out for football. You’re not going to find too many football players like that, who are going to do everything they need to do to get where they want to be. He’s constantly into that: mentally, physically, everything.”

ON WHAT KIND OF ROLLER WORILDS HAS: “You know the Ab Roller? (laughter erupts) Me, Jason and a few other players on the team, we stay in the weight room. And when lifting time is over, we’re still in there working out. And when you go home and put that extra time in, that separates you from other players. Time is the most precious thing you can spend on your body. It takes effect on the field.”

ON WHETHER WORILDS HAS A THIGHMASTER AND ‘BUNS OF STEEL’ VIDEOS: “Jason, he’s into it. He’s an animal, for real. He’s different from a lot of players. You’ve got to be around him to know what type of player he is.”

ON WHETHER BROWN CAN OPERATE THE AB ROLLER: “Yeah, I can do it.”

ON HOW HIS OWN SEASON HAS GONE AND ON HIS NEXT-LEVEL POTENTIAL AS AN OUTSIDE LINEBACKER: “I think I had an alright season. I wish I had more sacks and tackles for loss, but I have a lot of overall tackles, so that shows I get to the ball a lot. At the next level, I know I can play outside linebacker. I really can’t wait to stand up and show what I can do. I think I’m going to excel and show that I’m very athletic standing up. When I do drills and everything – if I get a combine invite, God willing – I know I’m going to show out. I’m just waiting for my opportunity.”

ON UVA RECRUITING HIM TO PLAY LINEBACKER: “That was a big recruiting tool. They had Ahmad Brooks, who was a great player, and I knew I could learn from him. I expected to come in and play right away – just like I wanted to do here at Tech. The defenses are totally different. I think our defense is a lot more disciplined, a lot more strict. That’s probably why we have one of the top defenses in the nation every year.”

ON THIS DEFENSE NOT BEING RANKED HIGHLY HALFWAY THROUGH THE SEASON BUT CLIMBING TO NO. 13 THIS WEEK: “It wasn’t very remarkable to me because I knew we were always capable. It was just a matter of getting things done and not giving up a big play every game. I knew we had that ability to be top 10. It wasn’t a surprise to me. I knew we were getting to where we needed to be.”

ON TCU AND CLEMSON BOTH HAVING BIG DAYS SACKING CAVS QB JAMEEL SEWELL AND WHETHER HE’S LICKING HIS CHOPS: “Not really. I look at it as a big opportunity. They’re probably a 60 percent passing team and that gives you a better opportunity to get sacks. ... But we’re focused on stopping the run first. I don’t lick my chops on sacks until we get a team down and then I can actually focus on rushing the passer. Before that, it’s all discipline.”

LB CODY GRIMM

  ON NOT BEING OFFERED A SCHOLARSHIP BY VIRGINIA AND WALKING ON AT TECH AND HAVING SUCH A BIG CAREER: “Yeah, it feels good to have the kind of success I have. But I'm not bitter against anyone not offering me. I probably wouldn't offer myself, either.”

  ON TECH D-COORDINATOR BUD FOSTER SAYING HE’S THE LEAGUE’S DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: “That means a lot. He's a great coach, and I've got to thank him for most of the success I'm having. He puts me in good situations. A lot of the success is our defense is gap-sound and when everyone's doing their job a bunch of plays should come to me. I'm just glad we're playing good as a defense right now. I'm not worried about my individual accolades or whatever happens after the season. But it feels good for Coach Foster to say that.”

  ON AN OLD PICTURE OF HIM BEING SWALLOWED UP BY HIS PADS IN HIGH SCHOOL: “I mean I weighed about 185, right around there, same as when I got here. I don't know what the deal was ... they gave us like lineman pads. You can ask all of my friends, our shoulder pads were just gi-normous for some reason. Like to protect all the way down to our belly button or something ... maximum safety.”

  ON WANTING TO FINISH HIS CAREER UNDEFEATED AGAINST VIRGINIA: “It’s huge. The last game of the season, I would probably say that's the biggest motivation. We've got to come out and we've got to win. We've been playing good football. We’ve just got to keep doing what we're doing. But to never lose in Charlottesville would be a great feeling. I know some people on their team and I've got some family coming, a bunch of kids from my high school who went there. Yeah, it's going to be a good atmosphere, and I'm excited.”

  ON VIRGINIA HAVING NOTHING TO LOSE AND SHOWING IN THE PAST THEY HAVE SOME TRICKS UP THEIR SLEEVE: “It makes them a little more dangerous because we don't know what to expect. As far as that, that's going to happen for 20 or 30 minutes to open the game and they'll get back to what they're used to running, back to the basics. We've just gotta come out and be ready to adapt because they have the capability of changing to a lot of different things. They've got good athletes, a big O-line, and good coaches, and whenever you have a team like that, one that doesn't have as much to play for, it can be scary.”

  ON ALWAYS HAVEING A BIG TECH CROWD IN VIRGINIA’S STADIUM: “That feels good. Whenever you're at the opposing team's stadium and you hear a 'Let's go, Hokies' chant get started, it feels good and you want to put on a good show for your fans that are willing to spend the money and travel and support your guys. Anytime, you can do that it feels good.”

  ON SCOTT STADIUM BEING HIS SECOND-FAVORITE PLACE TO PLAY: “Because I've had some success there. It's a good feeling going in there and getting a win against your rival team. I kind of like playing at away stadiums. As a defense, it's a lot easier to communicate and also the boos kind of get me going a little bit.”

  ON THE OLD EXPRESSION ‘THIS IS FOR BRAGGING RIGHTS’ AND WHETHER HE EVER GETS TO USE HIS BRAGGING RIGHTS: “I mean if I were to brag, I think that would be a little cocky since I'm on the team. I leave that to the fans. They can brag and stuff. I don't do much talking on the field or off. I'm not that big so ... I talk to Jared Green a good bit; he went to my high school and his father, Darrell, played football with my dad (Redskins). And Keith Payne, he's no longer there but he went to my high school as well. They can't really say much because of the history. But knowing both of them, if they were to win, I wouldn't hear the end of it.”

  ON VIRGINIA’S OFFENSIVE STRUGGLES: “What seems to happen is they've got to pass more than they really want to because they've been getting down in games. That's the main thing. The longer they hang in games the more effective they are is because they can run the ball more. They've got a big, powerful O-line. I would say their downfall so far is they got behind early and passed more than they wanted to.”

  ON WHAT HAPPENED TO THE GOOD, OLD DAYS OF TRASH-TALKING BEFORE A RIVALRY GAME: “I don't know where it went. Regardless, the way I look at it, I don't want to make the other player angry; He's probably stronger than me, can throw me around, so I just like to tell them they're doing a good job and get back to the huddle.”

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