Spring Football, Vol. 16 (Depleted D-line edition) ...

How much has this year’s Virginia Tech defensive line lost from last year’s? Any way you slice it, a lot.

With the graduation of end Nekos Brown and tackles Demetrius Taylor (a top backup) and Cordarrow Thompson, plus the early NFL entry of star end Jason Worilds, here’s a quick look at what’s missing up front ...

1,062 pounds, 72 combined career starts, 361 tackles, 133 quarterback hurries, 68 tackles for loss, 34.5 sacks, 5 forced fumbles.

The four players trying to replace that quartet – ends Chris Drager (junior) and Steven Friday (senior) along with tackles Kwamaine Battle (junior) and Antoine Hopkins (sophomore) – have one career start between them, 67 combined tackles, 17 quarterback hurries, 12.5 tackles for loss, seven sacks and one forced fumble.

Only one veteran with significant experience returns. And he’s a good one. But senior tackle John Graves might really need to carry this young line for a few games ... on his enormous, well-muscled back.

Graves, who has started 22 games, has 8.5 tackles for loss, 31 hurries, three blocked kicks and two forced fumbles, is built like an ox. He’ll need to keep that big body in working order in 2010, avoiding an injury like the one he suffered last season.

His bum knee (which he hurt early on, then seriously tweaked when a Georgia Tech blocker took him out in Game 7) limited Graves for nearly the entire year. He did his darnedest to play through it, but was clearly hobbled. With a month to rest it before the Chick-fil-A Bowl, however, Graves showed what he can do when fully healthy.

He had two tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in the win over Tennessee. The Hokies are going to need a whole lot more of that this season.

Graves appears to be the only certainty in Tech’s defensive front at this point, so here’s the group’s position coach to talk about the unknowns and how his new guys are shaping up this spring ...

D-LINE COACH CHARLEY WILES

ON THE PECKING ORDER OF HIS LINE AT THIS POINT: “You really don’t have a true first or second or third group right now. We’re looking at a lot of kids. That’s what spring’s all about. I think there’s a lot of good competition going on. I think there’s a lot of talented kids – just experienced at this point. But the more they play, the better they’re going to get. Hopefully we can stay healthy and we’ll see how this thing shakes out, but I feel confident that we’ll have a good two-deep when it’s all said and done.”

ON WHERE HE HOPES FOR THE LINE TO BE BY THE END OF SPRING: “It’ll be competitive all the way through the spring and into summer, and then going into fall camp, about two weeks into camp, you’re going to be really honing in and defining that two-deep. Because you can’t get everybody reps. It’s hard to rep three and four at one position. So we’ll go through the end of spring. I don’t want anybody to feel comfortable with their playing time. I want those guys to be competitive and have good competition every day. I want the kids behind, that aren’t starting or aren’t in the two-deep, to feel like there’s an opportunity for them. And train that way and compete that way.”

ON WHETHER THERE HAVE BEEN ANY PLEASANT SUPRISES THIS SPRING ON THE LINE: “Well, I didn’t know a lot about Duan Perez-Means. I didn’t have a lot of information on him, due to the fact that he got hurt in the all-star game last summer, so he didn’t get to go through any camp, went home and came back in January. He’s probably a year away physically, as far as getting stronger, but the kid’s got a great motor. He’s very intelligent, seems to have a great football IQ, and I love his effort. He flies around out there. So not having any information on him, he’s a guy (that’s been a nice surprise). I think Kwamaine (Battle) is really stepping up right now. Antoine Hopkins, I think we’ve got some good competition (for the second starting D-tackle job). Dwight Tucker, a kid that’s been here, been in the program. That’s the thing: it takes time. It’s such a technique-driven position, what we do. It’s not necessarily real hard to learn your assignments, but to become a good defensive lineman takes snaps, it takes reps. So the more they’re in there the better.”

ON JAMES GAYLE HAVING A BIG FIRST SCRIMMAGE AT END: “I tell you what you’re going to get with James Gayle: You’re going to get 100 percent. You’re going to get full speed. He’s got some ability. He’s an explosive kid – and another guy that’s going hard, but he’s going the wrong way sometimes. It’s always five plays, he’s going to have one mental error in there. Hopefully we can eliminate that. But James Gayle, I think he’s a talent. I really do. He’s going to get better and better. He’s a redshirt freshman. J.R. Collins, a redshirt freshman. (Those are) two great-looking kids. So I’m encouraged and I’m excited they’re on our football team.”

ON HOW CONVERTED LINEBACKER JAKE JOHNSON HAS HANDLED THE MOVE TO END: “He really improved the second and third day (of spring ball) and then kind of had a day there where he didn’t get better. Now, he’s got a broken finger, which is obviously a little bit of a hindrance. It happened (last) Wednesday. So he was real sore, real tender. I’m anxious to watch Jake (on film from the scrimmage) and see what he did.”

ON THE OBSTACLES FOR JOHNSON IN MAKING THIS MOVE: “Just experience. He’s never played with his hand down before. He’s never got off on a man, in terms of playing against offensive linemen. At linebacker, it’s just totally different, where he’s getting over top of people, shocking people, patching across, where (at end) you’re lined up right on a guy. There’s a lot of timing involved and footwork involved to really have some power. So that’s the biggest thing with him, just experience and playing with his hand down. He just never has done that.”

ON HIS POTENTIAL AT THE POSITION: “I’ve been encouraged, because he’s athletic. He’s got speed. It’s been a good move for him. Wednesday’s practice and scrimmage, he showed up a little bit. So I think we’ve got some good competition going there.”

ON BATTLE AND HOPKINS BEING SOLIDLY THE NO. 2 AND NO. 3 OVERALL D-TACKLES: “I think you can count on those guys. Who’s going to start, that’s still all out there. Those two guys are going to be in there. You know John Graves is going to be in there. Now who’s going to be the other guy? Is it Joe Jones, Dwight Tucker, Courtney Prince? Who is it? That’s really what we’re trying to do right now, get that fourth and fifth defensive tackle. What combination just kind of depends on how much better they get.”

ON HOPKINS AND BATTLE LIKELY TO SPLIT REPS FAIRLY EVENLY: “If we played a game today, I’d say it would be 25-30 reps apiece.”

ON WHETHER, IF THEY PLAYED TODAY, JOE JONES WOULD BE THE FOURTH TACKLE: “We’d probably split some reps, but I tell you what: As long as John (Graves) is breathing, he’d probably be in there. Unless something was happening where we got into a 12, 13, 14-play drive. We may have to get him out of there.”

ON JONES’ POTENTIAL DOWN THE ROAD: “Joe’s a lot like (former starting VT tackle) Barry Booker. When did Barry emerge? As a fourth-year junior, fifth-year senior. Very similar characteristics. Not an overly physical kid, has the ability at times to jump around a block and make a play. Barry got it figured out through getting out there, getting out there, and it finally kind of soaked in, the light came on for him. Barry was adequate enough at the point of attack, but we’re going to do enough moving with our guys ... zone pressuring and moving, and that’s where Barry really emerged. I think Joe has those same characteristics. He’s got great quickness – as a defensive tackle, adequate as an end. That’s why we moved him. He’s getting bigger and getting stronger. In another year, he’s probably going to be a pretty good player. Obviously, we don’t have a year. Can he emerge and be a guy this year?”

ON ANOTHER CONTENDER FOR THAT FOURTH TACKLE SPOT: “Dwight Tucker’s got a little heavier shoulder, but he’s not as athletic as Joe. He’s more of a waist-bender as opposed to a knee-bender. Joe’s very flexible; Dwight’s a little stiff. But what does (Tucker) bring to the table? He can run, more a straight-line guy. He’s more physical at this point in time. A little bigger kid, a little stronger kid. Courtney, I think, has a little combination of those – Barry and Joe – and maybe a more physical kid. But he’s still about a year away off that surgery. He was emerging when he got hurt. I’m anxious to see did he get any better (in the Saturday scrimmage).”

ON THE KNOCK ON HOPKINS, A TOP TALENT, BEING HIS INCONSISTENT PLAY LAST SEASON: “He made one super play out there (in the scrimmage). It was a tackle for a loss. He’s explosive. The thing with Hop, and I’ve told Hop this, is he’s got this mechanism in his head where he thinks he’s going full. I just want so much more out of him because he can be an NFL kid. He’s 300 pounds, got great quickness, he’ll run 4.9. He’s got a lot going for himself (but) he can be lazy at times. I’m not going to accept that because I know he can be so much more. He can be an every-down guy. Hopefully he’ll continue to improve. I love Antoine. I think he’s got a chance to be a really, really good player.”

ON LEVEL OF CONFIDENCE THAT BY SEPTEMBER, HE’LL HAVE A D-LINE HE’S NOT STRESSED ABOUT: “There’s not any panic. The good thing is, we’re not playing anybody. I’m going to go home tonight knowing we don’t have to play anybody next Saturday. If we can stay healthy, I know we can get eight guys out of here. Now how much are we able to get better and play more guys? That’s going to be the question. I know we’ll have four (starters) and then we’ll have some back-ups.”

ON EXPECTING, RIGHT NOW, TO PLAY ONE STARTING TACKLE, JOHN GRAVES, A TON OF SNAPS: “We’ll play John a bunch and he’ll be in great shape. He likes that. Right now, that’s probably what we’d do (play Graves exclusively at one tackle and rotate Hopkins and Battle at the other). And we’d play those two ends (Steven Friday and Chris Drager) and we’d spell with a combination of guys.”

ON WHO HIS NEXT TWO ENDS WOULD BE IF THERE WAS A GAME TOMORROW: “I’d like to have this interview after watching the (scrimmage) film. But I think James Gayle is going to get some reps, because you know he’s going to turn a play for you. Then after that, I think it’s up in the air. I really do. Just with the eyeballs. Isaiah (Hamlette) is out there competing. J.R. is competing. Jake is competing. Hey, Tyrel Wilson is another kid that’s getting a little work that seems, quietly, to be getting better. He’s an undersized guy a little bit. He’s a guy that’s popped on my radar. He’s been in my dog house a little bit, but he’s getting work and he’s starting to show up a little bit. He may be a guy you’ve got to take notice of as well. A lot of young guys, though.”

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