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Hokies Lose Vandyke And Gregory For The Season, Shuman For 4-6 Weeks | Gobbler Country
The worst news possible came down just minutes ago, as Virginia Tech has announced they will be without the services of projected starting WHIP linebacker Ronny Vandyke and last year's third-leading returning rusher, Tony Gregory, who tore his ACL for the FOURTH time. The Hokies' trainer Mike Goforth also announced that Tech would be without Mark Shuman, who was listed as the No. 1 right tackle on the depth chart at the time of his injury, for 4-6 weeks with a torn lateral meniscus.
Good lord. At this point, there's no reason to expect VT to be anything other than a train wreck on August 31. To me, the biggest disappointment is that now I fear we won't have any kind of accurate gauge on where the team is leading up to the Texas A&M game. The only real value this game will serve Bama is in whatever leftover cache the name "Virginia Tech" carries on our schedule, because we might as well be playing a Sunbelt team.
Arie Kouandjio one of Alabama's 'best offensive linemen now,' says Nick Saban | AL.com
"We knew it would take him a long time to come back. He actually came back quicker than we thought. We thought that it might affect his mobility. At first, it did and now it hasn't. I just can't tell you how hard the guy worked and how committed he was to being able to play."
I touched on this when covering Saban's press conference, but I'm really encouraged by these comments. We won't know if Arie has stuck at right tackle until we get the official game week depth chart, but it's looking more and more like you can't rush the edge against Bama without hitting a Kouandjio.
Eddie George: Alabama running back T.J. Yeldon has 'all the ability' | AL.com
"It was wild to see him have so much success early but really gain his confidence throughout the year," George said in an interview with AL.com on Tuesday. "Now he comes in this season knowing that he's going to be the guy. The sky's the limit."
This run has been insane. Mark Ingram, Trent Richardson, Eddie Lacy, T.J. Yeldon... It's like Saban is using create-a-players to fill out his roster.
The SEC's best 25 players: No. 8 | ESPN.com
No. 8: C.J. Mosley, LB, Alabama, Sr.
Making the case for Mosley: If Mosley wanted to, he could have left Alabama early and thrown himself into this year's NFL draft without anyone blinking. But Mosely decided to come back and finish school, which means he'll have another year of terrorizing opposing offensive players. Mosley was considered one of the nation's best linebackers last year, even though he had to share time at his position. With Nico Johnson gone, Mosley will see all the time he wants and needs this fall.
Tennessee Unveils New "Smokey Gray" Uniforms | UT Sports
/point and laugh
PRACTICE REPORT:
Not much to report. Amari Cooper (foot) is still in a black jersey, and spent most of his time on a stationary bike. Chris Black and Christion Jones are in a tight battle for the slot receiver position. Deion Belue is still nursing his hamstring injury along. Brandon Greene (tight end), Arie Kouandjio (right tackle) and Austin Shepherd (left guard) all to continued to work at their new positions.
Video Dump is a little light today:
Listen to bammer ramble on about Alabama football, hating Paul Finbaum and the RBR Sweetheart. here. (be gentle, it was his first ever podcast.)
Defensive Line:
If you haven't seen it, Notre Dame is still turned around from the National Championship Game: