Surely every preseason article mentioning Hokies that you read will mention the holes that Virginia Tech needs to fill for the 2008 season.  Clearly there are questions at tailback, wide receiver, and a couple spots on defense that need a solid player to step up.  However, since all of the other articles speak of holes, I’m taking the opposite stance.

Questions that don’t need answered:

Quarterback
Everyone thinks there is a question to be answered here.  If you spend you day browsing college football blogs, as I do, you’ll find an array of thoughts claiming we’ll only use Glennon this year and redshirt Tyrod Taylor to save his eligibility for an extra year, or that Tyrod Taylor has been pronounced the starter.  None of these rumors is true as of yet.

Beamer said he would prefer to just use one quarterback, but that he is keeping an open mind heading into fall practice.  Clearly the two QB shuffling system that we used the last several games of the regular season proved functional and even exceptional at times (see Tyrod Taylor, FSU, 2007 - 3rd and 31).  But Beamer is approaching this the right way, so the fans need to sit down and let him choose what is best for the team.

I expect we’ll see both Glennon and Tyrod Taylor getting playing time at the beginning of the season.  Perhaps they’ll do the two play dance like they did last season; perhaps they’ll alternate series; or perhaps the coaches will even wait to see who is on their game on a particular day.  Whatever the decision, I expect we’ll only have one primary quarterback by the end of the season.  You already know my vote, but I’ll be happy as long as the team is functioning—tandem or not.

There is no question at quarterback.  We have two experienced quarterbacks better than most in the ACC; we are the envy of quite a few teams I’d imagine.

Offensive Line
There is always shuffling among positions in the trenches, but this year we have something to smile about.  For the first time in a long time, we might actually have a pretty decent Oline.  With four starters returning from a line that was firing on all cylinders at the end of last season, we should do right well.

Only time will tell if we can get a solid two deep on the line.  It would be nice to have several capable backups to give our guys breathers/replace an injured fellow.

Defensive Line
Last year Dline wasn’t as solid as years past, but with Hall and Adibi filling the gaps there really wasn’t a problem.  I expect the defensive line to improve significantly this year over a line that was still better than average in 2007.  Bud Foster…nuf said.

Shutdown Corner
Macho looked like a beast in the spring game, so I can’t wait to see him in the practices, scrimmages, and games coming up.  He was great in 2007 and the only thing that will change is that he’ll be better.  By passing up the draft, I know he’s coming to play.  This is his year to terrorize the star offensive players in the ACC, make a name for himself, and move himself into the first round on the draft board.

That’s certainly not everything, but its most of the key spots.  There is talent at every position, but there might not be much experience yet.  As with every team, every year we need some guys to step in and fill some holes.  How well and quickly they do will determine whether we go 8-4 or 11-1 (I’m not telling which is the loss I expect).

Oh yeah, and something about Kam Chancellor knocking a guy cold on the field in 2008.