The Roanoke Times from Roanoke, Virginia • 27

The Roanoke Times riday August 25 2000 C5 ON THE AIR JACKBOGACZYK Herbstreit back in Blacksburg By JACKBOGACZYK THE ROANOKE TIMES If Blacksburg needs to add to its residential taxpayer rolls per haps it should hit up Kirk Herbstreit Herbstreit returns to the hopelessly orange and marooned town for the fifth time in a little more than 11 months this week end when be gins its season Sunday (7 pm ESPN2) prior to the Georgia Tech Virginia Tech game in the Black Coaches Association Bowl It will be the third time in the last four home games that former studio show it now mostly airs from emotion tinged college campuses will stop at Lane Stadium Herbstreit the former Ohio State quarterback who works GameDay with Chris owler and Lee Corso also called the Clemson Tech game last Septem ber and about 10 days ago was in Blacksburg to do a feature piece on Hokies quarterback Michael Vick that will be part of Sunday show He also will return with Corso and Mike Tirico in mid October for the ESPN call of West Virginia's Thursday night visit to Tech travel a lot and these places we go I kind of see each as having kind of its own Herb streit said this week from Tusca loosa Ala where he was on as signment for GameDay burg is a really nice place I kind of like these small college towns And particularly in the fall with the mountains it really is a beautiful So what is the identity? talking about an identity from a college football standpoint since we spend so much time at the Herbstreit said is a place that has an absolute love affair with its foot ball program Three years ago I speak of that I hadn't been there a 100 percent crazy loud stadium environment It's scary to think that and I know how large Lane Stadium is exactly but you can go to places with 100000 people there and stadium is just as loud or louder especially for night games they can continue the suc cess they could have a reputation like LSU has gotten at night down in Baton Rouge You know uh oh you want to play LSU at night like The reference point is that Herbstreit Corso and owler were at Tech for lit up victories over Syracuse and Miami last season The Yellow Jackets will be entering a stadium where capacity has been increased to 56288 for the 2000 season Herbstreit 31 is like most of the nation in that he know all that much about the Hokies until their climb into the elite on the feet and arm of Vick and the shoulders of a tough vet eran defense last season Tech before last year always reminded me of an overachieving team one that played hard a team with some good football players and a few good athletes sprinkled Hebr streit said did a lot with special teams and I thought they won on determination year that changed I found they had better talent than a lot of people and they really had a unique chemistry and then when you combined that with the Su perman talents of Vick that made them special" Herbstreit said the national emergence of programs like Tech and Kansas State into what had pretty much been an enclosed shop of the elite is due to increased television opportunities and the Division I A scholarship limit of 85 He related those changes in the game to his own profile growing up in suburban Dayton Ohio a star quarterback who is the son of a former Buckeyes player and assistant coach pretty much a brainwashed OSU he said growing up now see so much Herbstreit said 13 or 14 and growing up out West seen the teams in the Midwest If from the Midwest seen the teams in lorida When I was growing up pretty much what we saw was lo cal the Big Ten recruiting numbers have dwindled down so far It used to be a school could and would sign recruits to make sure some school get them Now those athletes that used to be in a few programs are sprinkled out among a lot more On season preview show this week picks for the national championship game in the Orange Bowl this sea son were Miami and Nebraska How does Herbstreit see the Hokies? think a lot of people are ex pecting the offense to struggle because of the high he said think Michael Vick is going to have any trouble with expectations He pretty much showed us last year how he can handle the pressure me the question is what kind of leadership going to have to replace people like Corey Moore Jamel Smith Michael Hawkes and Ike Charlton from last year They might physically be better on defense this season but going to lead? They have some tough road games too Someone has to step up and AROUND THE DIAL: The weekly Call radio hour with Virginia coach George Welsh is moving 24 hours later to Mondays at 7:05 pm on most UVa network stations including WIR (960 AM) ox has spe cial plans for its Saturday baseball telecast Dodgers Cubs at Wrigley ield (1 pm WXR) The game will be televised in a retro style beginning with baseball as it first appeared on the tube in 1 939 with the video and audio presentation enhanced through the innings to reflect a historical perspective If Tiger Woods contends to the finish Sunday in the World Golf Championship stop in Akron Ohio he will face a long trip to California for prime time live at ex hibition match against Sergio Garcia Voting begins today on ESPNcom for fans to pick the site for on Oct 7 The choices lorida State Miami Tennessee Georgia Michigan Purdue Oklahoma Texas Ohio State Wisconsin LSU lorida and Oregon State Washington CBS announced Thursday that the SEC football championship game will move to the network from ABC starting with next season Georgia Renaissance man The Yellow Jackets head coach admits his program is a But he does command respect COX NEWS SERVICE ATLANTA When a bank of lights failed at a Georgia Tech football practice in October 1995 new head coach George impatiently had a trainer call for an electrician As Donnie Davis took a snap from Mike Cheever an explosion rocked the night and the Yellow Jackets team watched the electri cian tumble almost in slow mo tion down an embankment from the fuse box The Rose Bowl ield lights dimmed and went out again When the electrician landed smoke was coming from under his cap and he clutched a screw driver bent at a right angle As the Tech trainers rushed to the elec trician and he struggled to rise O'Leary took one look saw he was alive and shouted OK Run the damn No one is more single minded than If it about football not interested Tech has gone to three bowls in a row a feat it had not managed since 1970 72 The past three seasons of 7 5 10 2 and 8 4 are only one game short of the total won by Bobby Ross 1989 91 which included a share of a na tional championship 36 25 mark ranks him fourth in Tech history in wins behind John Heisman Bill Alexander and Bob by Dodd In other words the Yellow Jackets are back The renaissance of Georgia Tech football is hap pening right now Pressed to talk about his suc cess gives the basics I first started here the biggest thing lacking was he says wanted the trust of the players back I was going to run a program where everybody is treated the same way hard but fair I tell them I try to treat them fit that mold The recruiters today are a whole lot more slicked down that that George was more down to Maloney searches for a word to describe the young he finally says was a low key kind of guy He was like your neighbor next door He al ways seemed a lot older than he was George was a good listener a good learner He adapted He was always watching and listen ing Maloney said inter acted with the players well but still maintained discipline times new coaches are afraid to be demanding with the Maloney says never was" "I tell the players the biggest thing they have to learn are prior says 1 is aca rm UI isl3 tough hut fair ASSOCIATED PRESS Georgia Tech head coach George will lead the Yellow Jackets into Blacksburg on Sunday night to face Virginia Tech just like I treat my sons I also tell them to go find my sons and see how they were tells the story not for the first time about his daughter in kindergarten some 20 years ago drawing a detailed picture of the family down to the pet dalmatian No father was in the picture was never at he says kindergarten teacher was rank Maloney the head coach at Syracuse in 1978 hired as an assistant out of Liv erpool High School real ly know Maloney says I kept reading about him in the paper The only regret I have about it now is that I hire him five years earlier was an exceptional Maloney says demies No 2 is football The so cial life is tough because they have only so much manageable time I tell them you can do two things well not think George has changed a bit" says Dick MacPherson who took over thd' Syracuse program from Maloney always been a very demand ing exact guy He likes to play' golf He loves his kids his wife got his whole life right there in front of him All George ever wanted to do was work recruit and have a good backed dowfi from the top players in recruiting He frightened away if SU br'r lorida is recruiting the same mJ isolated players stuck to our guns of bringing in players with said Tve told our assistants not to Be afraid to walk away from a good player if the not 'J has managed to stay flexible through more cjh 30 years in the game He preach es accountability above all of our coaches understand account he says important we aU walk and talk the same 11 111 Lg tell all our players exactly what I think" he said have rules about drinking about drugs inc inobi uiipuiuiiii iiiiiig io jiO i Ue to me I Ue to you and you don't lie to me When they come to me about not being treated fairly I teU not going to like my answer As long as head coach not a players like I those of the past says aw a whole lot more going on in society he says guys seem to thmk they ve jic got a right to a scholarship a right to play There are no rights just opportunities You eam ev erything you get You eam re spect playing time What hap pens in the classroom is their Is ll'r vjmB 'til JI I 'I 1 4' ROM Cl Kadela vision III interest as well as being invited to walk on at Michigan and Ohio State At the advice of his father Dave Sr a former offensive guard at Michigan Kadela took off for ork Union Military Academy George and Ricky Dudley of Ohio State you always read stuff back home about them going to ork Kadela said I went there to gain size get stronger and get some The UMA experience under coach John Shuman worked wonders Gorging on weights and countless peanut butter and honey sand wiches Kadela quickly ballooned to 250 pounds Impressed by athleticism and po tential to pack on more pounds Tech decided to take a shot and offer him a scholarship Be sides the Hokies knew their strength and conditioning guru Mike Gentry would simply love this project think impressive that Dave has been able to put on the weight put on" Hokies offensive line coach Bryan Stinespring said could see when he was at ork Union that he had the frame that was going to be able to carry it With some guys 30 40 pounds is a stretch but it with The Hokies immediately pinpointed Kade la for their offensive line a move that was cheered by his dad an old trench fighter him self guess we viewed it as said Dave Sr who played behind star guard Mike Kenn GENE DALTON THE ROANOKE TIMES 'h: Il Dave Kadela ballooned to 250 pounds during his year at ork Union Military Academy at Michigan from 1975 78 After getting some time as a true fresh man in 1997 Kadela became the starting right tackle before the second game of the season The big guy has been there ever since He takes a streak of 23 consccu J1' tive starts into season opener against Georgia Tech is such a hard worker" Stinespring i said not a stand around guy al ways doing something to get better So you really knew he would get to this work is starting to be noticed too He made second team All Big East last season and was selected a second team pre i season All American by The Sporting this summer At right tackle Kadela has the important task of being the guy who guards the back door lane to the Heisman candidate4 quarterback Michael Vick Obviously nobody GS wants to be the one who missed the block that A allowed a defender to get a wide open back use! door shot on Tech's franchise QB an added pressure" Kadela said certainly want that to happen tjd why got to be at my best every SatHp urday to prevent While Kadela figures to be a lock to draw i NL interest he quickly downplayed the sub I ject Right now he just wants to savor his fiL nal season at Tech JOf Tech has been so good for his father said up he bled 1 maize and blue colors I used tb)GI fir played in a couple Rose Bowls but now i my office is full of Hokie stuff Virginia i not Michigan is my team Certainly the place has helped satisfy 5 Dave gargantuan appetite i I Randy King can be reached at 981 3126 or randykroanokecom McCombs options VMT "UH new pass happy attack to Gibson By MARK BERMAN THE ROANOKE TIMES Cal McCombs has handed the ball to Joey Gibson VMI fans can only hope Gibson does a good job throwing it McCombs said Thursday that Gibson a sophomore who began preseason prac tice as the first string quarterback has won his battle with Aaron Mitchell for the starting job Mitchell a junior who started four games in 1998 missed some practices with a sore throwing shoulder and fell behind in the race got more repetitions and right now a little bit ahead of what Aaron is so going with McCombs said done a lot of good things His strength is being able to throw the ball but this summer he worked real hard His vertical jump improved he got stronger in better shape COLLEGE than ever been in ootball Xc 100ks nore taaioi a young quarterback got a strong arm The more he plays in this offense and reads coverages the better going to McCombs has scrapped his option offense for a pass happy run and shoot attack sore shoulder was a casualty of the change you run the option you worry about these guys getting sore shoulders from throwing but when throwing and trying to improve your throwing game we throw quite a McCombs said fine now he rested it" Gibson supplanted the now graduated Robbie Chenault as the starting quarter back after the first three games of last season He started four games before suf fering a separated shoulder In nine games last year Gibson completed just 20 of 48 passes for 268 yards and three touch downs with one interception Gibson said he will be a more accurate 4 passer this season is an offense very similar to what I ran in high school so I have a good feel for going Gibson saidThursday was a big adjustment last year the way we were taking a lot of our drops were best offensive lineman be protecting Gibson in the season opener McCombs said tackle Greg edor will miss the Sept 2 game with Duquesne with a sprained knee edor who suffered the iqjury in a scrimmage last weekend has been named to the preseason Division 1 AA All America second team by The Sporting News I Around the nation Michigan: Drew Henson who paid his dues as an understudy for two years will have to' 7 wait a few more weeks before be'1'! I starting quarterback "ID Henson a junior underwent surgery I Thursday for a fractured right foot and willO miss at least the Sept 2 game against1'' I Bowling Green coach Lloyd Carr said 7 Doctors told the coaching staff thai players are typically out 3 6 weeks for a' fracture of this type Henson broke the foot Wednesday while he was trying to avoid a rushing defensive back during practice John Navarre a 6 6 228 pound more will become the starter Carr said' ASSOCIATED PRESS nr.