COACH FUENTE: Huge challenge this week. We’re happy to be playing at home in Lane Stadium. Miami coming to town. Top five- or 10-ranked defense in America with talented athletes on the offensive side of the ball. Had a good week of preparation thus far. We’ll need to continue that to have a chance.
Q. You mentioned Miami defensively. They’re not forcing as many turnovers this year, but their other stats are better. What has been the key? Is it Willis up front?
COACH FUENTE: Well, I think the thing for me, just watching them, there is no weakness. They have three linebackers that are juniors that have essentially been three-year starters. They’ve got three seniors in the secondary. They’ve got waves of defensive linemen that they can play that are big and strong and athletic.
They understand the scheme. They’ve been in it for several years now and repped it over and over again. And that, combined with their talent, makes them pretty dangerous.
I know the turnover chain was a big deal last year. And they’re still creating turnovers, maybe not at the record rate they were last year, but they’re still playing top-tier, nationally, defense.
Q. Any update on Deshawn McClease’s potential availability for Saturday?
COACH FUENTE: Sure. I would say he’s day to day. He was out there yesterday at practice. We don’t practice until a little bit later this fall because of class schedules. He’s scheduled to go out there today, and we’ll kind of see how he does.
Q. When you have a down year or a year that doesn’t necessarily meet your expectations, what do you as a coach look at as signs of, like, the long-term health of the program, and if it’s going to be a blip on the radar, not something that’s going to be a long-term fix?
COACH FUENTE: Well, I think you just look at the number of guys that are playing for the first time for Virginia Tech, playing college football for the first time and how they’re showing up to try and improve on a daily basis. The overall attitude and work ethic of your football team, I think, all point to signs of good things to come.
The key is to not point towards that right now. Our seniors deserve our best right now. And Virginia Tech’s tradition deserves our best right now. So there’s tons of things, in my estimation, that we can point to that are good signs for down the road. But I think we’re still focused on the here and now for our squad.
Q. On the defense, anybody you’ve ruled out or in for Saturday with injuries — Rayshard, Jarrod, Dylan — anybody kind of in or out for sure?
COACH FUENTE: Yeah, those guys are all in. We still have a couple of questionable guys. Obviously Housh and Burke are out. I’m looking at it right now. I hope to get Belmar back and we should be ready to rock.
Q. I know there’s been adversity obviously this season but quarterback Ryan Willis, just what you’ve taken away from him and seen from him on and off the field and obviously in the film room up to this point?
COACH FUENTE: I’ve been really pleased with his competitiveness and his toughness. He’s really embraced this opportunity and trying to make the most of it. He’s made several plays for us through his time out there on the field. He’s working hard to prepare and continue to improve. He’s a junior that has kind of had this opportunity thrust upon him, and he’s doing everything he can to make the most of it.
Q. As far as being inside of the Coastal Division, you’ve gotten to spend some time inside of the ACC. And on the Coastal side of things it mixes up every single year. Just what can you say about being on the Coastal side of the ACC and the level of competition, and the fact that it’s anybody’s side of the competition each year?
COACH FUENTE: I think there’s just some parity on this side. There’s been, just in my short time, there’s just been some fluctuation, some people trying to get their programs to a little more steady output-type level.
But the biggest thing, there’s been a commitment in our division by administrators and universities to improve football and really try and put a good product out there. And obviously some years are better than others, but I think it’s pretty evident in the parity that all those schools are making a commitment to try to be as good as they can.
Q. Are there any ongoing discussions about trying to get a 12th game scheduled in a couple of weeks, or are you guys resigned to just having 11 for this season?
COACH FUENTE: Yeah, it hasn’t been addressed. We are still in those discussions. Obviously we know we’re coming up against the end of the season here. Whit and his staff are working every single day on trying to get a solution. So we’re still open to it.
I would welcome the opportunity if the opportunity presents itself. As you can imagine there’s a lot of moving parts to that, and Whit and his staff are still combing through all that.
Q. How much are you guys emphasizing or talking about trying to keep that bowl streak going here over these last couple of games?
COACH FUENTE: Well, our kids certainly know that Virginia Tech’s been to a bowl game 25 straight years and we’d like to go to another one. I mean, that’s a known fact. And we have mentioned it. But our focus is trying to be as good as we can and to improve.
So it’s something that we’re all acknowledging and know and we want to be on the right side of the ledger in terms of Virginia Tech history. But we also know the best way to remedy that is to continue to improve and give ourselves a chance on Saturdays.
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Chris Graham
