To be honest, maybe our expectations for this game were too much. Sixty scholarship players, mostly second and third stringers with limited playing experience, was a bit too much of a steep hill to climb. Couple that with a bad offensive coordinator even when the offense is at full strength, and it seems like the team was trying to climb the summit of Mt. Everest which can be suffocating. I do think that Tahj Bullock can be a good QB if the QB coach and OC spend the time to develop him. I am not saying that he is ready next year, but if the options are limited and the transfer portal do not yield the quality and experience QB that can make a difference next year, Bullock at least has some tools that good offensive coaching staff could build on.

Let's put things in perspective, the young kids who played today need to develop and of course we need help from the transfer portal if we want to be competitive next year, but do not put down the young kids who had to play today due to the many opt outs and criticize their performances. You had 18-19 year old competing against Maryland's experience 20-23 year-olds players. Some of these kids will end up being major contributors and good football players for Tech as they develop strength and experience. All is not lost, a new coaching staff means a new beginning. I am of a firm belief that defensive minded coaches put a much tougher team (both physical and mental) on the field than these so called high octane offensive minded coaches. Look at OU under Lincoln Riley. These offensive guys could put up some points, but their defenses consistently got crushed. Riley's team got completely embarrassed in the big games because they were just too soft defensively and offensively when physical defenses got after their butts. However, Bob Stoops' OU teams generally played some serious defense and were much tougher (mental and physical). Look at Kentucky under the other Stoop. These guys are very physical and it's because of the defensive minded HC. The same can be said about us in both the Dooley's and Beamer's era.

[Post edited by hokieshayes at 12/29/2021 6:17PM]