Hurt Hokie: Virginia Tech’s Evans Out for the Season
Nebraska's impending trip to Blacksburg, Virginia just got a little less daunting. When the Huskers play Virginia Tech this September, the Hokies will be without Darren Evans, their leading rusher from last season. The sophomore tailback has a torn ACL in his knee and will miss the 2009 season. While the Hokies will undoubtedly miss Evans this season, they do have other talented players waiting in the wings to carry the football.
No doubt, Evans was a prolific producer for the Hokies last season and he will be missed. Evans rushed for more than 1200 yards and produced 11 touchdowns while starting just 8 games last year as a freshman. He was the Orange Bowl MVP as well. For 2009, he appeared to be the sure heartbeat of Virginia Tech's offensive attack.
Where do they go from here? The Hokies appear to have talent - but almost no experience - behind Evans. Of the running backs on the roster, only one (Josh Oglsby) has carried the ball in a game. Though, redshirt freshman Ryan Williams is a serious talent and was impressive during spring drills. If there is any bright side for Virginia Tech in this injury, is that it happened very early in to fall camp. The other players at the position will now have some time to compete and prepare like they may be the starter, rather than accepting a role behind Evans.
I'm not sure how much Evans' injury will move the line for the Virginia Tech season or their tilt with the Huskers. When a team loses one of the most talented offensive players, it has to hurt them. The bottom line is that Virginia Tech will be without their most experienced rusher. Though, with all of the returning starters and talent on the Hokie roster, the test of playing in Blacksburg remains a very tough one for Nebraska.
8/12/2009
This is fairly big news, Evans hurt us in Lincoln last year.
8/12/2009
Sorry this is off-topic, but are there any more showings of the “Walk-ons” program on PBS?
8/12/2009
Well Spanos out too, so that means weve got Green losing a redshirt
8/13/2009
I think it only hurts their depth. The talent is there and it probably wont change their running game much. He was definitely a reliable “go-to” guy but I don’t think he is their best back anyway. Here’s who it is:
Oglesby, Williams and Wilson all have talent.
Oglesby may have more experience than the other two but freshman Wilson in not going to get redshirted and guess what…He is FAST. 4.33 in the 40 fast. Wilson is their most talented Tailback. They will be sharing the load with all three talented backs. Sounds like a 1-2-3 punch to me.
As far as red-shirting Green goes I hope they can still give it to him. They could redshirt him and then if they absolutely need him they could pull it later in the season.