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Virginia Tech Wideout To Miss Entire Season
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Virginia Tech junior wideout Brandon Dillard will miss the 2008 season after rupturing his right Achilles' tendon in a player-organized passing drill Tuesday night, the team announced yesterday. The loss of Dillard, a walk-on who ascended to first-string flanker after a stellar spring practice, deals a major blow to the Hokies' already thin receiving unit.
With the departure of its four top wide receivers -- Eddie Royal, Josh Morgan, Justin Harper and Josh Hyman, all seniors last season -- Virginia Tech entered the spring with uncertainty at wideout. Dillard had never caught a pass, but he seemed to provide at least one answer. He clocked a 4.28-second 40-yard dash, and then, in the Maroon-White spring game, he ran 49 yards on a reverse and caught a 25-yard touchdown pass.
Dillard will have surgery next week, then rehabilitate for four to six months.
"I'm just going to try and turn this negative into a positive," Dillard said in a statement released by the school. "I'll use this as an opportunity to teach the young guys and even though I won't be playing this year, I'll still be cheering on my teammates. I'm going to get this surgery done, start rehabbing and slowly start trying to work my way back."
Ervin Garner, another walk-on, Patrick Terry and Jacob Sykes are listed in a three-way tie as Dillard's primary backup; none has ever played. Six incoming freshmen also will compete to fill Dillard's starting spot, perhaps led by speedster Dyrell Roberts from Windsor, Va.
The Hokies are nearly as inexperienced at their other wide receiving position, which will likely be shared by Zach Luckett and Ike Whitaker, a converted quarterback who played at Northwest High in Germantown. Cornerback Victor"Macho" Harris could rotate at wide receiver as well.
Luckett and Whitaker are the only returning wideouts who caught passes for Virginia Tech last season; Luckett had two catches, Whitaker three. Royal, Morgan, Harper and Hyman combined for 146.
-- Adam Kilgore
