When camp begins in early August, college football coaches are hoping to get through camp as healthy as possible. Easier said than done.
If coaches are able to get through camp without any injuries, or any major ones, it's about getting through the early part of the schedule each season as healthy as possible, especially in early-season non-conference games that get out of control early.
As far as first-year Virginia Tech coach James Franklin is concerned, that might not be the case following a 73-3 rout of VMI last Saturday night at Lane Stadium.
Virginia Tech suffers an injury that it really can't afford to have right now
Against the Keydets, center Kyle Altuner exited the game in the third quarter with the Hokies leading 52-0. On Wednesday at practice, according to Andy Bitter of Tech Sideline, Altuner had his right leg in a sleeve, which is never good. He was working with the twos in 1-on-1 drills, according to Bitter, with backup Tommy Ricard working with the ones.
When he met with the media, Franklin dropped some coach-speak quotes when it came to Ricard, who is Altuner's backup.
"He's great in the weight room," Franklin said. "It's translating to the field now, playing powerful, explosive. He's doing a great job for us on special teams, too."
Translation: he'll be ready to go against Old Dominion without saying he'll be ready to go against Old Dominion on Saturday afternoon. If there are any concerns of any kind about an injury to Altuner, sitting him and playing Ricard is a no-brainer for position coach Matt Moore and Franklin. It is way too early in the season to start worrying about injuries and pushing someone that would create a long-term injury.
Virginia Tech's offensive line has been hit hard by injuries over the last couple of seasons, and just maybe, they can't even get out of a 70-point victory without suffering a key injury. Franklin spoke numerous times about the depth he has and that's on his roster, but he never wanted to start testing it after a blowout win in Week 1.
Moore has done a nice job over the last year-plus that he's been with the Hokies in terms of building depth, and Ricard getting thrust into action right away is something worth keeping an eye on if that indeed does happen on Saturday with quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer. We'll find out shortly if Richard is indeed at center and Altuner is out against the Monarchs.
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