Everything From Virginia Tech Interim HC Philip Montgomery After Wednesday's Practice

Virginia Tech football interim head coach Philip Montgomery spoke to the media after practice on Wednesday, Oct. 8. Here's the entirety of what Montgomery had to say:

On how practice went:

"Good. Had a good practice. Thought guys flew around good. We had a good practice yesterday. Energy was good. Intensity was good. Guys are locked in trying to get better every day."

On availability of RB Terion Stewart:

"Yeah, we're kind of in that same mode right now. We'll see how he continues to progress. I know he wants to play. We want to make sure that he's healthy and can play at his maximum effort. And so. we'll continue to keep monitoring that as we go through."

On availability of OL Johnny Garrett:

"Yeah. that guy just keeps battling, just like I told you the other day. Got his lip all cut up, got blood running down his face, gets his ankle, and then all of a sudden, he's back in two plays. So, he's grinding. He's doing the best he can to stay in there. And hopefully, we'll see how it goes for the rest of the week, but he's doing everything he can to get back.

Q: It probably goes without saying, but how much would it help to just have a full complement of those offensive linemen that we launched this year?

"You know, I was thinking about it. I don't know how many times this year we've been able to line up with the same five guys in the same five spots this year, right? So, you know how vital it is for those five guys to kind of be on the same page. You're working beside the same guy. The communication, all that stuff that kind of goes into it is such a intrical part of how you're going to play offensively. And so, being able to have so many different lineups up there, it makes it tougher. But I will say that our guys up front, man, they have been resilient and they continue to keep bouncing back and doing what we asked them to do. And they're continuing to grow and get better and that's what we got to have. I mean, guys are laying on the line for each other and whatever we ask, they're doing."

On availability of OL Jaden Muskrat:

"Yeah, he's getting closer. He's had a good week this week. So, we'll see where that kind of falls in the grand scheme of all of it, but he's been better this week."

On feasibility of fitting in Muskrat at different positions around the offensive line:

"Right now, wherever we need him. I mean, he's played right tackles the majority of the time, but he's played guard. He's played tackle, hasn't played as much left tackle as he has right. But [he] has the flexibility to move around, but mostly it's been right tackle and guard."

On LB Kaleb Spencer and what Montgomery has seen:

"No. 1, just how relentless he has been pursuing the football. He's around the ball. I mean, what was that two weeks ago, was it NC State? I guess he had 11 tackles. [Editor's note: This is correct.] You know, last week he had a ton of tackles. [Editor's note: Spencer tallied six tackles against Wake Forest.] Again, he was around the ball. He's got a nose for it. He's really understanding what's happening defensively right now. And I think he is growing each and every day, each and every week. The position obviously was new for him and I think he's feeling much more comfortable about that and you can see that in his play and in his leadership and the way he stepped up. He's been tremendous."

On how crucial linebacker play is against the Yellow Jackets:

"I mean it's all the front seven and the safeties and how they fit it. But obviously the linebackers in their play is going to be crucial for us this weekend. I mean, they give you a lot of eye candy, a lot of different looks, a lot of different motions, some different sets. They're unbalanced. They're regular. A lot of gap scheme stuff where you're seeing this but some of it's kind of just eye candy because they're really wanting to take it out the back side. So, they [Tech's players] got to do a great job. I was watching them in the drills today and just all the different looks that they've got to have their eyes right on and they were doing a great job with it. But obviously, [the Yellow Jackets] present some problems with what they do.

Q: On that note, what stands out specifically about them?

"Just that. I think they play very physical. They do a great job schematically. They want to run the football. That's what they hang their hat on. I mean, if you listen to [Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key], that's his deal, right? We're going to run the ball. And so, the way they use Haynes [King], the way they use their running backs, the way they use their tight ends and different stuff, they take pride in what their offensive line and the physicality they play with. We got to match that. We got to be physical. We got to be relentless. And, we got to get guys on the ground when we have the opportunity. Try to get them behind the chains, right? Don't let them stay on schedule."

On LB Jaden Keller:

"Yeah, I mean JK, he's a warrior, too. I mean, a guy that got a little banged up last week. As we progress through the week, we'll see where he's at, but he's a guy that just continues to provide great leadership. He's got not only just talent, but he's got experience, and so, he's a guy that that we lean on a lot."

On the importance of open-field tackling:

"Yeah, again, I think it comes down to eye discipline and what's going on because they're going to put some eye candy in the back field part of it, get those linemen out. I think they do a good job in space. We got to do a good job of understanding when we can slip a block and knife or when we've got to put hands on it and try to get back off. But we got to get a lot of hats to the ball. There's going to be some times where you're in one of those positions [where] you got to make that open field tackle, use good leverage, use the sideline, use the things that we can do to be physical and get him on the ground. But we need a lot of hats to it, right? And when we can vice that, it sure makes it a lot easier. We got to do a great job of that."

On availability of CB Caleb Brown:

"Yeah, I mean still a progress in it. I mean, we got to wait and see, but those those young guys have really stepped up. Guys have stepped up and played well. They continue to get better. Obviously, we'd like to get some of them back to provide us some more depth. But IBM [Isaiah Brown-Murray] and those guys, they've really stepped up. He had a ton of plays last week, but he just continues to keep getting better and and I think he's playing at his best level right now. So, we got to continue to see that part of it."

On William "Pop" Watson III, the team's second-string quarterback:

"Pop's been great. Pop's been great. He's continuing to grow, continue to develop. He's had a great mindset and he knows where he's at and how he's developing and what's going on with the offense. So, I've been pleased with Pop and what he's done."