Everything From Virginia Tech OL Tomas Rimac On Tuesday Ahead of Week 3 Clash with ODU

Ahead of Virginia Tech football's Week 3 matchup with Old Dominion, offensive lineman Tomas Rimac spoke with the media on Tuesday. Here's the entirety of what he had to say.

On team mood and regrouping from the 34-0 second half drubbing at the hands of Vanderbilt:

"Yeah, you never want to start the season 0-2, but something that I'm really proud of as this team is just that we stick together in the locker room. We've done some good things in both games, but it's just sticking together and figuring out what we have to work on and coming out this week and showing we can do it.

On switching around pieces in the wake of Johnny Garrett and Montavious Cunningham exiting the game:

"Yeah, the mentality is just 'next man up'. If one guy goes down, we've banked reps all throughout fall camp playing against different guys. So, the expectation is, any guy can jump in there. We don't skip a beat.

What do you think about the fact that Tommy [Ricard] and Aidan [Lynch] were able to get some reps against a starting defensive line and getting that experience when they hadn't really gotten it in their time here? Does that help them in the long run?

"Oh, yeah. It definitely helps them in the long run and I feel like them being able to step in and do a good job just shows how mature they are and they're only going to get better from here on out."

On the message from offensive line coach Matt Moore:

"The mentality Coach Moore comes out with is just like, football is a violent sport. You never know what's going to happen during a game and like I said earlier, it's just the 'next man up' mentality. We got banked reps playing with each other. So, it's just hopefully, the expectation is not to skip a beat no matter who's in there."

Q: You guys moved the ball pretty well at times in the first half. What do you feel was missing a little bit in that second half?

"That second half. I just feel like, obviously in the first half, we did good things offensively, but football's a four-quarter game. We have to put together four good quarters and that's something that we just need to work on this weekend and go out and do this Saturday."

Q: Did you guys sense that Vandy knew you were short-handed on offensive line in the second half? Seemed like they really brought a lot of pressure at you guys in that second half.

"I don't know if they felt like they were young guys or not, but I just feel, like I said earlier, just 'next man up' mentality and we just can't skip a beat on offense. And I feel like we didn't help ourselves by having three-and-outs and that's something we have to work on this week."

On shifting around the offensive line:

"I feel like, normally, I would say it's not an easy transition, but how Coach Moore sets us up in practice, he makes sure guys are going multiple positions so in case that does come up, we don't skip a beat during the game."

Q: How much work had you gotten at left tackle before?

"Coach Moore did a really good job splitting reps throughout practices during fall camp. So, I've gotten work at every position and I can say the same for other guys, too."

Q: How strange is it being at tackle for you? How comfortable is it for you not having help on the outside like that?

"Yeah, when I first got here, making the move out to right tackle was a little uneasy, but throughout spring ball and fall camp, I've just really settled into that role and I'm comfortable in it."

On mindset and preparation for ODU:

"The mentality is just, you got to learn from your mistakes and you can't dwell on last week's loss too much, because we have a game this week and it's a good opponent. We just have to go out and make the preparations and prepare to win the game.

On what Rimac has seen in Old Dominion's defense:

"Yeah, they're a good defense. They have really good players. No. 43 [Kris Trinidad] and No. 98 [Christopher Spencer]. Started watching a little bit on them yesterday. We just have to prepare like it's any other game and just put our best foot forward."

Q: Coach Pry was saying on film, ODU looks really, really stingy in the red zone. What makes them kind of so good in that area in your opinion?

"Well, I watched the the Indiana game yesterday and I think they had like three or four stops in a row. And I just feel like they're a team that really bows up in the red zone, just makes them kick a field goal rather than give up six points."