Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, November 18, 1993 TAG: 9311180169
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By SCOTT BLANCHARD STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Long
One fellow is UVa quarterback B.J. Hawkins, serving a season-long suspension for a violation of team policy. The guy visiting his apartment that day would never have expected to be there a couple weeks ago: Virginia Tech rover Stacy Henley.
Henley and Hawkins attended Potomac High School together and by now probably thought they'd be facing each other on the field rather than in easy chairs on Saturday afternoon.
After starting nine games and playing almost every play for the Hokies, Henley careened onto Tech's third string the week before the Syracuse game, and there he remains, at the orders of defensive coordinator Phil Elmassian.
Tech's eighth-leading tackler won't dress for Saturday's game, and won't travel with the team. Tech coach Frank Beamer and Elmassian - who raved about Henley during spring and preseason practice - won't directly address how Henley fell so far so fast.
Elmassian said Torrian Gray was a better choice for the Syracuse game because the Orangemen ran the option, but didn't say why Henley was dropped off the two-deep roster.
"If you're going to be playing, you've got to be making plays," Beamer said.
Elmassian said Gray was doing so in practice. Although Elmassian said he made the decision based on weeks of analysis, Gray apparently got the chance after Henley's play during the Boston College game, when Tech's secondary was torched for 448 yards by Glenn Foley.
Through that game, Henley had 37 tackles and three behind the line of scrimmage, including one sack. His eight pass break-ups tie him with Scott Jones for the team lead.
"They just said they don't feel I'm a physical enough player for the rover position," Henley said.
Henley, a fourth-year junior, wasn't even in the stands at Lane Stadium last week to see Tech beat Syracuse. He had given away his tickets before realizing that as a third-stringer, he has no spot on the sideline.
On TV, he watched his replacement, Gray, intercept two passes.
"Torrian's a great guy," Henley said. "But watching him make those plays, I was thinking, `Oh, man, this boy's doing a good job right here.' "
"To see them kick the living crap out of Syracuse was great. I wish to God I could've been a part of it. It really hurt watching them on TV. I'm over that now."
He's looking forward to hooking up with Hawkins. The pair might catch a glimpse of another Potomac graduate, Mike Wardlaw, who recently switched from defense to offense for UVa.
The trio's careers have taken unexpected paths. Heavily-recruited Hawkins signed with Notre Dame, transferred to UVa, sat out 1991 and was a benchwarmer in '92. Wardlaw's attempts to climb the UVa depth chart have been cut down by injuries. Henley, meanwhile, played in 11 games as a Hokie reserve in '91, then started 10 games at cornerback in 1992, intercepting three passes and finishing seventh in tackles.
He was switched to rover, a half-defensive back, half-linebacker position, by Elmassian this year.
"I thought B.J. was going to get all the publicity and all the hype," Henley said. "[Me and] Mike, I thought we were pretty much tied.
"We've talked about playing against each other, and me getting to sack [Hawkins]. [We talked about] how far he thought he could go. I thought I could go maybe pretty far also. Me, him and Mike all had that same conversation."
Instead of sacking, Henley will be snacking Saturday as he and Hawkins watch 25th-ranked Tech and 23rd-ranked Virginia in the teams' regular-season finale. Hawkins could return to UVa next year and try to win playing time; Wardlaw should keep getting a chance to play. Now, it's Henley who wonders about his future.
"Next year, I'll probably be a backup. I don't think I'm going to start," he said.
Henley seems at an odd sort of peace with his situation, brought on perhaps by a look at the roster. Gray and the No. 2 rover, Brandon Semones, are freshmen.
"Last week, I was really down," Henley said Tuesday. "I was just like, `Whatever happens, happens.' This week I've got sort of a new attitude. I'm going out to do my part [in practice]. I don't expect to be back [as a starter next year]. They're young guys, great players. I'm really not looking to get [coaches] to notice me anymore."
Henley knows he could have made more plays for the Hokies and said there aren't any hard feelings between him and Elmassian. He also said he knows his season wasn't a total bust.
"I can pat myself on the back for making some plays," he said.
The only ones he'll be making in the near future are for the scout team - and then only to a point. He said he won't join the Hokies on their trip to the Independence Bowl in December, he said, unless it's required.
First, though, he's thinking of hanging out with a friend Saturday, watching some college football on the tube.
"That'll make it a lot better," he said of being with Hawkins. "Last time, I was alone."
by CNB