Collegiate Times

Evans

Because of a knee injury, Darren Evans will not grace the field this season.

 "Darren Evans suffered a left knee ACL tear," head athletic trainer Mike Goforth said in a release from the athletics department. "He was evaluated by Dr. Marc Siegel and Dr. Gunnar Brolinson and received an MRI at Montgomery Regional Hospital that showed the ACL tear,"

"He will be re-evaluated later this week to see when the ACL reconstruction surgery will take place. Our hope is to be able to repair the knee prior to classes starting so that he can get started on his rehab and continue his course work," Goforth said.

Evans sprained his knee in practice on Friday and was limited until Tuesday, when he cleared to practice at full speed.

"Obviously we are all saddened by the results of this MRI," Goforth said. "But we all know the type of young man Darren is and we have no doubt that he will come back stronger than ever."

Evans entered the 2009 campaign as the projected starter at tailback for the Hokies, but his loss means one of three younger backs will have to step up. Redshirt sophomore Josh Oglesby, freshman David Wilson and the flashy redshirt freshman Ryan Williams seem to be the most likely candidates.

Most consider Williams the favorite to carry the Hokies at tailback in the future. Williams drove up his stock by turning in ten carries for 85 yards and two catches for 66 yards and a touchdown in the Maroon-White game this spring.

However, Williams explained Saturday that he was shocked at the beginning of the summer when head coach Frank Beamer placed him fourth on the depth chart at tailback.

"I came back a little out of shape. I missed the 110 test by a couple [of] sprints, but I mean I still worked hard," Williams said. "All my maxes went up ten to 15 pounds, so it wasn't just like I was sitting home on my butt all day. So, I still worked hard and I think I got on coach Hite's bad side a little bit because I didn't pass the 110 test," Williams said.

The 110 test is a conditioning test.  "Tailbacks run 110 yards 16 times, with a 45-second break between each rep," the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported. "They must complete at least 15 of the reps in 15 seconds," an article said. "If they can't do it, they must attend the make-up test. During that, Williams completed just 13 reps, so he had to show up for extra conditioning." 

"Things happen. I'm not going to sit here and dwell on it," Williams said. "I'm not going to sit here and mope around about it. I'm just going to continue to work hard and perform to the best of my abilities, because that's all I can do."

For now, redshirt sophomore Josh Oglesby is first on the Hokies depth chart at tailback. Oglesby moved in as the backup tailback for the Hokies midway through last season after Kenny Lewis, Jr. was injured.

Behind Oglesby, freshman tailback David Wilson also will compete with Williams for the starting spot. Wilson committed to Tech last year as a Rivals four-star recruit from George Washington High School in Danville, Va. In his senior season, Wilson rushed for 2,291 yards and scored 35 times.

Redshirt freshman Zac Evans and senior Kenny Lewis, Jr. are also listed at tailback on the current Hokies roster.