Rise Of The Talisman

There are two staples on TV in the house I live in, Virginia Tech athletics and soccer.

Those fortunate enough to have the Fox Soccer Channel as a part of their cable package know that European announcers have a flair for the dramatic and wield the English language in a truly unique (some would say more correct) way.

In the course of one broadcast an announcer, referring to the best player on a particular team called him the “talisman”.

What is a talisman you ask?     

Dictionary.com defines it as “anything whose presence exercises a remarkable or powerful influence on human feelings or actions”. Essentially, in the announcing context it’s the best player you have. The cream of the crop, or in two words: Tyrod Taylor.

Perhaps it’s unwise to hype the poor kid up even more than he already has been, but I can’t help it. He’s so natural on the field. Taylor possesses the poise and patience of a much older player and is still far from mastering the Hokies’ offensive system.

In his first full game leading the Tech offense, Taylor completed 18 of 31 passes for 287 yards and he added a touchdown on the ground.

The Tech offense racked up an impressive 473 total yards against the Ohio Bobcats, a team armed with a fairly solid defense and it’s quite apparent that this team moves better with a mobile quarterback.

It would be easy to make the comparisons to some of Tech’s past athletic quarterbacks. Guys like Bryan Randall and the brothers Vick come to mind. Tyrod is said to throw harder than Marcus while he seems to have the mental game of a Randall mixed in with the playmaking ability of you-know-who.

No one knows exactly how Taylor’s career will unfold. Randall was Tech’s last 4-year starter at quarterback and he came into that job in a similar way taking over for an injured and much-maligned Grant Noel early in his rookie season after Noel struggled mightily filling the role of Michael Vick replacement.

If that sounds familiar it’s because we’re watching history repeat itself in a number of ways.

Tyrod brings excitement back to an offense that made people cringe. He makes the team better and brings loads of promise and potential to a team brimming with it at so many positions.
It’s clear that the Hokies have found their talisman. They once again have their shining magical amulet set to ward off evil spirits and transfix a nation; Hokie Nation.

So there’s no more “T-squared”. There are four T’s when you’re talking about such unbridled excitement.

Tyrod “The Talisman” Taylor.