Hanging around and watching the Cubs tank in the National League Division Series, wondering why baseball players are endlessly amused by handshake/slap/bump routines in the dugout after home runs.

Here are some items that didn’t make it into yesterday’s story about Dorian Porch replacing Davon Morgan (Varina High) as Virginia Tech’s starting rover ...

- This torn ACL isn’t Morgan’s first leg injury. He played just four games in his senior season because of a broken right ankle. He broke his left ankle as a sophomore while playing basketball, and the injury caused him to give up that sport. 

- Morgan hopes to be at practice every day. On Monday, he walked around with a ball tucked under his right arm, as though he didn’t want to let football go, despite a season-ending injury. “When I’m out here, you might see me with a ball,“ he said.

- Morgan said he wouldn’t hesitate to return kickoffs when he comes back from the injury. He suffered the injury while returning a kickoff.

- Whips and rovers coach Jim Cavanaugh, who recruited Morgan, broke down how the injury will affect the depth chart. Junior Matt Reidy had been the third-stringer at whip and rover. Now he will only be the second-string rover. Porch, who is replacing Morgan as the starter, had been working as a backup at free safety this season and played there sparingly, though not as much as he was playing at rover. True freshman Lorenzo Williams, who is exclusively a free safety, will get more work, though Cavanaugh still wants to have Porch practice there some. Redshirt freshman Hunter Ovens is now the third-string whip.

- Cavanaugh was displeased with Porch’s physical condition when he returned to campus in August after spending the summer interning in Washington, D.C. But Cavanaugh said Porch is in good shape now. Cavanaugh also said, “Porch is a very good reader of run/pass [whether the play is a run or pass] and he’s a very good tackler. He should do a very good job in our run defense.“

- Porch on playing both rover and free safety: “I feel like it helped me because part of my game that I was lacking was the confidence to know exactly what to do.“ He said at rover, he had to focus only on one side of the field, but free safety required him to see the whole field, which helped improve his overall vision.

- On talking to Cavanaugh about his conditioning: “We had a couple talks about that. He said I let him down with that part.“

- Porch had not played in Saturday’s game at Nebraska before Morgan was injured.

- On what he needs to work on: “My biggest thing is concentration on every play, focus. I’ve got the tools to do the job. I just need to stay focused in on every play and not being in the wrong position at any time.“

- On what areas in which he might have an edge on Morgan: “I feel like my body strength and my speed might be a little better overall.“

- Porch’s other offers coming out of high school included Wake Forest, Kentucky, Wisconsin and Georgia Tech, he said.

- Earlier in Porch’s career, he had to stay after practice for extra running or up-downs because of minor academic slip-ups. “I feel like I matured over time,“ said Porch, who is on track to graduate in the spring. “Now, I feel like it’s necessary. I don’t rely on coaches to do anything. I feel like it’s all my responsibility. I think that was a little bit of my problem before.“ But Porch said his slip-ups were never bad enough to land him a spot in the 6 a.m. Wednesday conditioning session, reserved for those players whose infractions warrant more punishment.

- Porch was a standout centerfielder in high school and said he had an opportunity to play professionally. If football doesn’t work out, he said he might give baseball another shot. Whenever he returns home to Calhoun, Ga., he throws and takes batting practice with his high school coach.

Posted by Darryl Slater in • College Sports • Virginia Tech
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