BLACKSBURG, Va. � Logan Thomas has done almost everything to get ready for the season since getting the job at Virginia Tech last spring.
He was sharp in scrimmages and has quickly adapted to his role as a leader of the offense.
The only thing he hasn't done: Doing those things against another team.
He'll get that chance Saturday when the No. 13 Hokies play Appalachian State.
"I think it will be a little bit different. Maybe when I'm standing in the tunnel, but as of right now, I'm the same person I've always been, calm and collected, but it's still only Tuesday," he said. "Saturday is probably going to be a different story."
Even those pregame jitters don't figure to last long, and that's what coach Frank Beamer is counting on.
"All indications, Logan is very even keeled, he's very smart, he's very competitive, he's very tough," Beamer said of the 6-foot-6 redshirt sophomore. "All those things tell me that he's going to be just fine."
Thomas, who has had the job since Tyrod Taylor moved on to the NFL after last season, still is a work in progress.
He was recruited to Virginia Tech as a tight end, switched to quarterback and still has a tendency to let his eyes follow his intended receiver, or to run out of the pocket before giving a play a chance.
It might complicate matters that the Hokies don't know if the Mountaineers will come out in a 4-3 defensive alignment, a 3-4 or something else, so they have to prepare for all of it.
"It's not really nerve racking just because it's a 3-4," he said. "We've seen it and we're going to see it again. We've studied it ever since we've known we had to play them. We know what they can do, so we'll be ready for anything they throw at us."
Senior wide receiver Danny Coale thinks the Hokies' offense is in good hands.
"From a leadership perspective, I expect the same thing I've seen throughout all of preseason. He doesn't get rattled. He's someone we look to throughout the game in tough situations and he's certainly going to have his tough situations," Coale said. "We'd like to say it's going to go perfect, but odds are, he's going to have some bumps along the way."
Coale said it's important that the rest of the offense helps him through the first game.
Thomas' 5-inch height advantage over Taylor will add new wrinkles to the Hokies' offense, quarterback coach Mike O'Cain said.
He will be the one to try to prove that on Saturday, too, since he has taken over the play-calling duties from offensive coordinator Bryan Stinespring.
Because he can see over the defensive line more readily than Taylor, the Hokies may employ more short passes to tailback David Wilson. The goal is to try to get the speedy Wilson into open space with the ball. Thomas also throws the deep ball better than Taylor.
Coale said the trajectory of Thomas' passes is different, but that the receivers have adjusted.
"We've gotten better with getting on the same page with that," Coale said.
Coale and the rest of the receivers also hope for improvement by Thomas on medium-range passes, which he has a tendency to throw harder than necessary.
"Actually me and Danny were just talking about it," Thomas said, chuckling. "A couple days ago, I jammed his pinkie fingers on a low ball and then yesterday I injured him again."
Thomas said Dyrell Roberts also told him that he jammed his fingers and made a pinkie finger bleed from a pass.
"So I guess I haven't gained the touch that they want," Thomas said.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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