BLACKSBURG -- The start of something special. Hopefully. That's how Virginia Tech's football team approached the first preseason workout for the 2007 season.

A club being billed as a possible national title contender long before the catastrophic shooting massacre that left 32 people slain on campus last April 16, opened August drills Thursday afternoon with more motivation than ever to excel when the season starts Sept. 1 against East Carolina in Lane Stadium.

"Obviously, this season, April 16th is never going to go away," said junior quarterback Sean Glennon, when asked what coach Frank Beamer told his troops Wednesday night in the squad's first team meeting since the spring tragedy.

"He told us, 'hey, expect that, what happened here was absolutely tragic and we're a team people are rooting for this year. So you're going to be in the spotlight, people are going to be watching you, so let's make it special.'''

A team returning 16 starters that has been cast as an overwhelming favorite to capture the ACC title carries the additional task of playing for an entire college community this fall. The Hokies realize they can help sooth the wounds.

"Oh, what happened here this past spring is 100-percent more motivating for us to work harder," backup QB Ike Whitaker said. "Everybody on our team is sad about it, and [Coach] Beamer said we should be sad about it. Now we've just got to come together as a team and play for the people who are not here."

Now, it's time to play football again. Glennon said that's good.

"Ever since what happened, football has kind of been put on hold ... for proper reasons," he said. "But after a while, you get antsy just to get back out here and get it going again. Although April 16th is still on our minds, for me, at least, it feels great to be back on the practice field.

"High expectations? That's nothing new. We've got higher expectations for ourselves. There's no newspaper or magazine that can give us higher expectations than we have for ourselves in this locker room. So that doesn't faze us. We know every year that we're looking to win every game."

Ore on the dig

The most shocking note of anyone perusing Tech's depth chart for the opening practice came at tailback, where returning starter Branden Ore was listed third behind Danville's Kenny Lewis Jr. and walk-on Dustin Pickle of Salem.

Ore, a first-team All-ACC performer who ran for 1,137 yards and 16 touchdowns last season, wasn't in school and missed the team's summer workouts. The redshirt junior from Chesapeake said it's "just a matter of time" before he makes up for lost ground.

"He's just showing me right now that my spot can be taken," said Ore, referring to running backs coach Billy Hite. "I respect what [Hite] did. He's just showing me that I've got to bust my tail out here every day, and I'm for that."

Ore enrolled in the second session of summer classes, but said he withdrew and returned home to Chesapeake to help out a close friend, whose grandmother died in July.

"It's just a situation I had to take care of," Ore said. "He's like a brother to me and anything I can do for him, I'm there for him. I handled it and I came back.

"Anytime you're not here for the summer, you're never going to be in shape these guys are. It's just a matter of time of me getting back with these guys and running around, and I'll be back right where I need to be. I would say by the end of next week I'll be right where I need to be."

Ore understood the temporary demotion. He said he knows he's going to be the man come opening day.

"Kenny was here the whole summer, grinding it out and working hard, and I wasn't ... so you've got to respect that," Ore said. "Now, I've got to work hard every day and try to get my top spot back."