[Tuck4Bama]

BATON ROUGE -- -- Sean Glennon was nearly out of the woods as Virginia Tech's starting quarterback last December.

The Hokies had a 21-3 halftime lead against Georgia in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. All Glennon had to do was finish the game.

Then, just like that, things changed. Everything that was going right in the first half seemed to go wrong in the second. Glennon committed four turnovers, and Georgia took advantage, coming back for a 31-24 victory.

Glennon, who never really has been embraced in Blacksburg, Va., by Hokies fans because he's not speedy like former Virginia Tech starters Bryan Randall and Michael Vick, heard the doubters again.

However, all of that made him work harder. He will lead the No. 8 Hokies into Tiger Stadium for Saturday's top-10 clash with No. 2 LSU.

"This offseason I dedicated myself to becoming better in every facet of the game," said Glennon, a 6-foot-4, 225-pound junior. "I did a lot of film study, I was out there throwing every day, and it paid off. Going into spring ball I was leaps and bounds ahead of where I was last year. I feel like my teammates are really starting to buy into me and get behind me."

That was apparent in the Hokies' victory against East Carolina. The Pirates shut down the running lanes, but Glennon completed 22 of 33 passes for 245 yards and a touchdown.

Even more important, Glennon overcame an interception on his first throw. It showed he could bounce back from adversity and that he understands he doesn't have to try to win games by himself, given the quality of Virginia Tech's defense.

"He appeared to me (to have) a real comfortable leadership style," LSU Coach Les Miles said. "Just watching him, he has a lot of ability, a strong arm, and you can tell his team follows him real well."

SOMETHING TO PROVE