Reggie Ball’s status for Saturday’s game has been upgraded to probable. He took the majority of snaps with the first team offense in Georgia Tech’s Thursday practice. However, he is still expected to split time with r-freshman backup Taylor Bennett. It was the most work that Ball has received in practice this week.

Ball missed this past weekend’s game against UConn with viral meningitis. He spent the weekend in the hospital and was not released until Monday. His participation in practice throughout the week has been limited.

It is still unclear as to which quarterback will start the game. Georgia Tech head coach Chan Gailey isn’t revealing very much information to the media. Nevertheless, expect to see two Yellow Jacket quarterbacks on Saturday.

Besides Ball’s illness, Georgia Tech has some key injuries to overcome as well. All-ACC defensive end Eric Henderson is battling a right ankle injury and is questionable for the game. Reports say that he has been very limited in practice. His loss would be a huge blow to the Yellow Jacket defensive line.

Tight end Michael Matthews also has an ankle injury for Georgia Tech, and is also listed as questionable.

College GameDay will air live from Blacksburg on Saturday morning at 10:30. The location will be at Alumni Mall, which is behind Squires Student Center and in front of the Torgersen Arch.

The Hokies are known for bringing big crowds to College GameDay, so get there early. The show came to Blacksburg in 1999 for the Syracuse and Miami games, and returned for the infamous lightning game against Georgia Tech in 2000. This will be GameDay’s first visit to Blacksburg since then.

TSL sponsor MaroonHelmet.com is offering a nifty tie-dyed Team Towel for sale, and a portion of the proceeds will benefit victims of Hurricane Katrina. Not just orange, not just maroon...each one is unique. The Team Towel features the famous "Lunch Pail" and the "Team United" slogan. In the team united spirit, a portion of all proceeds from the Team Towel will be donated to the Red Cross for victims of Hurricane Katrina.

You can purchase the Team United Team Towel online at MaroonHelmet.com (click the link to go directly to the store to view the towel), or you can purchase one at their game-day sales location on Southgate Drive. (Click here for a map to the gameday sales location.)

The Virginia Tech Iraqi Outreach Committee has initiated a program called “Operation Provide Classroom Comfort”. The program originally began in 2003 by Major Mark Sherkey and his Field Artillery battery (C/1-377 th FA) in Iraq. The goal of the project is to rebuild schools, transform classrooms into learning environments and provide teachers and students with the tools to facilitate learning.

In the original program, over 2,500 pounds of school supplies were provided for over 2,000 Iraqi students. As words spread about the program, the project continued to grow. Help came in from 26 states. Because of the help that was provided, Maj. Sherkey’s unit was able to develop a good relationship with the local villages.

With the help of Virginia Tech, the project has been reborn. The Virginia Tech Iraqi Outreach Committee was formed on April 28, 2005 and began to plan the effort. With the help of Hokie fans, their goals can be met.

The project will run from October 22 through November 5. There will be a venue for collection at Wal-Mart in Christiansburg, VA for this time period. There will also be seven collection points at Lane Stadium at the Boston College game on Thursday, October 27.

You can help Operation Provide Classroom Comfort by doing any of the following:

• Visit the display at the Christiansburg Wal-Mart and purchase a pre-packaged school supply kit for $10.
• Bring any of the requested school supplies to the Boston College game on October 27. Requested supplies include notebook paper or pads (no spiral), pens, pencils, colored pencils, colored markers, sharpeners, glue and basic art supplies.
• Writing a check. Checks can be written to:

Virginia Tech Foundation
Attention: Operation Provide Classroom Comfort
2000 Kraft Drive
Blacksburg, VA 24061-0354

To find out more information about Operation Provide Classroom Comfort, visit their website.