7/31/2023 football Edit

Behind Enemy Lines: Virginia Tech Football Edition

Craig Epstein • TheKnightReport

Staff Writer

With the 2023 Rutgers Football season right around the corner, we here at The Knight Report have decided to go around to each of the beat writers from the Scarlet Knights upcoming opponents this season to learn more about each team ahead of the first kickoff to the season.

With that being said, let's continue with our Virginia Tech preview as TKR spoke with HokieHaven.com's Tim Sullivan to learn more about the Hokies.

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ICYMI: Northwestern | Temple

What are Virginia Tech’s expectations going into the season?

The main thing that fans (and those inside the program, even) want to see is progress. Last year arrived with a breath of fresh air and then the product on the field was extremely bad. Brent Pry showed some of the risks of a first-time head coach with poor in-game decision-making, clock management, and more, and it probably cost the Hokies a couple of wins. An offseason retooling in the Transfer Portal, and a chance for Pry to self-scout on an individual basis, and things should take a significant step forward.

What would you say Virginia Tech’s greatest strength and weakness is?

The biggest strength is the buy-in from the team. They didn't necessarily have it last year (which played a role in exits via the Portal over the offseason, though most of those were more playing-time related), so when the going got tough, the individual players started to fade in games, and the overall performance slumped. VT gave up fourth-quarter leads four times last season (including three straight ACC games), and that wouldn't happen with a team that's bought in. This year, it shouldn't be an issue.

As for a weakness, experience is an issue - but more experience in VT's system than experience overall. A handful of transfers are expected to play roles, and even if they were good at their previous programs, it's a whole new setting that they have to get used to. Add in that there are some expected contributors who are young (potential starting offensive linemen who are redshirt freshmen, for example), and there's a blend of class statuses that are all relatively new to the Hokies.

What is the biggest difference between last year’s Virginia Tech team and this one?

The biggest difference comes in the composition of the roster. There were plenty of Transfer Portal departures, but to be a little harsh for a moment, the players who left were mostly dead weight (the primary exception being wide receiver Kaleb Smith, who was the team's leading receiver but the fact that this was the case made his athletic limitations a liability overall). VT added projected starters or major contributors at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, defensive end, and nickel, and that's a lot of one-year turnovers. Those were almost all swaps up in terms of talent level, so that's a boost.

Who do you think is poised for a breakthrough season?

Wide receiver Ali Jennings (one of those incoming receivers) should put his name on national radars in his final college go-round. He started his career at West Virginia but left for Old Dominion after a couple of years. He was a solid performer, catching five passes for 121 yards in an upset win over the Hokies for the Monarchs, but the stage he's going to be on here is huge, and the fact that he's a massive upgrade over Smith should make the passing game far more functional. He should be a major target and rack up big yards.

What would mark a successful season for Virginia Tech?

It may be a bit of a deflator for a program with the Hokies' history of success, but simply getting back to the postseason would be enough of a step in the right direction to represent "success" toward the long-term project of the Pry era. Plenty of national media projections have VT with a 4-8 record or so, and defying those odds (and getting the extra 15 bowl practices to build toward the future) would be big.

What is your season-long prediction for Virginia Tech?

There's a pretty wide range of realistic outcomes here because, if some of the weaknesses from last year aren't addressed, the lower end of things could be as bad as 3-9. But last year's team was just a few of those weaknesses (particularly in game management) from maybe a 7-4 mark last year. You can't simply assume all of them will be fixed, so right now I'm riding the 5-7/6-6 edge, though surely as the regular season approaches I'll be talking myself into more of a 6-6/7-5 tightrope.