Is Virginia Tech back? After enjoying eleven 10+ win seasons from 1995-2011, the Hokies have posted just one double-digit victory year (2016) since. And that season was last time they finished in the Top 20.
Last fall looked like more of the same (Tech went 14-21 from 2020-22) when they started 2-4. But the Hokies (7-6 last year and 5-3 in the ACC) would finish the season with a flourish, winning five of their last seven games by 17 or more points on their way to the program’s first bowl victory in seven years.
This year’s team returns 21 starters and finds itself receiving votes in both preseason polls.
“I don’t expect it to go perfect but you hope you play to your potential,” Hokies head coach Brent Pry told WTOP earlier this month. “That you can be the team you believe you can be in week one.”
Back for a second season at starting quarterback is Kyron Drones, who stepped in last fall after transferring from Baylor to throw for 2,085 yards and 17 touchdowns while running for 818 yards and five more scores.
“He’s fun to coach, he’s got everybody’s respect around this building and is always working to improve,” Pry said. “He wants to be more accurate, he wants to throw into tough coverage and feel confident doing that. He wants to continue to make really good choices with the ball.”
Drones’ top two targets (Da’Quan Felton and Jaylin Lane) return as well.
“We’ve got a lot of weapons offensively, It’s finding ways to get the touches in the right places and enough of them,” Pry said. “(We’re) continuing to improve on our offensive line: all five starters are back.”
Drones has the perfect complement for his skills in senior running back Bhayshul Tuten. The NC A&T transfer rushed for 863 yards and 10 touchdowns last fall while catching 27 passes (for 239 yards and two scores). The triple-threat also returned a pair of kickoffs back for touchdowns.
“Let me tell you, he’s a well-rounded back. He quietly had a nice year. I think he’s probably a bit underrated right now,” Pry said. “This guy can do everything: he can catch the ball, he can protect, he’s smart, he can make you miss, he can run through a tackle, he can outrun ya.”
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The defense returns the bulk of the crew that allowed the fewest passing yards per game in the ACC while ranking second in total defense as well as sacks. Seniors Antwuan Powell-Ryland (9.5 sacks in 2023) and Aenas Peebles (five sacks last year) are the standouts up front and just as they’ll be leaned on heavily again this fall.
“At times (last year), particularly down the stretch, they were just hard to block. They were earning minus yardage plays, pressuring the quarterback, and being disruptive,” Pry said. “In this scheme, in this structure, it has to have to start there. If it doesn’t, you’re not going to be a very good defense.”
Special teams have been a hallmark of this program since its emergence almost 30 years ago, and this year is no exception. In addition to Tuten returning kickoffs, punt returner Tucker Holloway is a force to be reckoned with. Kicker John Love ranked second in field-goal accuracy (22 of 24 for 91.7%) last year, and Peter Moore enters his fourth season handling the punting chores.
The schedule begins with plenty of potholes. Four of the Hokies’ first six games will be on the road, including trips to both coasts for matchups at Miami and Stanford. There’s also a trip to Old Dominion, where Pry lost his head coaching debut two years ago.
But it all starts in Nashville Saturday with a trip into SEC country.
“I know Vanderbilt’s gonna be excited,” Pry said. “And I know they’re well-coached. I’ve got a ton of respect for Clark Lea and what they do. So, we got our hands full.”
Cavaliers look to improve after down year
Virginia (3-9 last season, 2-6 ACC) returns eight starters on each side of the ball which in ordinary circumstances would be a good thing. But when your offense scored the third-fewest points in the conference and the defense allowed the most in the league, perhaps one should temper one’s excitement.
This past weekend, head coach Tony Elliott named sophomore Anthony Colandrea the team’s starting quarterback ahead of senior Tony Muskett. In six starts (and eight games) last year as a true freshman Colandrea threw for 1,958 yards and 13 touchdowns while tossing 9 interceptions. His 2023 saw plenty of highs (including throwing for three scores in a win over Duke) and lows (three picks in a loss at Maryland). And while he loses all-everything Malik Washington (110 catches for 1,426 yards and nine touchdowns) the underrated Malachi Fields (58-811-5) returns. Colandrea also has an offensive line that returns all five starters.
Their improvement (Virginia allowed the second-most sacks last year while ranking second to last in rushing yards) as a collective unit is key to getting this offense out of first gear.
Defensively, the Cavaliers are led by preseason All-ACC selection Jonas Sanker, who led the team with 110 tackles and 11 passes broken up.
I’ve long been on record not liking it when a defensive back leads the team in stops: it often means there are too many passes being completed in front of them or the first two levels being unable to stop the run. They’ll need to improve on the ground (5.1 yards per carry coughed up in 2023) and getting to the quarterback (11 sacks ranked last in the ACC).
The season begins at noon Saturday when Richmond stops by Scott Stadium. The Cavaliers also host Maryland before getting into the meat of their ACC schedule with the season wrapping up in Blacksburg the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The program’s last win at Lane Stadium (1998) is old enough to rent a car.
New coach, same goals for the Dukes
James Madison (11-2 last year, 7-1 in the Sun Belt Conference) was a launching point for several FBS coaching careers when the Dukes were an FCS school, whether it was Rip Scherer to Memphis, Everett Withers to Texas State, or Mike Houston to East Carolina.
So it was of little surprise that a 19-5 mark over two FBS season merited an upgrade for Curt Cignetti, who bolted for the Big Ten and starts at Indiana (minus having to play in the East Division) this fall. He didn’t leave by himself, bringing the bulk of his coaching staff and nine transfers to IU (six other players transferred out last offseason). Life really does come at you fast.
New head coach Bob Chesney was most recently at Holy Cross, where he guided the Crusaders to four straight FCS Playoff berths (including a trip to the quarterfinals in 2022).
His task? Mix and match 21 transfers, including a new starting quarterback in senior Dylan Morris. The former Washington starter (2,458 yards passing with a 14-12 TD-INT ratio in 2021) will have help in the backfield with Texas State transfer Ayo Adeyi (1,017 yards rushing with the Mean Green) and downfield with former UConn wide receiver Cameron Ross (44 catches for the Huskies). On the bright side, the Dukes return three starters on the offensive line.
Defensively the Dukes return just three starters, zero on a defensive line that boasted not one but two double-digit sack compilers last fall (Jamree Kromah is now with the Chicago Bears while Jalen Green is an undrafted free agent recently cleared from an injury). Junior linebacker Taurus Jones was Second Team All-SBC in 2022, and he’ll need all the help he can get from multiple transfers on that side of the ball.
Despite the defections, JMU has been picked to finish second in the Sun Belt Conference’s East Division (they couldn’t go ACC on us and name them “Sun” and “Belt”?). And while they visit division favorite Appalachian State, that game is in November (plenty of time for Coach Chesney to make all of the new parts fit).
The Dukes also catch an inter-divisional break as they won’t be facing any of the top five projected teams in the West Division. Saturday they start the season at Charlotte, where JMU is an early favorite against the 49ers.
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