ACC Coaches Talk Anonymously About Virginia Tech Football Entering the 2024 Season
The 2024 College Football season is inching closer and we are nearly eight weeks from Virginia Tech kicking off their season against Vanderbilt on August 31st. This is going to be the most anticipated season in a few years in Blacksburg and the Hokies have ACC title game hopes coming into the year.
From year one to year two, Brent Pry has made solid progress with Virginia Tech. Last year, he got them back to a bowl game, crushing Tulane once they got there. Now Virginia Tech returns a ton of production from last season and there is hope for another leap in Pry's third year. A little over a month ago, Athlon Sports asked anonymous ACC coaches about the other programs in the league and this is what a few coaches had to say about Virginia Tech heading into the season:
“No one’s sure if they can go back to the old days, where Brent Pry is talking about ‘being Clemson before Clemson,’ but they’re showing proof of concept already. Recruiting is better — they’re still building out their state and the Carolinas — and the defense is the soul of the program."
"The offense finally clicked when they replaced [Grant] Wells with [Kyron] Drones, and now they can rally around him. He’s a big, solid runner, and if they can improve on his field vision and slow some things down, they can take that next step."
"They’re not in the class of an FSU or Clemson, but there’s a good chance they’re the best of the rest by season’s end."
"Pry committed to the long-term rebuild here, and it’s starting to show results.”
It seems like all of these coaches have the same sentiment that Pry has things headed in the right direction and while they might not be the class of the ACC just yet, things are trending in the right direction.
Virginia Tech has been one of the sexy picks to be in contention for the ACC due to their massive amount of returning production, a talented quarterback in Kyron Drones, the favorable schedule, and the way they finished the year. The Hokies have lofty goals coming into the season and their win total in Vegas is at 8.5 right now. CBS Sports college football analyst Chip Patterson gave his prediction for each win total in the ACC and he has the Hokies going over their win total, finishing with a 10-2 record:
Wins: at Vanderbilt, Marshall, at ODU, at Miami, at Stanford, Boston College, Georgia Tech, at Syracuse, at Duke, Virginia
Losses: Rutgers, Clemson
Analysis: "After three wins in Year 1 and seven in Year 2, both the oddsmakers and our projections are calling for another step forward for coach Brent Pry in Year 3 with the Hokies. It's not just the overwhelming amount of returning production from last season, but how that group performed during a stretch in which the Hokies closed the year with five in wins in their last seven games, with all five victories coming by at least 17 points. Things seemed to click in Blacksburg, and when you carry that over to a schedule that does not have Florida State, NC State or SMU, there is clear room for more upward movement within the league. Over 8.5 wins"
If this prediction comes true, it is hard to see how Virginia Tech would not be playing in the ACC title game with a 10-2 record, with one of the losses being a non-conference loss vs Rutgers. The Hokies would have the tiebreaker over Miami and Georgia Tech, so it could depend on how Florida State finishes.
If Virginia Tech did get to the ACC Championship Game, they would then have the opportunity to win the conference and qualify for the new 12-team playoff. Considering where the program was when Brent Pry took over, that would be a huge accomplishment in year three. Virginia Tech is getting a lot of love this offseason and one thing they are going to have to navigate is how to handle the expectations. Games against Miami and Clemson are going to be huge tests, but those might be the only games in which the Hokies are underdogs. Being able to play as a favorite is going to be vital for this team going into the season.
JACKSON CAUDELL