Where Does Virginia Tech Land in New ESPN Bowl Projections Following Week One?
It’s still early in the college football season, but as always—there’s new bowl projections which place Virginia Tech against a new opponent.
With how the Hokies schedule plays out, there could certainly be some interesting matchups come bowl season. In their last five bowl games, Virginia Tech has played all kinds of opponents. Strong SEC schools, like Kentucky; group of five contenders, like Tulane; and teams that are big offensive threats, like Maryland.
No matter who the Hokies are matched up against during bowl season, they know not to take any opponent lightly. Vanderbilt tore at the Hokies' at-large playoff bid hopes away in week one, but Virginia Tech still has a shot at the ACC title game, where if they win--they get an automatic bid to the new 12-team college football playoff.
ESPN projected a different fate for the Virginia Tech Hokies in their new ESPN+ bowl projections. Mark Schlabach of ESPN slates the Hokies to face off against a service academy in the Birmingham Bowl.
That team would be the Army Black Knights led by Jeff Monken. He is entering his eleventh year as Army's head coach, and holds some impressive accolades as the head coach at Army. He has 71 win and 55 losses, but more importantly--he shows up in big games. He's won 80% of the bowl games he has coached in, including a three-year run from 2016 to 2018 where the Black Knights won three consecutive bowl games.
It's going to look different for the Black Knights this year. 2024 will mark the first year since 2004 where Army will not compete as a FBS Independent school. Army was a part of the Conference-USA briefly, at the turn of the millennium. Other than that brief stint, Army has competed as an independent school from 2005-2023, and 1891-1997.
Army's main goal in 2024 will not be a conference title, but to be the top service academy.
Army switched to a more shotgun heavy offense, but eventually opted back to the traditional style of Army play. Watch for quarterback Bryson Daily and running backs Tyrell Robinson and Kanye Udoh.
This would be an extremely exciting matchup in Birmingham for the Hokies.
RJ SCHAFER
RJ Schafer joined the On SI team in 2024, contributing to the coverage of Major League Baseball, Collegiate Basketball, and Collegiate Football at https://www.si.com/college/virginiatech/. Prior to this, RJ built a strong portfolio covering Georgia Tech and the Tigers for the Bleav Network. With a solid background in sports journalism, RJ has conducted interviews with both collegiate and professional athletes, enhancing the depth and authenticity of his reporting. RJ's extensive experience in the sports industry has equipped him with a keen understanding of the dynamics and intricacies of both collegiate and professional sports. His work is focused on providing insightful analysis and comprehensive coverage, making him a trusted voice in the sports community.