BLACKSBURG - Virginia Tech’s bye week arrived with the Hokies sitting at 6-2 overall and 3-2 in the ACC, but the last month has been defined by tight finishes more than anything else. Each of their past six games has been decided by 10 points or fewer, and that stretch has included two one-score losses, a pair of close wins, and Saturday’s breakthrough at Clemson.
Head coach James Franklin spoke with reporters after practice on Tuesday, breaking down the mood of a team that has had to grind for everything it has gotten. He pointed to the Hokies’ 20-16 win over Clemson as a sign that the group is starting to handle those narrow margins better.
"I think we've got a resilient group," Franklin said. "It's not like the offense, the defense, the special teams is just clinic tape.
I wouldn't say it's that, but I think they're resiient. I think they battle their tails off.
I thought we played complementary football. Offense, defense and special teams all had a role in this game [against Clemson] - and we played winning football."
Virginia Tech opened October with back-to-back losses to Pitt and Cal, dropping those games by a combined seven points after a season-high four turnovers in the Pitt game. Ethan Grunkemeyer threw both of his only interceptions of the season in that loss, not counting picks wiped out by penalties. Franklin said the issue was less about effort and more about cleaning up mistakes that kept showing up.
"We just did things you can't do," Franklin said. "we'd come in on Sundays and talk about those things, but we weren't learning the lesson fast enough. So, I thought we took a step in that direction."
The changes in Tuesday’s practice were obvious. Virginia Tech usually works through 21 periods during the regular season, but this session was trimmed to 16. Franklin said the staff also adjusted reps for certain players and gave more chances to third-string players, something the Hokies have not done much during the regular season.
"Very similar to a training camp model, very similar to a spring ball model, but not out here very long," Franklin said. "A little bit longer meetings, but probably the most important thing is getting everybody back involved in practice, and very little D-squad stuff. More good on good."
The Hokies practiced Sunday and Tuesday, will work again Wednesday, and then step away for the rest of the traditional workweek. Because their next game against No.
19 SMU is set for Friday, Nov. 6, Virginia Tech will return to practice Saturday and then take Sunday off.
The extra reps have also opened things up for the backup quarterback battle, which Franklin said remains unsettled.
"It's still a close competition with those other three guys and who's battling each week for the backup quarterback spot," Franklin said. "So I think that's been probably as valuable as anything."
Franklin also addressed the development of Virginia Tech’s freshmen. Wide receiver Davion "FatRat" Brown and guard Benjamin Eziuka have already earned meaningful roles, but he said there are other young players who should be in the mix and are not making enough progress.
He estimated that four or five more freshmen could be contributing, but said their work habits in meetings, the weight room and practice have kept them from moving forward. Franklin described that mindset as "redshirt mode," with some players acting as if their future opportunities are all that matters.
"I still think there's some guys that kind of in their mind are already thinking towards spring ball and next fall, and they're not attacking it the right way," Franklin said. "There's probably four or five other freshmen that I think could be factoring in right now."
He said that approach can backfire if a player is called upon later in the season and isn’t ready.
"I could see a situation this year where you're going to be needed to play, and your number's going to get called, and you're not going to be ready, and you're going to regret it," Franklin said.
His message to those players was simple: time is shorter than it feels.
"They think they have a lot of time, and the seniors will tell them it flies by," Franklin said. "They don't have as much time as they think they do."
In Other News...
Virginia Tech Defense Faces Its Biggest Test After Promising Start
Brent Prys first year as Virginia Techs defensive coordinator has given the Hokies a real foundation to build on, even with some rough edges still showing. At 6-2 through eight games, the defense has done enough to keep the team moving forward, and its overall numbers have been solid, sitting 26th nationally in total defense. The pass defense has had its issues, but the run defense has held up well, and several Hokies have put themselves near the top of ACC statistical categories.
Now comes the part that will tell Virginia Tech a lot more about what this defense really is. The next stretch on the schedule brings a different level of challenge, the kind that can expose whether the strong early-season profile is sustainable or just a product of a manageable opening run. For Pry and the Hokies, the encouraging start has bought them credibility, but the weeks ahead will determine how much of that progress holds up when the opposition gets tougher. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Tech Has A Rising Draft Name Fans Need To Watch
Virginia Tech still has no players from its 2025 roster drafted, but there is at least one name moving fast enough to change that conversation. Tight end Reynolds has become one of the more intriguing risers on the Hokies pro radar after a strong season, with his stock climbing from a consensus seventh-round grade in June into much more favorable territory on some midseason boards.
Wide receiver Brown and defensive lineman Stevens have also turned in notable production, giving scouts a few more reasons to keep watching the Hokies down the stretch, even if Stevens still has work to do to rise into the upper tiers. Quarterback Grunkemeyer has added another layer to the evaluation with impressive efficiency, as his completion rate is tracking toward a program mark, and that mix of individual momentum could make Virginia Techs draft picture look very different by the time the season ends. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Tech Just Changed What This Season Can Still Become
A win over Clemson does more than brighten the record for Virginia Tech, it changes the shape of the season in James Franklins first year at the helm. The Hokies already have bowl eligibility locked up after the 20-16 victory on Oct. 24, and the breakthrough came with Ethan Grunkemeyer finding Luke Reynolds twice for touchdowns in a game that kept Virginia Tech alive in the thick of the fall.
Now the conversation shifts from getting to six wins to seeing how much farther this group can push it. The road ahead is still tough, and the next stretch will tell plenty about how real this turnaround can be, but the Clemson result gave Virginia Tech something it had been chasing all season: a margin for optimism, and a reason to believe the remaining schedule can still mean more than just finishing out November. [Read more 🡒]