Seven points, and a couple of rough finishes, are all that stand between Virginia Tech and a much shinier October.
The Hokies sit at 4-2 overall and 1-2 in the ACC, and Saturday’s sold-out Homecoming matchup with Georgia Tech at Lane Stadium could tell us a lot about which version of this team is real. The Yellow Jackets come in at 2-3 and 1-1 in the league, fresh off a 28-25 upset of previously unbeaten Duke.
Virginia Tech looks better in the spots that usually decide games like this. The Hokies have the edge at quarterback, they’ve been sturdier up front, and they’re the more dangerous team when the game turns into a trench battle. Georgia Tech, meanwhile, has not exactly looked like a unit built to squeeze out a clean road win in Blacksburg.
A big part of that is what Virginia Tech can do through the air. Georgia Tech didn’t sack Duke’s Walker Eget once on Saturday, and the Blue Devils converted 10 of 17 third downs.
Against FBS opponents, the Yellow Jackets are giving up 29.5 points a game. Cal managed to get to Virginia Tech quarterback Grunkemeyer three times last week, and Georgia Tech hasn’t shown the same pass-rush bite.
It has only six sacks on the season, and half of them came against FCS Mercer.
Grunkemeyer has completed 73.1% of his passes for 1,734 yards and 12 touchdowns against two interceptions. Both picks came in one night against Pitt, when he also threw for 434 yards.
The ground game is another place Virginia Tech can tilt this one. Through five games, Georgia Tech ranks 117th in the FBS in rushing yards per game at 183.0. It did slow Duke freshman running back Nate Sheppard to 3.7 yards per carry, though he still found the end zone twice on the ground.
Virginia Tech has had a clear split of its own. The Hokies have averaged about 178 rushing yards per game in their four wins, but just 178 total in their two losses.
Sophomore Jeffrey Overton Jr. is averaging 5.9 yards a carry, yet he got only two carries after halftime in Berkeley. That points to the sort of play-calling issue Virginia Tech cannot afford to carry into a game like this, especially against a defense that should invite a heavier dose of the run.
Georgia Tech’s first-year starter has been sacked nine times in five games this season, and Virginia Tech still brings one of the ACC’s most disruptive fronts. Even with just one sack against Jackson Brousseau on Saturday, the Hokies lead the conference with 19 sacks. Their run defense is also fifth among the details that matter most here, ranking 14th nationally at 86.5 yards allowed per game through six contests.
That matters because if the Hokies can take away Justice Haynes and Trelain Maddox on early downs, the pressure shifts to Mendoza in a stadium that should be loud and hostile. Georgia Tech has played only one road game so far. It led Stanford 20-10 before losing 34-27.
Of course, Virginia Tech has left enough openings for an upset to feel entirely plausible. The Hokies were ahead of Pitt 14-0 and led Cal with 1:15 left, then lost both games.
Along the way, they were penalized 15 times for 170 yards, including 30 yards on Cal’s winning drive. They also have not forced a turnover in four games.
Special teams is another uneasy spot. John Love missed a 36-yard field goal on the final play against Pitt, then missed from 55 and 39 yards at Cal.
It’s the first time in his career he has missed three straight. Afterward, coach James Franklin said, “We’re going to have to create some more competition.”
Georgia Tech has had its own late-game moments, and that is part of what makes this so tricky. The Yellow Jackets have played three one-score games in five.
Kicker Aidan Birr is 6-for-8. They lost by one to Colorado and by seven to Stanford, then rallied from a 25-21 deficit with 2:40 left against Duke, driving 61 yards before Maddox scored from the 1 with 54 seconds remaining.
Brent Key called it “the first time this year we’ve played as a football team.”
Lane Stadium has not been much of a separator in this matchup either. Georgia Tech has won four of its last five trips to Blacksburg.
Virginia Tech has enough advantages to win this by two scores. It has also already shown, in very similar situations, that it can lose a game like this by two points.
Clemson is next on Oct. 24, followed by the bye week and a trip to SMU. First comes the sort of game that can make this season look a lot different.
In Other News...
Virginia Tech Faces A Brutal ACC Question After Another Collapse
Virginia Techs latest stumble fit right into a widening ACC picture after Week 6, one that has left the league sorting contenders from pretenders with very little clarity behind Miami and Wake Forest. Boston College is still trying to find its footing, Stanford has been battered by lopsided losses, Syracuse had the look of a team that could have beaten Virginia despite the numbers, and Georgia Techs upset of Duke only added to the sense that the middle of the conference is as volatile as ever.
For the Hokies, the frustration is even sharper because they keep finding themselves close enough to turn a week into a statement and instead walking away with another collapse. Virginia Tech had control late against Cal and looked positioned to bank a much-needed win, but the finish instead became part of the ACCs growing list of head-scratching endings, the kind that makes every upcoming schedule line feel heavier than it should. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Tech Gets A Surprising Chance To Silence Doubts This Week
Virginia Tech heads into Lane Stadium this week carrying the sort of lingering questions that tend to hang around a team after two close losses. The Hokies still have enough in their favor to make this a meaningful response spot, with Ethan Grunkemeyer steering the offense and Luke Reynolds giving the passing game another reliable target, while the ACC Network broadcast adds a little more visibility to a game that could shape the early read on this group.
Georgia Tech arrives with its own weapons, especially quarterback Alberto Mendoza and running back Justice Haynes, so this is not the kind of tune-up that lets Virginia Tech coast through the afternoon. For the Hokies, the bigger issue is less about reputation and more about whether they can turn near misses into something cleaner and more convincing against an opponent that can make them earn every answer. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Tech Needs Grunkemeyer Again As New Concern Builds Up Front
James Franklin used his media session ahead of Homecoming against Georgia Tech to put a spotlight on the two places Virginia Tech most needs steadiness right now: the quarterback and the line in front of him. Ethan Grunkemeyer has given the Hokies a reliable presence under center, with 1,734 passing yards and a 12:2 touchdown-to-interception ratio over six games, and Franklin made it clear he believes the young passer has handled the job well as the offense keeps trying to build around him.
The bigger concern is what happens around Grunkemeyer, where injuries have thinned the offensive line and forced Virginia Tech into a next-man-up approach. Franklin also pointed to ongoing issues in the secondary, where the problems are about coverage rather than health, and that leaves the Hokies trying to clean up two critical areas at once before a conference matchup that could expose either one quickly. [Read more 🡒]