With VMI coming to Blacksburg on Sept. 5, Virginia Tech’s fall camp has done what camp usually does: sharpen a few answers, leave a few more dangling, and make the early read on Year 1 under James Franklin a little clearer without making it definitive.
The clearest takeaway is that the Hokies look better set up at quarterback than they did a year ago. After quarterback play was one of the more aggravating parts of Virginia Tech’s 2025 season, the room now looks deeper and more reliable.
Ethan Grunkemeyer’s arrival, along with the continued growth of the quarterbacks already in the program, has raised the ceiling in a noticeable way. That does not guarantee elite play once the games start, but it does suggest Virginia Tech has upgraded the position in a meaningful way.
Running back has also emerged as a real strength. Marcellous Hawkins and Jeffrey Overton Jr. look like the top two options, with Bill Davis, Tyler Mason and Messiah Mickens giving the Hokies more bodies and more ways to manage the workload over the course of the season. That kind of depth matters, especially if Virginia Tech wants to stay flexible from week to week and keep legs fresh.
Wide receiver is a little more layered. Ayden Greene, who had 516 yards and three touchdowns at Virginia Tech in 2025, and Que'Sean Brown, who put up 846 yards and five touchdowns at Duke in 2025, give the Hokies a dependable starting point.
After that, things get less settled. Louisiana Tech transfer Marlion Jackson brings the most experience, with 753 receiving yards over the last three seasons with the Bulldogs, while Takye Heath, who had 200 yards in 2025, Penn State transfer Tyseer Denmark and redshirt freshman Luke Stuewe are all in the mix for that third receiver role.
True freshman Davion "FatRat" Brown has also generated buzz because of his speed and the possibility that he can help in the return game.
How much the receivers are asked to carry could depend on what happens at tight end. Virginia Tech added former five-star Luke Reynolds, who had 257 receiving yards last season at Penn State, and Benji Gosnell should again have a bigger role in the passing game after catching 32 passes for 341 yards and two touchdowns in 2024.
If the Hokies can run the ball well, control the clock and keep pressure off the quarterback, the offense has a chance to look much more stable. That’s the part of camp that should make fans feel better.
The defense is a different story.
That side of the ball came into camp with real questions about depth and playmaking against an ACC schedule, and fall camp has not exactly erased them. Cornerback Jaquez White stood out at times, but the broader concerns remain. Compared with the optimism around quarterback and running back, the defense still carries more uncertainty.
That matters because Virginia Tech’s 2026 schedule leaves little margin for error once the season gets into its second half. SMU and Miami are among the opponents that can stress a defense, and there will be stretches when the offense won’t be able to simply outscore problems.
If the Hokies defend better, they have a chance to improve on 2025. If not, the same issues that hurt them last season could show up again.
So the best read on camp is pretty straightforward: Virginia Tech looks stronger in some of the areas that needed help most, especially on offense, but the defense is still the biggest obstacle to something bigger. Fall camp hasn’t completely changed the outlook. It has mostly confirmed where the optimism should live - and where the questions still are.
In Other News...
Virginia Techs Ranking Debate Comes Down To One Huge Question
Virginia Techs preseason buzz is landing in a familiar place for a program trying to push itself back into the national conversation: close enough to matter, but not quite settled enough to trust. Across the early rankings, the Hokies are showing up in the top-40 range, with some projections slotting them as high as the low 30s and others leaving them closer to No. 41, a spread that says as much about the rosters questions as it does about its promise.
The optimism starts with Ethan Grunkemeyer stepping in at quarterback and a group of returning offensive weapons giving the Hokies something tangible to build around. Still, the bigger debate is whether the ceiling can rise if the defense holds up and the new pieces at quarterback come together quickly enough. The range of preseason expectations, from 6-6 all the way to 9-3, makes it clear the real answer to Virginia Techs ranking debate is still waiting to be played out. [Read more 🡒]
Que'Sean Brown Gives Virginia Tech A New Weapon To Watch
QueSean Browns first season at Virginia Tech is already drawing national attention, with the redshirt junior landing on the Biletnikoff Award Watch List as one of college footballs top receivers to follow. Brown arrived from Duke and quickly became a name to track in the ACC, where he was one of nine wideouts from the league to make the list.
For the Hokies, the recognition adds to a growing list of preseason buzz around Brown, who also earned All-ACC honors as both a receiver and return specialist. It is the kind of early signal that suggests Virginia Tech may have found a versatile new weapon, even if the real payoff will come once the season starts and defenses have to deal with him on the field. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Tech Faces One Test That Could Shape Everything
Virginia Techs path through the ACC is going to ask plenty of this roster before the season even reaches its midpoint. With road trips to Boston College, Cal, Clemson, SMU and Miami, the Hokies are dealing with a schedule that piles on both quality opponents and plenty of miles, a combination that can wear on any team that is trying to stay steady from week to week.
The challenge is not just the names on the slate, but how all that travel could shape Virginia Techs bigger goals. For a team hoping to get back to bowl eligibility and keep itself in the conversation for the ACC race, there is little margin for a slow start or a stumble in the wrong spot, and the way it handles these long road swings may go a long way toward determining how high this season can go. [Read more 🡒]