Virginia Tech now knows when it will walk into its Week 8 showdown with Clemson, even if the exact network and kickoff slot remain tied to this weekend’s broadcast shuffle.
The Atlantic Coast Conference announced Monday afternoon that the Hokies and Tigers will meet on Saturday, Oct. 24, in Clemson, S.C., with kickoff set for either 7:00 or 7:30 p.m. ET. The game will air on either ESPN or ESPN2, with the final designation to be determined after this weekend’s slate.
It’s a trip Virginia Tech has not made in a while. The Hokies last played Clemson on the road in the 2012 season, and that game ended in a 38-17 loss.
Since then, the Tigers have largely controlled the series. Virginia Tech hasn’t beaten Clemson since Oct. 6, 2007, when the then-No.
15 Hokies rolled past the then-No. 22 Tigers, 41-23.
Overall, Tech is 12-24-1 all-time against Clemson and 2-5 in ACC matchups. The Hokies have dropped their last seven games in the series, a streak that stretches all the way back to that 2007 win.
The two teams have crossed paths only twice in the 2020s, and both meetings came in Blacksburg. Clemson won 45-10 in 2020, then came back in 2024 to beat Virginia Tech 24-14 in a game shaped by quarterback instability.
In that 2024 matchup, Hokies quarterback Kyron Drones went 9-of-20 for 115 yards with no touchdowns and one interception before leaving in the second half and not returning for the rest of the game - or the season. Backup Collin Schlee finished 7-of-17 for 73 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
A limited Bhayshul Tuten was the only Virginia Tech running back to record carries, finishing with four rushes for no gain. As a team, the Hokies ran 21 times for just 40 yards, a 1.9-yard average.
That loss was part of a 6-7 finish, one that included four defeats in a five-game stretch.
This year, though, Virginia Tech has already shown a much different profile through six games. The Hokies are 4-2, a record built on big highs and frustrating dips. They opened with a 73-3 demolition of VMI, then beat Old Dominion 44-21 in a game that came nearly a year after Tech’s 45-26 loss to the Monarchs.
That momentum continued with a 35-26 win at Maryland on Sept. 19, a result that snapped a 15-game losing streak against non-conference Power Four opponents. Virginia Tech then opened ACC play by beating Boston College 21-14 in a nor’easter, powered by sophomore running back Jeffrey Overton Jr., who piled up a career-high 209 rushing yards. He gained 140 of them in the fourth quarter and broke loose for a 76-yard touchdown that put the Hokies ahead.
The first loss came on Oct. 2 against Pitt, a 35-33 defeat at Lane Stadium. Virginia Tech jumped out to a 14-0 lead and held a massive edge in yardage, 499-295, but Pitt answered with a 35-10 surge. The Hokies still had a chance late, but fifth-year kicker John Love missed a 36-yard field goal that would have won it, spoiling Tech’s shot at a 5-0 start for the first time since 2017.
Virginia Tech’s second straight loss came Saturday in Berkeley, Calif., where Cal edged the Hokies 25-20. Tech led 14-13 heading into the fourth quarter, but the Golden Bears answered with a 14-play, 79-yard drive that took 7:07 off the clock and gave them the lead.
Virginia Tech briefly moved back in front on a 1-yard rushing touchdown by quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer, but Cal responded in just 57 seconds. A 2-yard rushing score with 18 seconds left put the Golden Bears ahead for good.
The Hokies had one final chance, driving to the 7-yard line before Grunkemeyer’s last throw to a well-covered Luke Reynolds fell incomplete. Jackson Brousseau, making his first start for Cal, completed 29 of 43 passes for 321 yards.
Grunkemeyer finished 21-of-31 for 288 yards and accounted for two total touchdowns, one passing and one rushing, while taking three sacks. For the season, he has completed 152 of 208 passes, a 73.1% clip, for 1,734 yards, 12 touchdowns and two interceptions. His passing yardage ranks sixth in the nation, and his quarterback rating of 78.6 stands 24th.
Before Clemson comes into view, Virginia Tech has another ACC test on deck. The Hokies will host Georgia Tech on Saturday, Oct. 17, at 3:30 p.m. ET on the ACC Network.
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 🡒]