No Virginia Tech player heard his name called in April, but the Hokies’ draft picture has changed fast.
The biggest leap belongs to tight end Benji Reynolds, who has gone from a seventh-round consensus in June to a genuine Day 2 candidate. ESPN analyst Jordan Reid has him at No. 47 and third among tight ends, while CBS Sports’ Mike Renner slots him at No. 39 on his midseason board. NFL Mock Draft Database now has Reynolds at No. 57 overall with a second-round projection, and Pro Football Focus put him in its stock-up column on Monday.
That rise has a lot to do with production. Reynolds has 50 catches for 493 yards and six touchdowns, and the Associated Press named him a first-team midseason All-American. He caught 26 passes for 257 yards in his final season at Penn State, so he has already nearly doubled that catch total with at least four games still to play.
The appeal is easy to see for NFL teams. Nine tight ends went on Day 2 of last April’s draft, and Reynolds fits the mold evaluators keep paying for: 6'4", 250 pounds, soft hands, and a knack for settling into coverage windows. He also comes from the same Penn State coaching tree that produced six drafted tight ends under James Franklin, including Tyler Warren at No. 14 overall in 2025.
There has been one small dip. After scoring four times in Virginia Tech’s first three games, Reynolds went four straight without a touchdown before finding the end zone twice in Saturday’s 20-16 win at Clemson.
Both scores came from inside the 10, including the 5-yard winner on fourth-and-1. Reynolds is a true junior with two years of eligibility left, which means a real January decision could be coming if the current board holds.
Wide receiver Cameron Brown has also made a strong case. Through eight games, he has 51 catches for 685 yards and three touchdowns, including a career-high 182 yards against Georgia Tech.
The number that jumps off the page is 533 yards after the catch, which makes up 78% of his production. Virginia Tech is getting him the ball near the line, and he is turning those touches into explosive gains.
PFF grades him at 80.3, which ranks 43rd among 624 qualified receivers. The concern is size - he is 5'8" and 175 pounds - but as a redshirt junior with two years left, he has time to build more tape.
On the other side of the ball, Aycen Stevens has gone from untested to one of the ACC’s most productive pass rushers. He did not record a sack before this season.
Now he has eight, tied for fourth in the country and the most in the conference. He has at least one sack in six of eight games, including 2.5 against Georgia Tech, and he has forced three fumbles.
Stevens came to Virginia Tech from Indianapolis as a linebacker recruit, redshirted in 2023, then moved to the defensive line the following year. At 6'5" and 264 pounds, he has the kind of frame scouts want on the edge.
“His improvement from the time that we showed up to now is significant,” Franklin said. Even so, NFL Mock Draft Database has him at No. 203 with a sixth-round projection based on one mock, and his night at Clemson - three tackles, no sacks - showed how much work remains.
Quarterback Kyron Grunkemeyer is more of a long-term name, but his season has still added to Virginia Tech’s story. He has completed 187 of 262 passes for 2,140 yards, 17 touchdowns and two interceptions, and his 71.4% completion rate would break Hendon Hooker’s program record of 65.3%, set in 2020.
Protection has been the problem. Grunkemeyer has been sacked 14 times over the last three games, including five against Georgia Tech, three at Cal and six at Clemson.
“We had a hard time protecting [Grunkemeyer],” Franklin said after the Clemson win. A redshirt sophomore, he is not in NFL Mock Draft Database’s 2027 pool, so this draft cycle is not his issue.
The more he survives behind a shaky line, the more 2028 tape he builds.
Defensive tackle Darius Copeland entered the season as Virginia Tech’s most visible draft prospect, but the numbers have not matched the preseason buzz. He was the Hokies’ lone preseason All-ACC selection, appeared on the Senior Bowl’s Top 300 list and came off a third-team All-ACC year with 4.5 sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss.
This season he has 20 tackles and one sack. Renner has him at No. 126, while NFL Mock Draft Database puts him at No. 252 with a seventh-round projection.
The pre-draft concern from NFL Draft Buzz - that longer guards can control his shorter frame - has not gone away. Copeland is a redshirt senior, so this is his last shot, even if interior linemen rarely show up clearly in the box score.
Virginia Tech did pile up 13 tackles for loss at Clemson, but his case now comes down to the final four games and all-star week.
Cornerback Jalen White also helped himself against Clemson. He made 11 tackles, including a sack on the Tigers’ final drive.
White transferred in from Troy after a second-team All-Sun Belt season that included 67 tackles, three interceptions and 11 pass breakups, and he has one year of eligibility remaining. He is not in the NFL Mock Draft Database’s 2027 pool yet, but a senior corner who tackles like that can force his way into the discussion quickly.
The next stretch will matter just as much. SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings is up next, followed by Miami’s Darian Mensah on Nov.
- PFF grades Mensah at 92.5, so that one will be a major test for White, while Copeland gets another chance to disrupt a top passer.
Virginia Tech is 6-2, 3-2 in the ACC and bowl-eligible after the Clemson win, and with an off week before the Nov. 6 trip to SMU, the Hokies have already given NFL evaluators plenty to watch. The 2027 draft opens April 29 in Washington, D.C., and if Reynolds keeps this pace, Virginia Tech won’t go through another draft without a pick.
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 Bye Week Is Putting Pressure On Two Key Battles
A bye week gives Virginia Tech a chance to catch its breath after opening the season 6-2, but it also puts a spotlight on the little things the staff wants cleaned up before the Hokies return to action against SMU on Nov. 6. James Franklin spent part of the break talking through recent performances and the way practice has been adjusted, with an eye toward keeping the team sharp while it resets for the stretch run.
Franklin also pointed to the ongoing competition behind the starting quarterback spot, a battle that has stayed active as the Hokies sort out their depth. He praised the way some freshmen have helped, while also noting there is more room for young players to earn trust as Virginia Tech tries to turn close losses into lessons and keep building on a resilient first half of the season. [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 🡒]