The clearest strength on Virginia Tech’s roster coming out of fall camp sits right at the top of the list: tight end. That was already the expectation in Blacksburg, and the last few weeks only reinforced it. Luke Reynolds and Benji Gosnell both looked every bit like true TE1 options, while Ja'Ricous Hairston and Harrison Saint-Germain also flashed enough to keep the room stacked with usable pieces.
Running back lands in the same kind of no-drama territory. Marcellous Hawkins was one of the best backs in the country last season even with shaky blocking in front of him, and Jeffery Overton added another layer of promise with limited opportunities. His 69 yards on seven carries against Miami stood out, especially against one of the nation’s best run defenses.
From there, the defense gets a little more complicated. Cornerback might be the most impressive group on the team, and maybe one of the better secondaries in the ACC and beyond.
Isaiah Brown-Murray was one of the few real bright spots for Virginia Tech in 2025, Joshua Clarke was set for a major role before his injury, and both JoJo Crim and Jahmari DeLoatch got meaningful run as true freshmen. The portal addition of Jaquez White has only strengthened the room; he’s looked in camp like the player Virginia Tech thought it was getting, consistently winning one-on-one battles.
Safety, though, remains a concern. Tyson Flowers and Quintin Reddish have both shown flaws, even if their situations aren’t identical.
Reddish is still young, while Flowers was forced into a heavy workload last season because of the issues on the other side. Depth there is still very much up in the air, and the full picture won’t come into focus until the season starts.
Quarterback comes in next at No. 4, which is a small slide from where it sat heading into the summer. That doesn’t mean the room has taken a step back so much as several other groups have pushed forward.
Kyron Drones is gone, and Ethan Grunkemeyer now takes over as the new starter for Virginia Tech’s opener against VMI. He has shown real upside in camp, especially with his arm talent and ability to create outside the pocket.
Still, this is a room built on projection right now. There’s depth and competition behind him, but not much proven experience, and that keeps the position from climbing any higher for the moment.
Wide receiver checks in at No. 5, down one spot from the pre-camp ranking. The talent is there, and the athletes are there, but Virginia Tech still needs more consistent production from the group. The Hokies are going to ask several receivers to take on bigger roles this season after the departures from last year’s roster.
There have been reasons to feel better about the room, though. Ayden Greene, Que'Sean Brown and Marlion Jackson have all stood out at different points, and Jackson has been especially interesting after making plays regularly during the open portions of camp.
The upside is obvious. The question is whether it turns into steady production against ACC competition.
Linebacker moves up two spots to No. 6, which says something about how the group looked across camp. It still isn’t a finished product, but Virginia Tech has seen enough from the combination of returning players and newcomers to feel more comfortable with it heading into the season.
Noah Chambers and Kaleb Spencer lead the way, while portal additions Keon Wylie and Curtis Jones Jr. add more experience. That should be enough for the Hokies to get by, even if this isn’t shaping up to be one of the defense’s defining strengths.
The offensive line is still the biggest roll of the dice. Justin Terry and Logan Howland have both missed significant time over the offseason, and some younger players are still trying to carve out spots in the two-deep.
There’s reason to believe the unit will improve from last season, which was derailed by injuries and forced Virginia Tech to lean on inexperienced players far too often. Even so, year two under Matt Moore remains difficult to project.
And then there’s the defensive line, which might be the roster’s biggest worry. Behind Kamari Copeland and Elhadj Fall, the interior depth is thin, and Emmett Laws is expected to miss at least a few weeks early in the year.
On the edge, Samuel Oklunlola is the only player with significant experience. Virginia Tech is going to have to manufacture its pass rush with a committee approach, and that doesn’t look especially promising right now.
In Other News...
Virginia Tech Added A Guard With One Big Roster Catch
Virginia Tech has added another name to its mens basketball backcourt, signing guard Butta Johnson after his lone season at Clemson. Johnson arrives with one year of eligibility left, giving the Hokies another experienced option as they continue shaping the roster for the future.
The catch is the one that matters most for now: Johnson has not yet been granted eligibility relief, and his path to playing time is tied to a lawsuit seeking additional eligibility. If that process goes his way, he would count as one of Virginia Techs 15 scholarship players in the 2026-27 season, leaving his status as a roster piece with a legal wrinkle still hanging over it. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Helped Spark A Fight LSU Is Daring To Ignore
Several college athletic conferences, including the Big Ten, SEC and ACC, have already voted or are moving toward banning NFL players from jumping into college football programs, part of a broader push to keep the line between pro and college sports from blurring any further. The NFL has answered with its own restriction, barring players who leave the league for college football from signing with any team in the 2026 season, and that backdrop has only sharpened the attention around LSUs unusual recruiting activity.
Against that backdrop, LSU has kept chasing former NFL players for both football and basketball, with tight end Dae'Quan Wright, defensive lineman Zxavian Harris and guard RJ Luis Jr. all in the mix. Luis has already been granted a preliminary injunction to play basketball for LSU in the 2026-27 season, and the schools willingness to push ahead leaves a bigger question hanging over the rest of those pursuits, especially as more of college sports moves to close the door. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Tech's James Franklin Era Comes With One Big 2026 Debate
Virginia Tech is about to open its season under James Franklin with a Sept. 5 date against VMI, and the early conversation around the Hokies has already shifted beyond kickoff. The new staff brings a fresh look, and with it comes a round of 2026 projections that suggest this group can be better than the one that came before it, even as the roster still has plenty of moving parts and a schedule that will test how real that improvement is.
The biggest question is how quickly the offense comes together around Ethan Grunkemeyer, with Greene and Reynolds expected to be key pieces in giving him help. Virginia Tech has enough returning and emerging talent to make optimism feel reasonable, but there are still concerns on both sides of the ball and enough uncertainty in the setup that the long-range forecast feels more like a debate than a conclusion. [Read more 🡒]