Virginia Tech Football: Hokies need to attack Purdue in this area

The Virginia Tech football team will be looking to improve to 2-0 on Saturday afternoon in Week 2 at Lane Stadium against Purdue. Both teams will be entering the game off of two very different results last Saturday.

The Hokies are coming off a 36-17 win over Old Dominion, while the Boilermakers enter off a 39-35 loss at home to Fresno State. If Virginia Tech can take advantage of one area against Purdue, it’s when they’re on offense.

Virginia Tech needs to attack the Purdue defensive backs

Hokies quarterback Grant Wells had a good opener against Old Dominion, throwing for 251 yards and two touchdowns while going 17-for-29. Could it have been better? Yes, he missed some wide-open receivers with either long or short throws.

Purdue’s secondary was attacked by the Bulldogs and they torched them for nearly 400 yards passing. Fresno State racked up 371 yards passing and four touchdowns at home in allowing a surprising 39 points to the underdog Bulldogs.

This weekend feels like it’s going to be a good weekend to throw the ball downfield more. New wide receivers Ali Jennings, Jaylin Lane, and Da’Quan Felton are going to be a big part of the game. One thing that was evident against ODU was the play-making abilities of the three new transfer portal receivers. Lane and Felton both were able to break tackles, gain more yards, and turn some of the receptions into big plays.

Tuesday, Pry made the announcement that some had feared that Nick Gallo had season-ending surgery following a non-contact injury at the end of training camp. It’s a big loss for Wells and the offense, but that opens the door for backup tight ends Benji Gosnell and Dae’Qaun Wright, both of whom caught a pass for over 10 yards against the Monarchs.

This might be the perfect game to get transfer running back Bhayshul Tuten going on some swing passes out of the backfield as he had a tough time getting going in the running game in the opener.

If there is one area where the Hokies can have a lot of success against the Boilermakers, it’s in the passing game. More options this season for Wells with Jennings, Lane, and Felton on the outside, Gosnell and Wright and Tuten in the backfield should allow Virginia Tech to open up the playbook and spread things around to keep Purdue guessing.