After all the preseason hype, the 2024 Virginia Tech football season could be considered a disappointment. They finished 6-6 and will play in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl against Minnesota in Charlotte on Jan. 3. Things got bad enough this season that it forced Brent Pry to fire some assistant coaches, something he didn’t want to do.
With the transfer portal open and players going out and beginning to come into Blacksburg and bowl practice underway, let’s take a look back at the best and worst in 2024 for the Hokies.
Best: Antwaun Powell-Ryland’s 2024 season
Defensive edge Antwaun Powell-Ryland had another great season for the Hokies, finishing with 16 sacks and he raised his draft stock. He had two four-sack games against Old Dominion and Boston College, but he was beaten out by BC’s Donovan Ezeiruaku for first-team All-ACC. He will not play in the bowl game against the Golden Gophers, but he was their best defensive player this season.
Worst: Vanderbilt & Rutgers losses
A lot of talk in the preseason was about the four non-conference games the Hokies had and how they could be used to begin the season strong going into ACC play. It didn’t happen and right from the start, they had struggles and it set the tone for the rest of the season. It started with an overtime loss at Vanderbilt in Week 1, followed by a Week 4 loss at home against Rutgers.
Both losses had slow starts and Virginia Tech dug themselves into deficits that they were not fully able to dig their way out of. There were questionable coaching decisions involved and they were just not able to finish drives with enough touchdowns rather than settling for field goals. Beginning ACC play 2-2 rather than 3-1 or 4-0 was a big difference.
Best: Bhayshul Tuten’s season
Nobody impacted a game more offensively this season for Tech than running back Bhayhsul Tuten. Like Powell-Ryland, his draft stock rose as the season went along. He finished the season with 1,159 yards on the ground with 15 touchdowns on 183 carries and averaged 6.3 yards a carry.
His best game was a record-setting night in October against Boston College when he rushed for 266 yards and three touchdowns in a 42-21 win over the Eagles. He spent two years in Blacksburg and what a portal addition from North Carolina A&T he turned out to be.
Worst: Miami loss
Despite splitting their non-conference games, the Hokies still had a big goal in front of them beginning ACC play, finding a way into one of the top two spots in the conference standings, and a berth in the ACC Championship Game in Charlotte. The dream ended rather quickly.
In their ACC opener at Miami in September, Virginia Tech appeared to have won the game with a Hail Mary touchdown pass, but after a review, the call on the field was overturned in what many people thought was not indisputable evidence and the Hokies suffered a devastating loss. It will be talked about for a long time.
Best: Virginia domination…… again
It wasn’t what Hokies fans had hoped for, hosting Virginia Thanksgiving Weekend and needing a win to become bowl-eligible. Unlike last season, the Cavaliers also came into the game needing a win to become bowl-eligible. Virginia Tech was able to get the job done once again to the tune of a 37-17 victory, continuing their domination in the series.
Worst: Injuries
Injuries were a big part of the season for Virginia Tech. Tuten missed some games after an ankle injury late in a win over Georgia Tech in October and former offensive lineman Xavier Chaplin battled numerous injuries as well. Quarterbacks Kyron Drones and Collin Schlee also suffered late-season injuries which forced freshman Pop Watson to finish the season under center.
On the defensive side, Jalen Stroman was lost in the season opener at Vanderbilt and Kemari Copeland had his season cut short with an injury as well. Injuries happen and are part of the game, but the Hokies suffered some rather key ones in 2024.
Best: Pop Watson & Kyron Drones returning
Last week Pry said that Drones and Watson are returning for 2025 and that is rather big news in this day and age with the transfer portal. Bringing back an experienced QB in Drones with the up-and-coming Watson is big for offensive coordinator Tyler Bowen. Now it’s a matter of developing an offensive line and skill players to go along with them.
Worst: Five one-score losses
This doesn’t need to be repeated, but it will. Five of Virginia Tech’s six losses were one-score games. If every one-score had the opposite result, the Hokies would have been 11-1 with their loss to Clemson their only non-one-score loss. Would that have been enough to get them into the 12-team College Football Playoff? We’ll never know. Oh, what could have been.