Virginia Tech knew they had a huge task in front of them opening the season against No. 13 South Carolina in Atlanta, but with a roster overhaul this offseason and some big coaching changes, the Hokies were a bit of an unknown entering the game.
In the end, it was the same old story for Virginia Tech under Brent Pry: self-inflicted mistakes, penalties, poor clock management all added up to a 24-11 loss where the Hokies were held out of the end zone by a talented Gamecocks' defense. Yes, it's another frustrating loss, but it's one where, believe it or not, it wasn't all that bad. Here are five big observations from the season-opening loss.
1. Defense settled in and played well
The first drive of the game by South Carolina was far from pretty for the Hokies' defense under first-year coordinator Sam Siefkes. The Gamecocks marched down the field with ease and found the end zone after just seven plays for a 7-0 lead. South Carolina did what they wanted when they wanted.
However, after that drive, Virginia Tech kept the Gamecocks' offense in check, not allowing another touchdown until the Gamecocks sealed the game with a 64-yard touchdown pass over the top of Tech's defense from Sellers to Nyck Harbor to put the game away. Before that, the Hokies got pressure on Sellers, forced to throw the ball more than he would have liked, but bent and never really broke until late in the game. Virginia Tech could have used a turnover or two in the game.
2. Clock management is still an issue
Stop me if you've heard this before, Brent Pry having questionable clock management issues. It's becoming a yearly issue and at the end of the first half and in the fourth quarter, it reared its ugly head at the wrong time.
Driving late in the first half into South Carolina territory, Pry misused some timeouts, and what started as a promising drive ended with a John Love 56-yard field goal. Then, after Harbor's touchdown to give South Carolina a 24-11 lead, the Hokies showed no sense of urgency on the following drive, letting time tick off the clock before Drones threw an interception on fourth down. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
3. Wide receivers Ayden and Donavon Greene make some big catches
Drones completed 15 of his 35 passes and eight of those 15 completions went to wide receivers Ayden and Donavon Greene. Donovan had three catches for 94 yards including a pretty catch down the sideline in the third quarter while being held. Unfortunately, he picked up a bad-timing personal foul penalty following a sack of Drones that moved the Hokies back into their own territory and killed the momentum of the drive. However, if he's going to play like that this year, then Virginia Tech has something.
Ayden was a highly touted returning receiver from last year, and he had five catches for 71 yards, with a nice catch for 36 yards. He made an incredible catch along the sideline in the first half, but it was brought back by, you guessed it, a penalty. He is primed for a special season.
4. Defensive line could be a special one this year
Not only was Virginia Tech breaking in a new defensive coordinator, but they were replacing a lot of talent from their defensive line from last year that they lost to the NFL. After the first drive, the d-line got some great push, which led to a safety, and they racked up sacks as a unit.
Emmett Laws, Kemari Copeland, Elhadj Fall, and company made things difficult at times for Sellers and the Gamecocks' offense. Was it perfect? No, but there is no way that you don't come away from the game feeling better about that group for the rest of the season.
5. Simple avoidable mistakes continue to haunt Virginia Tech
If there is another team in the country that seems to hurt themselves with simple, avoidable mistakes each week, I'd like to meet them. It's the little things that can make a difference in a game, and that was the case against the Gamecocks.
Early in the fourth quarter, and South Carolina clinging to a 10-8 lead, Virginia Tech was forced to punt, and the ball went out of bounds at the Gamecocks' 26-yard line. Perfect. However, the Hokies were flagged for an illegal formation on the kick, and Shane Beamer made them rekick. Smart move. Vicari Swain fielded the ensuing punt at the South Carolina 20-yard line and returned it 80 yards to the house for a backbreaking score. Two punts in a row never lead to good results, and a simple formation penalty basically sealed the game. Virginia Tech football.