Virginia Tech Football: 2 Biggest Questions on Defense Entering Camp

As we enter the last three days in July, college football camps are just around the corner from kicking into full gear. Virginia Tech returns most of its roster from the 2023 season on both sides of the ball, but there are still questions that face Brent Pry and his staff.

This offseason, defense is where the Hokies did most of their transfer portal work with some key additions at all three levels. As camps are about to begin on a much anticipated 2024 season, here are two questions facing the Hokies on the defensive side of the ball.

How does things work out at linebacker?

Last season the Hokies struggled at linebacker and Pry made it a priority in the transfer portal getting Middle Tennessee State transfer Sam Brumfield, a player that they hope can be the mike linebacker. Last season for the Blue Raiders, he had 82 tackles, 46 solo, and 3.5 sacks. The 5-foot-11, 230-pound Mississippi native had a good spring practice.

Keli Lawson returns this season, but missed all of spring practices with an injury, while this is a big camp for Jaden Keller and Caleb Woodson, while Jayden McDonald is looking to solidify a spot in the rotations. Let's face it, they need Brumfield to step in and fill the mike spot, which opens things up for the other players and Lawson needs to step up and have a very good camp. This is a position certainly watching over the next month.

How much better is the defensive line going to be in 2024?

Shortly after the Hokies routed Virginia to become bowl-eligible, players started to announce that they were returning to Blacksburg for another season, and defensive edge Antwaun Powell-Ryland, who had an impressive 2023 coming over from Florida, announced he was coming back, which was a huge announcement for Virginia Tech. He registered 9.5 sacks to lead a defense that turned things around along the line once ACC play began.

Cole Nelson returns along with Powell-Ryland, but the question for this group is how things will shake out at tackle. Duke transfer Aeneas Peebles will take one spot, but who gets the other? Josh Fuga is back, but transfers Kemari Copeland (Iowa Western Community College), Kelvin Gilliam (Oklahoma) and Khurtiss Perry (Alabama) are going to be in the mix as well.

Stopping the run will be key for the Hokies in 2024 as they will be facing some good running backs this fall and having a ton of depth will be key. Perry, Copeland, and Gilliam are all intriguing options and quietly, if things work out well, this could be a dominating group in the conference with the additions they have.

Camp battles on the defensive side of the ball are going to be interesting to watch as the month of August unfolds and if they can make it out of camp healthy, they will have a lot of depth for the season.