Virginia Tech football coach Brent Pry reveals where the Hokies are compared to last season

It’s no secret that the Virginia Tech football team is getting a lot of mentions from various national college football writers and even fans. Head coach Brent Pry got a lot of retainment from a team that won six of their last nine games last season, including a 41-20 Military Bowl victory over Tulane.

Winning their final regular season game over Virginia jump-started the Hokies into what could be considered a key offseason going into Year 3 under Pry in Blacksburg. The 55-17 blowout of the Cavaliers made Virginia Tech bowl-eligible and allowed them to have more practice in December ahead of the bowl game.

What was just as big, and maybe even bigger, was that there was a large amount of retention with the roster. Several key players announced that they were returning to Virginia Tech for the 2024 season on both sides of the ball. Add in some key transfers that are expected to step right in and make a huge impact in 2024 has been a recipe to think that 2024 could be very good for the Hokies.

It certainly feels like Virginia Tech is well ahead at this point in the offseason now than they were one year ago and Pry acknowledged that to ESPN’s Harry Lyles, Jr.

"We know a lot more about our players on our team right now than what we did last year at this time. For years, even as a defensive coordinator, you go down your depth chart, and you want to know what you're going to get from a guy when you put him out there. ... And so we have a lot more guys that have proven and have the experience, have the consistency, the work ethic, the attitude. You kind of know what you're going to get."

- Brent Pry

Just watching the Spring Game on April 13, you could see just how far along Virginia Tech is right now than at this time last spring. That bodes very well once practices start over the summer and leading into the 2024 season.

Virginia Tech being ahead at this time compared to last offseason is huge

It can’t be overstated just how important it is that Pry and the Hokies are much further ahead right now than this time last season. Quarterback Kyron Drones, who transferred in from Baylor prior to the 2023 season, is ready to take the next step and his retainment might end up being the biggest when all is said and done. Yes, retention at wide receiver and running back will help and the offensive line will be more experienced and should be better as well.

Defensively, Pry and coordinator Chris Marve knows what they have, and transfer portal additions are going to play a big part in the Hokies' success on that side of the ball. There is a lot of attention on Virginia Tech ahead of 2024 and Pry feeling like they are ahead at this point than they were last season at this time is not good news for the rest of the ACC with the potential they have up and down their depth chart behind their starters.