Going into the 2024-25 college basketball season, the Virginia Tech men were one big unknown. After an off-season that saw a mass exodus out of the transfer portal in Blacksburg and with limited NIL resources, it was easy to see how it could be a long year for the Hokies.
That ended up being the case as they struggled in their non-conference schedule, with a home loss to Jacksonville in November, rock-bottom, or so we thought, to practically getting run off the court by Saint Joseph. right before Christmas. In all honesty, they looked like a team that may not win an ACC game, and if they did, they looked like a team that would not qualify for the ACC Tournament, as the bottom three teams were not going to Charlotte with the additions of SMU, California, and Stanford.
Virginia Tech report card for men's basketball 2024-25 season is perfect by ESPN
After losing to Duke on New Year's Eve, the outlook was bleak for the Hokies in ACC play, but they took advantage of a conference that was down and went 8-12 and finished in a tie for ninth place. They lost in the first round to California in the ACC Tournament, but you could see them make some progress as the season went along. Myron Medcalf of ESPN graded them with a C,which seems very fair.
"In his sixth season at Virginia Tech, Mike Young had to replace four of his five starters with two entering the portal and two graduating, a scenario a number of coaches endured this season but netted varying results. Picked to finish 14th in the preseason poll, the Hokies finished in a multiteam tie for ninth place to exceed projections. Losses to Jacksonville, Boston College and Cal, however, were also a sign of the team's decline from the previous season."
There is no doubt that they declined from the previous season and how could they not? There was more talent going out in the portal than there was coming in and anyone who expected anything much different than what happened wasn't paying attention close enough last off-season.
Young is clearly excited about the upcoming season as a bigger NIL package and adding Chester Frazier to the coaching staff have led to more excitement from the veteran coach. Factor in retention from some key players from last year's team, Jaden Schutt, Ben Hammond, and Tyler Johnson, along with exciting portal additions, and things should be on the up in Blacksburg next season.