After getting a ton of retainment after the 2023 season, things have gone the opposite route for Virginia Tech football coach Brent Pry following the 2024 regular season. After becoming bowl-eligible with a win over Virginia Thanksgiving Weekend, the Hokies were selected to play in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl on Jan. 3.
In between the Virginia win and Minnesota loss in Charlotte, the Hokies roster went through a huge change. Aside from the number of players who used up all of their eligibility and declared for the NFL Draft, Pry saw several players hit the transfer portal. That meant that the fourth-year coach was going to hit the portal hard himself to bring in players for 2025.
That was the case, as currently, Virginia Tech has got 19 players through the portal for some positions. One position that the Hokies focused on was running back after Bhayshul Tuten is headed for the NFL Draft and Malachi Thomas left through the portal for Purdue. Tuten is a big loss and Thomas is a depth loss, but Pry went out and was aggressive in the portal at running back for one reason.
Virginia Tech football coach Brent Pry explains the reason for the RB portal additions
In October, young running back P.J. Priouleau suffered a season-ending injury at Stanford and it sounds like there might be some concern about the injury. Also injured is incoming freshman Jeff Overton who the coaching staff is high on and they think that he could come in and help as early as the fall.
That leaves a lot of depth questions in the backfield with Jeremiah Coney and that’s why they were aggressive in the portal by adding Bowling Green’s Terion Stewart and Marcellous Hawkins of Central Missouri. Stewart won’t be on campus until the summer as he is finishing up classes at Bowling Green. Eighteen of the 19 portal additions are on campus.
Virginia Tech also has quarterbacks Kyron Drones and Pop Watson returning next season behind a new-look offensive line, but the aggressive approach in the portal for running backs was a no-brainer with the injuries the Hokies are dealing with.