Virginia Tech Football News: Recruiting mess, signature win, ODU getting paid

A lot of things happened in the month of July, some good, and some not-so-good.
2025 ACC Football Kickoff
2025 ACC Football Kickoff | Matt Kelley/GettyImages

Camp is open, and the 2025 college football season is here. It's a big one for Virginia Tech, which is looking to rebound from a disappointing 2024 campaign. To do that, they'll have to do it against a difficult non-conference schedule early in the season as well as a daunting ACC schedule in November.

The Hokies get South Carolina and Vanderbilt the first two weeks, with the game against the Gamecocks being in Atlanta on Aug. 31, which is a Sunday afternoon stand-alone game. Then six nights later, they get an up-and-coming Vanderbilt team in Blacksburg. A win over South Carolina in Week 1 is a win that the Hokies would welcome, as it would be a big win that head coach Brent Pry says they are still missing.

"They've notched some big wins, which is where we're still trying to get,'' said Pry. "We came awful close on a Friday night down in Miami, but we haven't garnered that type of win. South Carolina presents an opportunity to do that."

As for coming awful close in Miami last year, well, it feels like they did enough to get that win, only to have it taken away on video review, which didn't seem like it had enough evidence to overturn the call. Anyway, time to move on to 2025.

Recruiting success hit the skids

Virginia Tech began July on commitment watch with Class of 2026 recruits, but unlike June, the commitments went the other way, and the Hokies lost most of the battles. Right now, they only have nine commitments, which is the lowest number in the ACC.

There is a key announcement coming up in August with Elijah Golden making his commitment, but it feels like beating out Notre Dame, Alabama, and Oklahoma is a tough ask. However, stealing a commitment in the class with Golden would be huge for Pry.

Virginia Tech paying ODU for three football games and a hoops game

Virginia Tech and Old Dominion canceled some games in their lengthy football series, and according to David Teel of The Virginian-Pilot, Virginia Tech is paying ODU approximately $2.7 million for three football games being played in Blacksburg and adding one men's basketball game. That game has to be played in 2027-28.

In the end, getting out of some of the ODU games was a move that needed to be made. Now it's just a matter of who the Hokies can pick up in their place, likely Power 4 conference schools.