Virginia Tech Football Rebuild Turning Into a Giant Mess One Year Later

After starting the 2023 season 1-3, the Virginia Tech football team won five of their last eight games to become bowl-eligible at 6-6. After the turnaround, head coach Brent Pry and his staff got a large amount of retainment and with some transfer portal additions and a 21-point Military Bowl win over Tulane, expectations were high for 2024.

All off-season, we were told the culture was in place, and it was one where players wanted to stay. NFL scouts were taking notice for the 2025 Draft in Green Bay. National college football writers and analysts were on the Hokies hype train going into the season. Heck, Virginia Tech was even a popular darkhorse pick for the new 12-team College Football Playoff that begins this season. Then when it came time for the 2024 season, everything that could have gone wrong did go wrong.

Virginia Tech football’s rebuild takes a big step back in 2024

Just when you think major strides will be made in 2024, disaster strikes. The season-opening overtime loss at Vanderbilt was just the beginning. Another disappointing loss in Week 4 against Rutgers added to questions that faced the Hokies, including the slow starts to games that were an issue all season long.

Yes, injuries happened and they happened to everyone throughout the sport, however, five of the six losses were by one score with a 10-point loss at home to Clemson being the only double-digit loss. In that game, the Tigers were missing several players on defense and instead of running the ball, for some odd reason, the Hokies only ran the ball a handful of times. The Citadel, an FCS school, gashed Clemson for 275 yards on the ground. Yes, they were blown out, but at least they had the sense to attack a weak spot.

After blowing multiple double-digit leads in ACC games, it came down to a Thanksgiving Weekend home game against Virginia that Tech needed to win to become bowl-eligible. That wasn’t on many people’s bingo cards when the season began. Now a couple of weeks later, the Hokies are starting to feel the effect of a disappointing season with so much hope.

When the transfer portal opened Monday, the exodus began and there were some surprising names including Mose Phillips, Braelin Moore, Mansoor Delane, and Malachi Thomas. In the current state of college sports, it’s becoming a free agency frenzy with NIL. Virginia Tech doesn’t have the dough other schools do and these players are leaving to get paid. All of them would have been huge pieces to the 2025 Hokie team.

Yes, some are likely looking to get paid, but others might see where the program is headed. The rebuild that was close to being over looks like it’s starting again. In the end from coaching decisions to lack of money to the results on the field, the once-proud rebuild needs to be rebuilt again. It’s not sitting well with the fans and rightfully so.