Virginia Tech kicks off 2023 season with convincing 36-17 victory over Old Dominion

Raza Umerani

Staff Writer

September 3, 2023

BLACKSBURG — It’s no secret that Virginia Tech lacked explosive playmakers in its 2022 offense, a unit that finished second to last in the ACC. When head coach Brent Pry attacked the transfer portal to acquire offensive talent who could take the Hokies to the next level, it became clear that the group was ready to take a leap in 2023.

Three key newcomers shined as Virginia Tech (1-0) defeated Old Dominion (0-1) 36-17 in its season opener in front of an electric, sold out Lane Stadium crowd.

Tech’s trio of transfer wide receivers had debuts to remember as Ali Jennings III caught two touchdowns against his former team, Jaylin Lane racked up 69 yards and a score, and Da’Quan Felton made a tremendous catch and run on the sideline for 34 yards. All three had catches of 30 or more yards.

“We certainly knew those guys could be productive for us,” Pry told reporters after the game. “We knew that in the spring, and they’ve done it in preseason camp.” 

Having such prolific playmakers on the outside made life easy for Hokies quarterback Grant Wells, who ended the night with 251 yards and three touchdowns through the air while adding another score on the ground with no turnovers — a night-and-day difference from last year’s loss against the Monarchs where he threw four interceptions.

“I’m excited about our receiving room,” Wells said after the game. “They were pretty excited to get in Lane Stadium tonight. They were in my ear the entire game saying to throw the ball more. Any time you have that happen, that’s a pretty good sign.”

The transfer portal additions on defense flexed their muscles as defensive back Derrick Canteen forced a fumble and edge rusher Antwaun Powell-Ryland tallied two sacks – one of which was a strip sack that the Hokies couldn’t fall on top of.

Tech’s offense struggled to find its footing early, going three-and-out on the game’s first possession before turning the ball over on downs on a fourth-and-goal from ODU’s 2-yard line.

But the team seemed to get the boost it needed when the ensuing Monarch’s possession ended in a botched snap on a punt which sailed over the head of punter Ethan Duane and rolled out of the endzone for a safety, putting Tech up 2-0. The play was eerily reminiscent of the Hokies’ own botched snap on a field goal attempt last season in Norfolk which Old Dominion returned for a touchdown — the turning point in that game.

After getting the ball back, Wells led the offense down the field and found Lane for a 20-yard touchdown on the first play of the second quarter to extend the lead to 9-0.

“We got the look we wanted, it was man coverage,” Lane said after the game. “Grant was patient, he stepped up in the pocket and made the throw. Great ball.”

“We’re getting our scholarship money out of [Lane],” Pry said. “Between punt returns and playing wideout, he is an exceptional young man. And I think all the guys look to him. He has been the most consistent playmaker in our offense right now, and he showed that again tonight.”

Old Dominion would respond with a touchdown of its own — a 16-yard strike from quarterback Grant Wilson to wide receiver Dominic Dutton. Two Tech possessions later, Lane made a tough, contested catch on a deep ball from Wells that went for 34 yards to set up a 10-yard touchdown toss to Jennings — his first catch as a Hokie — to make it 16-7. 

“You can make plays all day in practice. Once you show up under the lights, then guys really know who you are,” Jennings told reporters after the game. “Being able to do that and show my team that I’m a playmaker and I can go out there and make plays for the team and help the team get wins. It felt great. In my celebration, I opened up the door and kicked the door down to let everyone know that I’m finally here.”

ODU’s next possession saw the Monarchs knock a 28-yard field goal through the uprights to make it a 16-10 game at halftime. 

The Hokies defense began to dominate in the second half. On the first drive of the half, Canteen forced a fumble on Monarchs running back Kadarius Calloway, which was scooped up by defensive back Nasir Peoples. After a 34-yard catch and run from Felton, Wells found Jennings for his second touchdown of the game to stretch the lead to 23-10.

The Monarchs refused to go away quietly as they responded with another impressive touchdown drive which was capped off by a 5-yard touchdown from Wilson to running back Keshawn Wicks to make it 23-17. But the Hokies marched right back down the field as a beautiful deep ball from Wells to Jennings for 44 yards led to a rushing touchdown for Wells on a quarterback sneak to make it a 30-17 ballgame. The score cemented the first 30-point outing for VT in the Brent Pry era.

The Hokies defense continued to dominate as the first play of the ensuing drive was a fumble from ODU running back Devin Roche forced by Peoples, allowing DT Josh Fuga to fall on top of the ball.

Peoples — a redshirt senior in his sixth season with the program and Tech’s No. 25 jersey recipient for the game — ended the night with a forced fumble, fumble recovery and pass breakup on a near-interception.

“He’s such a mature player for us,” Pry said. “In Week 1, to be anointed the jersey number 25 speaks volumes about the type of camp [he had], the [amount] of respect. He’s not just a safety in our defense … he started on three different special teams tonight. He certainly had an impact in the game.”

Two short field goals from John Love and an interception by defensive back Dorian Strong — who nearly returned it 50 yards for a touchdown — put the finishing touches on a 36-17 season-opening victory for the Hokies. 

“I think our secondary can be really dominant,” Strong said after the game. “I feel like me, Derrick, and Mansoor are really good. We have a chance to be the top DB group in the country.”

The three turnovers forced by Tech were its most since the 2021 season opener against North Carolina. The unit only had 12 takeaways in all of 2022, so forcing turnovers has been an increased emphasis heading into the season.

“The turnovers, the takeaways, that was the complementary piece that needed to happen to allow us to play well enough on defense to win,” Pry said. “The investment has been there. The coaches have done a great job every day of working, talking, investing in takeaways. I think it paid off tonight.”

In addition to the three takeaways, Tech lived in the Monarchs’ backfield with five sacks and nine tackles for loss. They also held ODU to just 94 passing yards.

“We went in understanding the scheme they had,” Canteen said after the game. “All week in practice, we prepared for it well. Coaches did a great job of game planning for it and understanding the type of offense they wanted to run. We went out and executed.”

But the Hokies struggled in other areas. They allowed Old Dominion to rush for 201 yards — which doesn’t include 24 yards lost on the botched punt snap that resulted in a safety — on 4.7 yards per carry. Wilson picked up 81 yards on his own — many of which coming from read option plays where Tech’s defense bit too hard and over-pursued the running back — while Wicks ran for 73.

“I thought [Old Dominion] did a really nice job,” Pry said. “We didn’t fit things very well. … We’ve got some work to do there. I’m disappointed in our run defense for sure.”

On the other side of the ball, Tech only picked up 2.5 yards per carry. North Carolina A&T transfer running back Bhayshul Tuten led the way with 55 yards on 19 carries. Backup running back Malachi Thomas was only able to pick up 22 yards on his 12 rushes. 

While the offensive line struggled to create lanes in the run game, the unit performed exceptionally well in pass protection, keeping the pocket clean for Wells the entire night.

“They played incredible,” Wells said. “Any time you have no sacks or no real pressures, that’s really going to build their confidence. I think they needed some confidence going into this game. That’s just them being young. They have a lot of questions in that room that they needed answered and I think they answered it. … I’m excited to watch them play with confidence now.”

Virginia Tech returns to action on Saturday at noon (ESPN2) for a home matchup against the reigning Big Ten West champion Purdue (0-1).

“Enjoy the win tonight,” Pry said. “Tomorrow there will be some lighthearted moments before we get into the film and all that, but there will be plenty to correct and plenty to work on. We still have a pretty long way to go to be the team that we can be.”