As I watched Virginia Tech on Saturday, they clearly don’t look ready to compete for an ACC Title or a top-15 finish. The secondary, to say the least, has issues. The offense can go in lulls.
All year, though, under James Franklin, when I look at Virginia Tech, I see glimpses of the vintage Frank Beamer era Virginia Tech.
The Hokies are 5-2 (2-2) and in position to make a bowl, and they still have Stanford on the schedule. This is after a 34-24 win over Georgia Tech where they led start to finish.
What you see when Virginia Tech play is a re-energized fan base at Lane Stadium. You see a big special teams play on a return, or a game-turning defensive play. On offense, you see explosion plays and great individual plays in the open field. Under Franklin, Virginia Tech rolled through its out-of-conference schedule. These are kinds of things you’d always have in a Frank Beamer-coached team.
Play with emotion and play aggressively. Do you realize Virginia Tech is in the top 30 in both offense and defense?
That balance and consistency is what should give Virginia Tech fans hope in the long term. Yeah, the Hokies are going to lose some more this year. The finish with games at Clemson, at SMU, Stanford, at Miami, and Virginia is a tough one, but I’ve seen enough in the first half of the season to tell me Virginia Tech should be just fine in future years.
