“Tug Boat” is kind of a nickname I’ve had for the past three years,” Tuten said. “So, I got a chain for it.”

The Virginia Tech running back lived up to that name Saturday at Lane Stadium.

The Hokies needed to find a way to move the football after a forgettable first half in its home opener against Marshall, and Tuten filled that need.

His touchdown sparked a super second half, where Virginia Tech scored TDs on its first three possessions on the way to a 31-14 win.

The post-halftime scoring barrage was a big contrast to a quiet first half.

Although Tuten was already on his way to a big game — he had 77 yards on 11 carries in the first half on the way to 120 yards on 22 carries for the day — the rest of the offense struggled. Ill-timed penalties and poor pass protection for quarterback Kyron Drones led to multiple three-and-out series and had the sellout home crowd frustrated.

“I thought we were sluggish with the execution,” Hokies coach Brent Pry said. “The guys were moving around and doing things, but we weren’t finishing the execution piece. One time it was a wideout, then it’d be the O-line. We just couldn’t get it going.”

A quick look at the stat sheet might have been all Virginia Tech’s coaches needed to see for halftime adjustments. Drones had completed just 9 of 16 passes to that point for 42 yards and had been sacked three times. The Hokies had also committed six penalties for 43 yards.

So when they took possession at the 50-yard line after forcing the Herd (1-1) to punt on its first possession, the focus was on the running game.

The Hokies (1-1) ran the ball on 11 of the 12 plays during the drive, with Tuten carrying it on seven of those snaps, including his 1-yard TD run that made the score 17-7.

Marshall, which is in its first season running an air-raid style offense under new coordinator Seth Doege, responded with a two-play touchdown drive that brought the Herd back to within a three-point deficit.

However, those were the last points Marshall would score and the Hokies were just getting started.

Drones came up with his biggest play of the game — a 49-yard throw to Stephen Gosnell, who made a spectacular diving pass to get the Hokies back in the red zone.

“It felt great to catch it,” said Gosnell, who managed to make it back for the start of the 2024 season despite undergoing knee surgery following last year’s Military Bowl. “When I hit the ground, it didn’t feel so great.”

That drive ended with Drones’ 3-yard TD run with 4:15 left in the third quarter to make the score 24-14. Drones then got his first touchdown pass of the game early in the fourth quarter when he connected on a 5-yard pass to Churchland High graduate Da’Quan Felton.

“To be honest, we had some moments in the first half and for various reasons we couldn’t run it consistently enough, but I thought the offensive staff did a nice job at halftime,” Pry said. “The players had great determination from the outset, I thought. It felt different. I thought there was some good energy.”

Despite the sellout crowd, and this being the weekend Virginia Tech honored its 1999 team that played in the national championship game, the Hokies did not have that energy right away.

Virginia Tech’s offense sputtered in the final minutes a week earlier in its overtime loss at Vanderbilt, and the struggles continued Saturday.

After turning the ball over on downs at the Marshall 33 on their first drive of the game, the Hokies struggled to move the ball throughout the rest of the half, going three-and-out three times and getting just one third-down conversion up to halftime.

Luckily for the offense, there was no such hangover for Virginia Tech’s defense or special teams.

Marshall, which had racked up 549 yards of offense in its season-opening win over Stony Brook, mirrored the Hokies in its struggles to move the football. The Herd also converted just one third down into a first down, and managed just 77 yards of offense in the first half. Quarterback Stone Earle completed just 13 of 36 attempts, with 12 of those incompletions the result of defenders breaking up the play.

“I think it was the mindset,” said cornerback Mansoor Delane. “I feel like (defensive coordinator Chris) Marve has a lot of trust, especially our DBs, so he says that’s one of our strengths. He put us in man coverage and let the D-line do what they do. … We played zone a little bit mixed in there, but when you play man, there’s no excuses. Win your one-on-one matchups, and it showed tonight on the pass breakups.”

The story was even brighter for special teams, which was the reason either team even scored points in the first 30 minutes.

Wide receiver Jaylin Lane fielded a punt in a crowd on the last play of the first quarter at the Hokies’ 42 and ducked and dashed through the middle of Marshall’s coverage team all the way to the end zone for Virginia Tech’s first touchdown.

“Hey, man, if you want to look at it like that …” Lane joked. “Nah, they were blocking their tails off, I could see it on both of my returns. I just knew we needed a play and a spark just a little bit.”

Later, a shanked kick by Herd punter Alec Clark gave the Hokies the ball on the Marshall 35.

Some hard running by Tuten and a couple of Drones completions moved the ball to the Marshall 2 in the middle of the second quarter, but penalties and sacks pushed the Hokies back and prompted them to settle for a 42-yard field goal by John Love.

Marshall’s points also came thanks to special-teams play. Ahmere Foster blocked a punt by Peter Moore, giving the Herd the ball on the Virginia Tech 5-yard line. That led to an Ethan Payne touchdown run two plays later.

Pry said he was just glad the first-half struggles did not hurt the Hokies this time around. But as the team prepares for a trip to Norfolk to face Old Dominion in a stadium where the Hokies are 0-2 at since 2018, the coach would prefer not to see his team start like this for a third consecutive time.

“Fortunately, we’ve got the film to look at and evaluate it,” he said. “We can make the corrections. I think we did some good things. I would say the biggest thorn in our side was third down. We’ve got to take a look at that.”

The caller was a guy he did not know, but his former football coaches at Ocean Lakes High School in Virginia Beach sure did.

It was Bryan Stinespring, who quickly pitched Mapstone to consider taking on a unique adventure in a few months. How would he feel about being part of a new college football team? The question was directed to Mapstone when due to some injuries and other circumstances, he was nearly ready to permanently shut the door on his gridiron days.

Stinespring changed his mind.

“It was a very random event,” Mapstone said. “Coach Stinespring called me (during dinner) and, three days later, I was here on a visit. I knew instantly when I got here, I knew this was the place I needed to be.”

On Sunday, Mapstone and 61 others who had similar conversations with Stinespring in recent months will be on the sidelines at Salem Stadium to play the Roanoke College Maroons’ first organized football game in more than 80 years when they host Hampden-Sydney’s junior varsity team.

All this comes just 15 months after Roanoke College announced that the school had reached its goal of raising the $1.2 million necessary to re-establish the football program as well as a cheerleader team and marching band. They will be in action as well on Sunday.

If this sounds like a quick turnaround, in comparison to other football startups in this century, it is. When Old Dominion announced in June 2005 that it was reviving its football program that was discontinued in 1940, the Monarchs did not hire coach Bobby Wilder until February 2007, and the first game was not played until fall of 2009, although the program’s first class of recruits were signed, and redshirted in 2008.

The time span was not as long at Christopher Newport, which announced it was starting its football program in December 1999. Still, the Captains did not take the field until the start of the 2001 season.

Stinespring, who was introduced as the Maroons’ first head coach on Nov. 20, 2023, said he talked to people who were involved with the establishment of both teams, but he and his superiors decided Season 1 needed to provide the rosters of players who have taken this leap of faith to at least get a limited season of experience.

Stinespring’s ties to Virginia, especially the southwestern part of the state, made him one of few people who could probably get things together in such a tight window of time. In addition to the 26 seasons he served as an assistant coach under Frank Beamer at Virginia Tech, Stinespring is a native of Clifton Forge in Alleghany County and followed his time in Blacksburg with coaching stints at Delaware, ODU and Maryland. He was serving as the associate head coach at VMI when he accepted the Roanoke College job.

While Stinespring was taking care of building his staff and roster, the college was taking care of the external operation. A new locker room and weight-training facility was built inside the school’s Bast Center. And dates for home games were set aside at Salem Stadium.

“Coach Stinespring could be coaching anywhere with the background he has,” said Roanoke athletic director Curtis Campbell, who began his job a month after the football program was announced and made the decision to hire Stinespring. “The fact he chose to be the head coach when that position was offered means a lot.

“Where we are currently, the number of students we’ve got and the support we have for the program is due to Coach Stinespring, his work ethic and the staff he put together.”

Last Sunday, the Maroons took their first team photo. That was followed by one last intrasquad scrimmage before the first game week commenced. The person in charge of the operation could not have been happier and already considers his time at Roanoke as the highlight of a coaching career that has spanned more than three decades.

“This is exactly what we wanted, and this is exactly what we believed in from the moment this was announced,” Stinespring said. “The Roanoke Valley has been fantastic to us and the players have really bought into what we’re doing. That’s why they’re here.

“It wasn’t because there was a tradition or that there was an existing locker room. It was because they believed in what could take place here.”

Stinespring said while he built his first roster, he focused on finding players and coaches that would establish the kind of culture he envisioned.

“Now we want to make this (program) our own,” he said. “All of us have been in different places, and some things worked here, and other things worked there, but how do we want to do it at Roanoke College? We started with a blank slate and built it all from scratch.”

𝐇𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞.

𝐖𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞—𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐊 𝐘𝐎𝐔! #WinTheOUTS | #2024FirstUp | #AllAboard25 pic.twitter.com/jw05nNOh0E

— Roanoke College Football (@RoanokeFB) August 31, 2024

Officially, the 2024 Maroons are a club team and will only be facing three JV opponents (future ODAC rivals Hampden-Sydney, Shenandoah and Bridgewater), the Fork Union Military Academy post-graduate team and the club football team at George Mason.

Two of those games will be played on the road. Stinespring said he wanted to take the show on the road so the players, coaches and support personnel will understand the different experiences a team has when it gets on a bus and plays in another stadium.

His inaugural coaching staff includes a group of assistants with a distinct Virginia flavor. Associate head coach and defensive coordinator Mike Giancola grew up in Northern Virginia and had been at ODAC power Bridgewater for the past seven seasons. Recruiting coordinator and offensive assistant Tony Spradlin grew up in Salem and played football for the hometown Spartans. Defensive line assistant Ben Boyd is a longtime high school coach in the Roanoke Valley. Safeties coach Darren Venable is a Ferrum College graduate and offensive coordinator who played in the ODAC’s lone non-Virginia member school — Guilford.

Finally, there’s special teams coach Gerard Johnson, who grew up in the Richmond area and will be a lead recruiter in that part of the state. However, he spent his college years playing at both Norfolk State and Old Dominion, where he was a teammate of legendary quarterback Taylor Heinicke.

“A lot of the draw here will have to do with Coach Stinespring, the staff he’s put together and the way he’s running things here,” said Johnson, who left his head coaching position at Caroline High School to join the Maroons’ staff. “That’s going to separate us from a lot of the other schools in our conference. … Coach Stinespring is setting a standard for how we’re going to do things here, and that’s going to draw a lot of interest.”

The majority of the first Maroons’ squad are freshmen and a few sophomores, who are from the central and southwest parts of the state. But Johnson is confident there will be plenty of players in the years to come sporting a 757 area code on their cellphones.

Mapstone is the lone Hampton Roads resident on the 2024 roster. Stinespring said the first time he made a recruiting trip to the Tidewater area was in 1994. And whether he was at Virginia Tech, JMU or any of his other jobs, the trips to that part of the state remained constant.

“Obviously, that’s probably the furthest point that we will go to recruit,” Stinespring said. “But the quality of coaching and student-athletes there is terrific, and we have to find a way to make Roanoke College an option for them.”

So how will Roanoke fare on Sunday? Stinespring said that’s the least of his concern. Instead, he feels like what has happened in the past 15 months has already made the 2024 campaign a success.

“We just need to improve each week,” Stinespring said. “There’s three things that are going to be a concern. How strong are we going to be as a bunch of 18-year-olds, how conditioned we are and how experienced we get?

“… Anything else above that is just icing on the cake.”

Mapstone won’t argue this point with his coach. Despite knowing his new teammates for less than two months, the bonds are already there, he said.

“I think we’ll be a surprise,” Mapstone said. “It’s hard to start from nothing. But with coaching staff we have, and the support from the city, the school — everybody — has been encouraging. We’re going to do great things. I’m certain about it.”

When Marshall sets foot in Lane Stadium for Saturday’s 4:30 p.m. game, Virginia Tech (0-1) will get a second chance at dealing with the unknown. Even with a week’s worth of game tape, the Thundering Herd (1-0) likely will be full of surprises.

With more than half of the starters who played key roles in last year’s 24-17 win over the Hokies in Huntington, West Virginia, no longer on the roster, Marshall brings in a team that is full of transfer-portal talent and younger players who are still trying to prove themselves.

The Herd avoided revealing many of the bells and whistles in its offense during a 45-7 season-opening win over FCS opponent Stony Brook. Marshall coach Charlie Huff said his team struggled in the first 10 minutes of the game, but then took advantage of a 90-minute rain delay to make the necessary adjustments to cruise after that.

The Hokies never seemed to get their footing at Vanderbilt. Their first two offensive drives ended with an interception and punt, and the Commodores were up 17-0 until the final seconds of the first half. Virginia Tech coach Brent Pry listed multiple issues that led to the outcome:

• The Hokies’ offense, which was considered in the preseason to be very balanced and led by one of the most experienced offensive lines in the ACC, struggled to establish a run game, which led to quarterback Kyron Drones spending much of his day on the run and out of sync. He threw for 322 yards and two touchdowns but was also sacked once and threw a costly interception on his team’s first drive.
• A special-teams mistake — two players wearing the same number were on the field during a punt — led to a penalty. That moved Vandy close enough to successfully attempt a field goal, which proved to be costly later in the day.
• And while the defense started to hold its own against Vanderbilt’s option-style offense late in the first half, the Hokies started to look worn out late in the game in steamy Nashville.

“I think they all understand we didn’t play our best today — that’s the first thing,” Pry said after the game. “Secondly, it’s humbling. Maybe we needed some of that. As much as we preach about ignoring the noise, maybe we felt a little better about ourselves than we needed to.

“I don’t think that will be the case next week.”

Trying to bounce back with a home game also has its advantages. Since 2014, only two Group of Five-level teams have beaten the Hokies at Lane Stadium. They also will be playing on a day that the program’s most celebrated team — the Michael Vick-led 1999 group that reached the national championship game — will be honored.

Tight end Benji Gosnell added that he believes this Hokies team has the proper character and experience needed to return from a loss.

“We took a really mature approach to it,” said Gosnell, who caught four passes for 61 yards. “We covered the bases that what happened on Saturday was not OK. But great teams have mature approaches to losses — you either win or you learn. That was how we approached it late Saturday and Sunday.”

If Virginia Tech’s players can avoid the hype this week, they may be the only ones. Despite last week’s outcome, the Hokies enter Saturday’s game as a bigger favorite against the Herd (20½ points) than they were against Vanderbilt.

Virginia Tech will be facing similar challenges from Marshall that had been cast by Vandy.

The Hokies’ defense will see as many as three quarterbacks, as Huff said he has yet to settle on just one guy. All three threw TD passes in the win over Stony Brook, and all presented different challenges.

Marshall also plays a high-energy, charging-style defensive scheme, which means Drones will need to make quick decisions early in the game on which of his many weapons are available on each snap. The Hokies do not want to let another underdog gain confidence early in the game.

“This is a good team we’re playing,” Pry said. “It’s a group that’s beaten Notre Dame recently, that’s beaten us and took North Carolina State to the wire. They’re going to give us their best effort.”

Marshall (1-0) at Virginia Tech (0-1)

When: 4:30 p.m.

On the air: The CW, 790AM, 910AM, 107.5FM

The Thundering Herd: Coach Charles Huff’s team displayed a balanced attack in last week’s 45-3 win against Stony Brook, throwing for 290 yards on 32 passes and rushing for 259 on 36 attempts. A.J. Turner is part of a three-player rotation at tailback and was the most impressive against Stony Brook. Though he did not start, Turner rushed for 119 yards on just eight carries, including an 80-yarder. Starting QB Stone Earle, a transfer from North Texas, and Braylon Braxton threw two touchdown passes apiece. The Herd added 45 new players and six new assistant coaches in the offseason.

The Hokies: QB Kyron Drones started slowly against Vanderbilt but finished with career highs in completions (22) and yards (322), and he threw two touchdown passes before leaving the game late in the fourth quarter with cramps. The Hokies are 20.5-point favorites but will be without safety Jalen Stroman, who suffered an undisclosed injury against Vanderbilt. Jaylen Jones and Mose Phillips III should see increased playing time, according to coach Brent Pry. — Associated Press

Consider it another positive step in a football program that is now in its third year under head coach Brent Pry. While he has implemented many other tweaks to how the Hokies operate, few decisions are as high-profile as deciding on who is going to run the offense.

Pry was hesitant to announce his starter during his first two seasons — the now-departed Grant Wells was named QB1 the week of Virginia Tech’s opener in 2022, and then earned the nod midway through fall camp in 2023. But Drones, a Texas native and Baylor transfer who was part of what is now recognized as a powerhouse group of portal signees prior in the winter of 2023, took on starting duties in Week 3 of last season when Wells was injured and has been on the field ever since.

The backup job, by the way, went to Collin Schlee, a graduate transfer from UCLA who came to Blacksburg knowing that was the reason he was added to the roster.

Coming into the season opener on Saturday at Vanderbilt, Drones is the no-doubt leader of an offense that helped the Hokies win three of their last four games by averaging 43 points per game in that final stretch. Drones played a huge part there, throwing for 2,085 yards and 17 touchdowns while also rushing for another 818 yards and five scores.

More importantly, Drones was intercepted just three times, which was well below Wells’ 2022 total of nine picks to go along with nine TD passes. Wells was available to play in the last third of the season, but never regained his starting job.

“It was tough since Grant and I had become friends,” Drones said during Virginia Tech’s media day earlier this month. “I hated how it went down, but at the same time, we both knew we were still in a competition. And when he went down, I knew I wasn’t looking back.”

Wells, who had one more year of eligibility available, chose not to return, leaving Drones alone at the top of the depth chart and focused on getting ready for 2024.

“My confidence is so much better ever since I knew I was QB1,” said Drones, who has two more years of college eligibility remaining. “There’s no looking over my shoulder anymore. So it’s just about me being confident, running the offense and making the team better.”

Offensive coordinator Tyler Bowman said once the Hokies returned home from their Military Bowl triumph over Tulane, Drones quickly transitioned to preparing for the 2024 season, and put the most into that task, whether it was winter conditioning, spring practices or the offseason work that led up to fall camp.

“I don’t know if I’ll ever be (completely) comfortable, but it’s nice to have your starter coming back,” Bowman said of Drones. “No. 1, from a leadership standpoint … if you ask me what his biggest area of growth is coming into Year 2, it’s that he’s really taken ownership of the offense. It’s the players’ offense at the end of the day, so it’s going to become the personality that he and the other players decide it to be.”

The challenges of the schedule’s front end — Virginia Tech plays opponents from the SEC and Big Ten in the first four weeks along with regional rivals Marshall and Old Dominion — demand that the offense is not trying to find its identity on the fly. In his role, Drones knows it’s his duty to make sure his veteran teammates stay on the same page.

“It made me grow in confidence,” Drones said of the offseason. “Knowing that the team relies on me, and that I wanted to be in this position regardless of how I got here. So, I’m happy for the challenge.”

Standouts

Da’Quan Felton, WR, graduate, 6-5, 216: After transferring from Norfolk State following the 2022 season, the Churchland High graduate got better every week, leading Virginia Tech in receiving yards (667) and touchdown catches (8). He caught multiple TD passes three times in the latter half of the season, one of those days coming in the Hokies’ 55-17 win over Virginia. In addition, his leadership prompted his teammates to name him a team captain.

Aeneas Peebles, DL, graduate, 6-1, 290: The transfer from Duke rarely missed a game during his four seasons with the Blue Devils and has blended into an experienced defensive line that could be one of the best the Hokies have fielded in this century. “Any time that you’re new to an environment, people are going to observe you and kind of get a feel for who you are and what you’re about,” defensive coordinator Chris Marve said of Peebles. “Since he’s walked in the door, he’s had a humble spirit and all he’s done is work.”

Sam Brumfield, LB, redshirt Sr., 5-11 225: The senior linebacker joins the Hokies after spending last season at Middle Tennessee and before that, two years at the junior college level at Northwest Mississippi Community College. But in his short time at Virginia Tech, Brumfield impressed his coaches and teammates enough to not only be named a starter, but also a team captain.

Dorian Strong, CB, graduate, 6-1, 185: The senior cornerback bounced back from an injury-filled 2022 season with a wonderful 2023 campaign, which included three interceptions and led to All-ACC third-team honors. He will be an anchor for a defensive back unit that has a good amount of experience and will be regularly challenged in what is certain to be a pass-happy conference.

Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Sr., 5-11, 209: The jump from FCS member North Carolina A&T to Power Five Virginia Tech was nearly seamless for Tuten, who provided the Hokies with the consistency at running back they had not enjoyed in a while. In addition to his team-high 863 rushing yards and 10 touchdown runs, he also ranked fourth in receptions and is a major deterrent for defenses looking to blitz.

Storylines

From Boston to Berkeley: While the Big Ten and Big 12 took in most teams that were once part of the Pac-12, the ACC became a coast-to-coast league as well when it invited academic powerhouses Stanford and Cal as well as one-time Southwest Conference powerhouse SMU to become part of the Charlotte-based league.

Air Apparent: The transfer portal has been a frequent landing spot for wide receivers looking to find a less crowded depth chart to join. That didn’t happen at Virginia Tech. The Hokies’ top three wideouts — Jaylin Lane, Stephen Gosnell and Da’Quan Felton — all chose to return, as did former Old Dominion standout Ali Jennings, who missed most of 2023 with an ankle injury. Combined, the four veteran receivers had 106 catches and 19 touchdowns.

Sack Mentality: The Hokies’ defense is coming off a season where it recorded 39 sacks (the most since 2013) and an additional 55 tackles for loss. With the linebacking unit possibly needing some time to find its footing, disrupting opposing offenses at the snap will be essential. “We like our guys,” defensive coordinator Chris Marve said of his guys in the trenches. “We like the packages we have in place, but there’s still a lot more opportunities to go and get after the quarterback.”

We’ll see in September: Pry will never abandon his one-game-at-a-time mentality, but more than a few Hokies fans will see the team’s first 30-day stretch as a package deal. Beginning with Saturday’s opener at Vanderbilt, the Hokies’ first month gets progressively tougher, culminating with the ACC opener on a Friday night battle at Miami. By then, we’ll have a good idea if words such as “contender” will be used around Lane Stadium.

Welcome back, Virginia: It’s hard to believe, but when UVA visits Virginia Tech on the last day in November, it will mark the first time since 2018 that a full house of Hokies fans will have the chance to see the Virginia Tech-Virginia game at Lane Stadium. The 2022 game was canceled due to the tragic shooting deaths of three UVA players, while the 2020 game was played in front of less than 300 people due to COVID complications.

Schedule

Aug. 31: at Vanderbilt, noon

Sept. 7: vs. Marshall, 4:30 p.m.

Sept. 14: at Old Dominion, 6 p.m.

Sept. 21: vs. Rutgers, TBA

Sept. 27: at Miami (Fla.), 7:30 p.m.

Oct. 5: at Stanford, TBA

Oct. 17: vs. Boston College, 7:30 p.m.

Oct. 26: vs. Georgia Tech, TBA

Nov. 2: at Syracuse, TBA

Nov. 9: vs. Clemson, TBA

Nov. 23: at Duke, TBA

Nov. 30: vs. Virginia, TBA

Besides, he still has some personal unfinished business in Blacksburg, where he transferred in the spring of 2023 after playing two seasons at Florida. “I want to score a touchdown,” he said.

That kind of goal is certainly not far-fetched for Powell-Ryland, who established as much in his very first game for Tech at Lane Stadium last fall. The defensive lineman immediately became a nuisance for opposing offenses.

The Portsmouth native and former Norcom and Indian River high star spent quite a bit of time in Old Dominion’s backfield on opening night, finishing with two sacks and forcing a fumble in a 36-17 Hokies win. The rest of the ACC was immediately put on notice, as were NFL scouts, who are always looking for linemen who specialize in chasing down quarterbacks.

Powell-Ryland was aware of his options and the possibility of getting picked in the 2024 NFL draft. But shortly after the Hokies completed the 2023 regular season with a 55-17 victory over Virginia, Powell-Ryland said he would not only play in Virginia Tech’s bowl game, but he would be back in Blacksburg for the 2024 season as well.

The number of positives, he said, outweighed the negatives by a landslide.

“Being drafted — I wanted to be drafted a lot higher than what I heard — was part of the reason,” Powell-Ryland said. “But being on this team was a big reason, too. Even if (my draft status) had been a little higher, I definitely was going to come back. As far as the team environment, it was crazy out here.”

Experts outside of Blacksburg are confident that Powell-Ryland is as good of a talent as the Hokies have on their roster. ESPN ranked him No. 63 among its preseason top 100 college football players. His final 2023 stats — Powell-Ryland had 15 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks — are a big reason for that recognition.

But when Powell-Ryland met with his coaches for an end-of-season evaluation, he was told if he decided to stay, he should not be satisfied with just matching those numbers.

“Don’t come back and be the same person — that’s the message that came from the head coach to the position coach to the coordinator,” said Hokies defensive line coach JC Price, who was part of those conversations. “If a guy has the opportunity to go to the league but decides to come back, don’t come back and be the same person. Everybody has issues. Nobody’s perfect, and he’s definitely working hard on the fundamentals and the things we discussed in the offseason that he needs to get better at.

“He’s definitely working on those, and he’s been a joy to coach.”

Powell-Ryland said the combination of having Price deliver a consistent message during the offseason — focus on the fundamentals, and success will follow — as well as having veteran teammates on the defensive line such as Keyshawn Burgos, Cole Nelson, Jorden McDonald and CJ McCray made the offseason seem rather short.

“I feel like we had fun with it,” Powell-Ryland said. “It’s not even about having fun (outside of workouts). We really had fun with the work and embracing it.

“Being able to know (the plan) is always easier. When you’ve been through it, you’re comfortable with it. You go in, and when you come out, you’re better at the things you needed to work with.”

Returning to the Hokies for another year also means that more of Powell-Ryland’s family and friends from the Hampton Roads area can see him play.

“Having my family being able to come down here and watch, it definitely gives you an extra edge,” he said. “And it’s big for me because where I come from, people don’t have the chance to see this or be in it.”

There were always plenty of fans of No. 52 making the trek across the state to Lane Stadium, and then many of Powell-Ryland’s backers got the front-row treatment in Annapolis, Maryland, at the Military Bowl last December. He will make his return this year to Hampton Roads in Week 3, when Virginia Tech visits Old Dominion in Norfolk.

“That’s going to be crazy!” he said. “I’m already trying to see about getting tickets. I’m going to try to pack that place up.”

The road Copeland took to become a Hokie — that included a few more bumps and detours than what might be considered standard.

“I’m a person that for whatever I do and set my mind to, I just have to do it,” said Copeland, a Kellam High graduate who transferred last December to Virginia Tech and is projected to be part of the rotation on a deep and experienced defensive line. “Coming here was one of my dreams. I always wanted to play (for) Virginia Tech, and if this is what I had to do to get here, then I would do it.”

Copeland had to do plenty. When he suits up later this month for the Hokies’ season opener at Vanderbilt, he will be representing his third team in as many seasons.

The recruiting interest in Copeland, who was rated the No. 28 senior in Hampton Roads by The Virginian-Pilot after the 2021 season, came mostly from FCS schools such as VMI, Fordham and William & Mary. At the FBS level, offers came from Army, Navy and Marshall.

The 6-foot-3, 280-pound defensive lineman ultimately opted for Army and headed to West Point a few months later. The 2022 season went well for Copeland, who appeared in seven games as a freshman, including the Cadets’ 20-17 win over Navy to conclude the year.

While he saw limited action that first season, Copeland said he realized that football could be part of his life beyond college. The small taste of Division I football convinced him that there could be a professional career ahead for him. But that can be a problem when you play for Army, which in almost all cases requires graduates to fulfill their military commitments.

“I knew I wanted to play Power Five football,” he said during Virginia Tech’s preseason media day. “I felt personally I could get a better chance to get to the league here than I would at Army.”

So shortly after the season ended, Copeland informed his coaches that he wanted to move on to a school that could help improve his chances of an NFL career. It took some time to convince anyone that this was a good idea.

“It was definitely hard,” Copeland said. “The coaching staff was hard on me (when I told them). They called my parents — both my mom and my dad. Oh my. … My parents come from military families. They were hard on me and said don’t do it.

“But I feel as a man, sometimes you have to make (hard) decisions about your life.”

Copeland held his ground and resigned his commission. However, there were more barriers ahead.

While he hoped to land at another Division I school when he entered the transfer portal at the end of the 2022 season, he said transcript issues left the junior-college route as his only option. But it wasn’t a dead end. Iowa Western Community College, located near the Iowa-Nebraska border and more than 1,300 miles from Virginia Beach, was one of the best.

The attention came early. Iowa Western’s spring game was attended by several college scouts. Offers started to come long before Copeland played his first official game for the Reivers.

“As far as (playing) JUCO, it was a lot of fun.,” said Copeland, who said he was offered by schools such as Tennessee, Auburn, Texas A&M and Oregon State. “Coming from Army and then going to JUCO, it made it a lot easier because of how hard Army was. JUCO was definitely easier than that. It was hard being out there in Iowa. I’m from Virginia Beach, so being all that way out there was hard, but I had to do it if I was going to make it to the next level.”

Copeland helped Iowa Western to a 12-1 record and a spot in the NJCAA Division I football championship game, where the Reivers beat East Mississippi 61-14. More importantly, he was contacted late midway through the regular season by a coach who used to visit him when he was in high school — Virginia Tech defensive line coach J.C. Price.

Those visits came when Price was working as an assistant for Marshall, one of the schools that offered Copeland when he was in high school.

“I remember in October, Coach Price called me, and I was like ‘What! Virginia Tech? I might be able to go home now!'” he said. “Once he called me, I knew it was the school for me. It was also a sigh of relief. Because with the current process, coaches call you 24-7, and I was still trying to focus on football and stuff.”

Price said Copeland’s decision to spend his sophomore year in the Midwest probably led to some “late-night conversations with himself,” but Price said he also saw someone who still had the same personality qualities from high school but had matured and had found his place on the football field.

“I knew he was going to be a D-lineman way back then, even though he was playing ‘Mike’ linebacker back at Kellam,” Price said. “It’s been great to see this thing come full circle for him. He always wanted to be here, and it shows to never give up on a dream, keep working, and no matter what obstacle they put in front of you, just keep fighting.”

Copeland said his time with the Hokies so far has gone fast, but that’s because he has enjoyed his experiences. That includes the spring practices, where the action on the field was sometimes overshadowed by who was watching on the sidelines.

“Seeing guys like (former Hokies quarterback) Mike Vick … and being in the same spotlight as him now is something I have to get used to,” Copeland said. “It’s been crazy seeing guys like Tremaine Edmunds. I came on a visit here, and we went to the locker room at halftime and he was in there. I was like ‘this guy is as big as heck.’ Being in the same vicinity as these guys is a blessing.”

The spring game had concluded. Injury issues had been kept to a minimum. The first round of the transfer portal came and went without major losses. He knows he won’t be spending the summer mulling the decision of who should be Virginia Tech’s starting quarterback.

“Hokies win,” Pry declared as he entered his post-scrimmage press conference.

In an event that is light on veteran presence and heavy with walk-ons and reserves on the southern half of the depth chart, the Hokies’ spring game wasn’t perfect. But Pry and his coaching staff had the solace of knowing that sending inexperienced players into the huddle wasn’t an act of desperation, but rather preference.

“Oh yeah, I couldn’t be more excited,” Pry said after watching his Orange and Maroon squads combine for five touchdown drives in a two-hour scrimmage played in front of about a half-full Lane Stadium. “And it’s … every time I get excited, then caution kind of creeps in.”

Having caution is a constant side effect for all coaches. Pry is entering his third season in charge at Virginia Tech, so while being wary of pitfalls, he is also much more familiar with his surroundings.

That familiarity starts with the offense, where almost all of the top receivers and running backs opted to return. That includes former Old Dominion wideout Ali Jennings, who showed great promise in his debut as a Hokie last fall, only to be lost early in Virginia Tech’s second game due to a season-ending leg injury.

Jennings re-introduced himself to the fans right away, catching the first two passes for his Orange team and finishing with three catches for 45 yards.

“It was great, good to see him back in the stadium with confidence and playing ball,” offensive coordinator Tyler Bowen said. “He’s obviously a big part of what we’re doing and a big part of leadership in that room.”

Also making a brief appearance was quarterback Kyron Drones, who just offered a brief glimpse of what’s to come in the fall. He was playing with three returning starters from the 2023 season.

Drones, a redshirt junior who became the starter three weeks into the 2023 season, assured the Lane Stadium audience that for the first time in the Pry era, there would be no quarterback controversy heading into fall camp.

Drones completed 6 of 10 passes for 122 yards and led the Hokies’ Maroon unit to three touchdowns in his four series.

“He was (efficient) and we did some things to try to push the ball down the field early,” said Bowen, who also serves as Virginia Tech’s quarterback coach. “So, we can certainly get into a more high-percentage pass game for him, which we got into when we moved the pocket, some quick game, things like that to get the ball out of his hands. But I was pleased the way he went in and operated, led us on a few touchdown drives in the first quarter, and then we were able to get him out.”

Drones said the offense on display Saturday was the result of a lot of work he and the other skill players have put in since the Hokies wrapped up the 2023 season with a 41-20 victory over Tulane in the Military Bowl.

“(I was most pleased with) the consistency we had,” Drones said. “The big jump we had from last spring to this spring is a tremendous improvement. The consistency we had, we never had a day where you leave practice and be like, ‘What the hell was that?’ The consistency has been good, just going against the defense and having that competition. I’m really proud of our offense and where we are right now.”

To no one’s surprise, the top two running backs on the roster, senior Bhayshul Tuten and redshirt junior Malachi Thomas, made brief appearances Saturday. Tuten was in for three snaps for the Orange team, while Thomas saw a little more action — he carried the ball three times for 14 yards, caught a 66-yard pass from Drones and actually threw the first pass of the game, which was incomplete.

That left time for a number of running backs further down on the depth chart to get some time.

Walk-on P.J. Prioleau, son of safeties coach Pierson Prioleau, scored the first touchdown of the game on a 6-yard run for Drones’ Maroon team. He also scored the Maroon’s third touchdown on a 22-yard run.

In between, Drones connected with another walk-on, redshirt freshman tight end Ja’Ricous Hairston, on a 3-yard TD pass.

Prioleau finished with 62 rushing yards and 29 receiving yards, earning accolades from the coaching staff.

“He reminds me of his dad a little bit from back in the day,” Pry said. “He’s crafty, he’s quick, he’s kind of twitched up. We’ve asked him to do everything. He’s played it all on the scout team for us. He bounces around. If we need a wideout, he goes to wideout. If we need a running back, he goes to running back. I think we even tried him in the secondary at one point.

“… He’s gotten better and better each year. He’s positioned himself where he’s got an opportunity to help us.”

The Orange team’s touchdowns came on carries by redshirt freshman quarterback William “Pop” Watson II in the second quarter and redshirt freshman running back Tralon Mitchell.

As for concerns, Pry mentioned that his staff will need to figure out why the two defensive units finished with a combined 13 sacks. While some were the result of the no-tackle rule on quarterbacks, Pry said it still caught his attention.

“That’s a little tricky,” Pry said. “It’s always tough on the O-line when we split the team. I had written down on my notes: So many sacks. Why? It felt to me the quarterbacks were holding the ball a little too long — the young guys. They have to get rid of it. That probably contributed to some of it. We’ve also got some guys who can rush the quarterback. So it was probably a combination there.”

In the case of Watson and the other quarterback currently battling for the backup job behind Drones, redshirt freshman Dylan Wittke, Pry said that is one postion where Virginia Tech may look in the transfer portal and see if there’s someone who can help.

“We’re having those discussions now,” Pry said. “We’ve obviously got some guys in mind that we’ll speak with. We’ll see where it goes. It’s got to be the right group. When you look at Dylan and Pop, and you say ‘could one of them be ready by September?’ Maybe. But do you want to take that risk? That’s something (we’ll consider) when we’re watching this film. That’s why today was so important for those guys.”

Those are impressive results — so good that when Tulane steps on the field Wednesday afternoon in Annapolis, Maryland, to take on Virginia Tech in the Military Bowl, the Hokies will see a team under transitional management.

The coach who led the 23rd-ranked Green Wave to where it is now — Willie Fritz — resigned following the American Athletic Conference championship game when he was hired to become the new head coach at Houston, which earned Power Five status at the beginning of this year when it joined the Big 12.

While it can happen anywhere, Group of Five programs are more susceptible to bidding farewell to their coach after a couple of successful seasons. Tulane already has hired a new coach — the Green Wave did some poaching of its own, hiring Jon Sumrall from Troy. Wednesday’s game will be coached by outgoing offensive coordinator Slade Nagle.

Tulane has announced it will be missing at least six key players from the 2023 season who have opted out for various reasons. This includes starting quarterback Michael Pratt. The Green Wave’s all-time leader in passing yards and touchdown passes opted out of the bowl in order to prepare for next spring’s NFL draft.

Tulane will also be without two of its top three receivers this season — Chris Brazzell II and Jha’Quan Jackson accounted for 70 receptions, nine TD catches and more than 1,000 receiving yards.

Nagle said earlier this month that he expects two other quarterbacks, Kai Horton and Justin Ibieta, to take the majority of snaps in the bowl game. Horton went 1-1 in two starts early in the season while Pratt recovered from a knee injury. Horton entered the transfer portal a week before Christmas but said he would still play in the bowl game.

All this has led to the Hokies being a double-digit favorite on the betting lines. That means nothing to Virginia Tech coach Brent Pry, who is more concerned with what the Hokies don’t know about Tulane at this point.

“That’s a little bit of a scary piece of it — the unknown,” Pry said last weekend. “As coaches, innately you want to know everything you can and study, study, study.

“But in the end, it’s all about how we play and what we do.”

The Hokies’ coaching staff, still completely intact, prepared for the bowl game assuming Tulane would stick to a lot of what worked to win 11 games in 2023.

For Virginia Tech’s offense, the focus will be on avoiding turnovers — especially in passing situations — and handling the pressure of the Green Wave’s defensive line.

Tulane’s defense stopped its opponents for a loss 82 times this season, 34 of those coming on sacks. The defense was also credited with 23 quarterback hurries and intercepted opposing quarterbacks 17 times to go along with 10 fumble recoveries.

Protecting the football has been one of the Hokies’ strengths, with just eight lost fumbles and five interceptions. That trend needs to continue.

“That’s been a big focus for us all year,” quarterback Kyron Drones said. “We’ve been protecting the ball all year and working on ball security. … This is a program that does well with ball security. I’ve never been part of a program that (focuses on this) so much.”

Although Tulane lost to future ACC member Southern Methodist in the American Athletic Conference championship game, the Green Wave remained in the final regular-season AP Top 25. So the Hokies have one last chance to beat a ranked team in 2023. They lost to the previous two ranked foes — ACC championship-game participants Florida State and Louisville.

“In our games against the top-20-caliber teams (previously), we didn’t do it,” Pry said “So this is another opportunity for us, in my mind. These guys have 11 wins, they played in a New Year’s Six game last year. This is an opportunity to go make a statement.”

Military Bowl

Virginia Tech (6-6) vs. Tulane (11-2)

Wednesday, 2 p.m., ESPN, 790AM, 910AM, 107.5FM

The Hokies (6-6): Except for a few places, the Virginia Tech team that takes the field in Annapolis should be what it looks like when the 2024 season begins next August at Vanderbilt. Quarterback Kyron Drones, who has thrown for six touchdown passes in his last six quarters, will have three of his top four receivers going into 2024 in the lineup. Virginia Tech beat Virginia 55-17 two days after Thanksgiving. The Hokies hope to have similar success two days after Christmas.

The Green Wave (11-2): Tulane has enjoyed two of the most successful years in the program’s history. But unlike Virginia Tech, Tulane is in its first weeks of transitioning to a new coaching staff. The bowl game will mark the final day of work for several of the Green Wave’s coaches, including interim coach Slade Nagle. Willie Fritz, the head coach who was in charge during the team’s current run, has already moved on to his next job with the Houston Cougars.

Priority 1A was maintaining a high retention rate for the players who are already on the roster. Everyone will know for sure by the conclusion of spring practices how that process ultimately went, but for now, it appears to be as good as one could hope.

This was especially true for the new faces on the 2023 roster that arrived via the transfer portal, who made significant contributions to helping Virginia Tech achieve bowl eligibility. Most apparently liked being Hokies enough to stick around for another season.

“I always ask the guys, do you like it here? And generally, they say, Coach, I don’t just like it here, I love it here,” Virginia Tech coach Brent Pry said. “So I think it’s a testament to those guys and the people in the program and to Virginia Tech that these guys want to go back and do this.”

Since the Hokies (6-6) wrapped up the regular season on Thanksgiving weekend with a 55-17 thrashing of Virginia in the Commonwealth Cup game, the news slowly trickled in on what players on the 2023 roster planned to stick around for 2024.

Like just about every other football program in the country, Pry and his staff supplemented their incoming class of high school signees with some transfer-portal acquisitions that they hope will contribute right away.

Amid preparations for their postseason contest Wednesday against No. 23 Tulane in the Military Bowl, the Hokies know that all four of their transfer-portal group of receivers plan to be back for the 2024 season. Three of them, former Norfolk State standout Da’Quan Felton, Jaylin Lane and Stephen Gosnell (who transferred from North Carolina prior to the 2022 season), will also see action in the bowl game. Ali Jennings, a transfer from Old Dominion who suffered an ankle injury in the second week, is doubtful for the bowl, but should be back to full speed by the spring.

The quartet combined for 102 receptions for 1,611 yards and 19 touchdowns.

“It made us feel real good — that’s a lot of production,” Hokies offensive coordinator Tyler Bowen said. “The thing I’m most excited about in that room is that I don’t think any of those guys have reached their full potential.”

There is also no question who will be throwing to the group. Another key transfer from last spring, Kyron Drones, will go into the spring of 2024 as Virginia Tech’s undisputed No. 1 quarterback.

“So now you get a core group of receivers back, the young guys we have behind them that are coming, and another year with the quarterback,” Bowen said.

In some cases, potential professional careers were put on hold. On offense, they include ex-North Carolina A&T running back Bhayshul Tuten, who leads the Hokies in rushing with 727 yards and eight touchdowns, has caught two TD passes and has run back two kickoffs for two more scores.

The defense expects to return three other potential NFL draftees — Antwaun Powell-Ryland, a Florida transfer from Indian River High who leads Virginia Tech in sacks, defensive lineman Josh Fuga and defensive back Dorian Strong, who has three of the Hokies’ seven interceptions.

Even Derrick Canteen, the Georgia State transfer who announced earlier this month that he will re-enter the transfer portal and play elsewhere in 2024, is delaying his departure until after the Military Bowl.

He calls it “unfinished business.” The Hokies just know they are grateful for his decision, as they will be facing Tulane without two of their top defensive backs — Nasir Peoples and Jalen Stroman, who both had surgery.

“You have to zoom out and look at the macro view,” defensive coordinator Chris Marve said. “It speaks to our culture. The guys want to be here, want to be on the team and be around one another. … It’s certainly good news. We love coaching our guys and we have great kids.”

It was also the perfect time for the Hokies to produce such an effort. Their 55-17 win over Virginia at Scott Stadium checked so many boxes that the team finally started its way back to Blacksburg a little later than anticipated.

“This is a little extra,” Virginia Tech running back Bhayshul Tuten said of the Hokies’ postgame celebration, which included some extra-boisterous speeches from the coaching staff, an extended blasting of victory music in the locker room and the team returning to the middle of the stadium to take a photo requested by the game’s sponsor. “We normally turn (the music up) after a win, but this is the longest it’s been all year.”

The postgame reaction made sense just on what was at stake. The Hokies’ 22nd win in the last 24 games against their oldest and closest rival also earned them bowl eligibility.

“It is all intertwined,” said wide receiver Stephen Gosnell, whose 44-yard catch with 3:21 to play in the first quarter produced Virginia Tech’s first touchdown of the game. “For it to be UVA, I don’t think I’ve had that level of a dopamine hit in a while — you know what I mean?

“It’s definitely a great feeling knowing we get one more game with this team. This team has been resilient.”

Second-year Virginia Tech coach Brent Pry acknowledged as much, noting that few prognosticators — or protagonists — thought that could be the case when the Hokies stumbled to a 1-3 start.

“There was a lot of noise,” Pry said, referring to how things looked in September. “There’s been some inconsistency, but this group has really just hung together, and they’ve kept working. They’ve trusted the process.

“It wasn’t easy to get to this point — to 6-6. It’s a testament to a lot of people.”

That list could start with Tuten, who for the second time this season returned a kickoff for a touchdown — his 94-yard return in the third quarter following a field goal by UVA’s Will Bettridge made the score 38-3. That play was just a side-hustle for what Tuten contributed to Virginia Tech. He also rushed for 117-yards and scored the last of the Hokies’ three first-half touchdowns, a 32-yard run that made the score 24-0.

“It feels great being able to do whatever I’m asked to do,” Tuten said. “I do it the best I can. That’s (a part) of who I am and how I work. I’m ready to do more.”

Speaking of rushing, Virginia Tech’s defensive line did its own version in the form of rushing UVA quarterback Anthony Colandrea. The Hokies were credited with six sacks and eight hurries. In addition, the Cavaliers netted just 43 rushing yards. Reversing what happened a week earlier against N.C. State — when former UVA quarterback Brennan Armstrong rushed for 89 yards and two TDs, while passing for 203 yards and two more scores — had been on the minds of the defenders since they watched that film last Sunday.

Colandrea had proven to have similar abilities. He had been the Cavaliers’ leading rusher the previous three weeks, averaging 63 yards per game to go along with an average of 275 passing yards. He had just 18 positive rushing yards Saturday, and it was obvious by the fourth quarter the defensive pressure had taken a toll.

“We knew that he was going to run,” said Hokies defensive lineman Cole Nelson, who had a team-high two sacks. “He’s a quick guy and really shifty out there. What (the coaches) really harped on was stopping the quarterback run — stopping the run game in general.

“… Our goal is to have at least 10 quarterback hits in a game, and we just kept putting him on the ground. As it went on, he started getting up slower every time. We saw it, too.”

The list of accolades goes on from there.

– Kyron Drones, who replaced an injured Grant Wells at quarterback on the last series of the Hokies’ Week 2 loss to Purdue and then claimed the No. 1 spot as his own, was nearly flawless, completing 10 of 22 passes for 244 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for another 50 yards.

– Two of those TD catches were made by his favorite receiver, former Norfolk State and Churchland High standout Da’Quan Felton, who had three catches for 133 yards. His other reception was just as critical — he picked up 15 yards on a fourth-and-2 pass from Drones midway through the second quarter.

– Drones and his receivers had so much success in part to the protection provided by the offensive line, which did not allow a sack for the first time since Week 1 against Old Dominion.

– And while UVA wide receiver Malik Washington had a banner night statistically, catching 14 passes for 114 yards, breaking the ACC single-season mark for catches in a single season, he had just one reception of more than 30 yards and did not score a touchdown.

“We did a nice job of knowing where he was,” Pry said. “And once he got the football, we were (surrounding him), taking the air out of the football and squeezing and leveraging him. … He’s a good player, he’s proven that week in and week out. But the defensive crew had a good plan.”

For those still wanting to nit-pick, don’t worry, Pry and his staff will have a few notes to share with the team when the game film is finally reviewed.

First, that postgame photo turned into a water show, when the field sprinklers turned on just as the team settled in around the Commonwealth Cup.

As for in-game issues, in the midst of the physical beating the Hokies’ defensive line put on Colandrea, the barrage became a little overzealous early in the second quarter, when Josh Fuga and Antwaun Powell-Ryland were flagged for roughing the passer on back-to-back plays. Pry was concerned about that, sort of.

“We wanted to be aggressive in this game, but we also wanted to have poise,” Pry said. “We lost our poise in a few places out there. But also, there’s a certain degree of having a temperament and mindset that’s necessary. We definitely brought that into the game.”

Besides, if the Hokies’ offense had not committed its one critical error right before that — Drones lost a fumble on Virginia’s 2-yard line as he tried to dive into the end zone on third-and-goal — those defensive plays may not have been needed.

“I’m still mad about the seven we left on the 1-yard line,” Pry said, although even that assessment came with a smile.

It was just one of those nights.