Burning Summer Questions for Virginia Tech Football's Position Groups, Part 1: Offense

VT on SI's lead editor Thomas Hughes, offers some questions for Virginia Tech football— and his thoughts on them — for Hokies fans to ponder over the summer.

Virginia Tech quarterback William Watson III (18) runs the ball during the first quarter against Virginia at Lane Stadium. | Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Quarterbacks: What's the ceiling of Kyron Drones?

The question of Drones is the dominant query about Hokies quarterbacks and one that's been continually asked for over a year. His skills have proven tantalizing. There's no denying that the senior showed serious flashes back in 2023, but there's actually two questions to that statement. The first: are those flashes ones that won't consistently materialize or is it a dependable degree that Drones can reach again this season?

Kyron Drones showed some flashes in his career but can he take a big leap in his Senior season? 🦃
pic.twitter.com/KZIOyDiF6j

— SleeperCFB (@SleeperCFB) June 22, 2025

I'm inclined to say both yes and no. Drones was oft injured in last year's campaign, facing a concoction of injuries, including a sprained MCL, turf toe and stress fracture. Add to that an unknown ailment that Pry alluded to in this year's spring contest, and there's now a abundance of those unknowns as a result of his tantalizing flashes.

The second? How much of that end-of-season performance came down to the quality of the teams Drones was playing and not himself? This is another question where the answer lies somewhere in the gray portion rather than being a black-and-white response.

Drones' spirited effort in the 2023 Military Bowl against Tulane resulted in 176 rushing yards, still a career high. SB Nation's Gobbler Country lauded him after the bowl as being "set for a huge 2024" and the "perfect dual-threat quarterback who fits Virginia Tech". Neither of those happened. That's not a knock to Drones, but rather recognizing that the effort largely came with an asterisk, tallied against a squad ravaged by gloomy weather.

It also came amid an outpouring of Tulane players to both the transfer portal and the NFL Draft following the exit of head coach Willie Fritz to Houston.

All this is to say that Drones' 2023 season might not be as incandescent as some thought in the aftermath of the Military Bowl or going into the 2024 campaign. However, that doesn't mean it's all doom and gloom headed into 2025. I'd expect Drones' play to be somewhere in the middle of 2023 and 2024: not bad, but not shining.

Drones' play seems to hinge on the offensive line and his health, much like any average to above-average quarterback.

Running Backs: Is there going to be a Bhayshul Tuten-esque running back that seizes the spotlight, or will it be a more by-committee approach?

I'm inclined to lean towards the latter, but also wouldn't be completely surprised if Terion Stewart becomes "that guy". Stewart doesn't have the same kind of breakaway speed that someone like Tuten possessed, but he's more of a back that can pound it in and get solid yardage, getting 10 to 12 yards at a time rather than breaking away for 70 straight to the endzone.

I do think that it will be a more by-committee approach for two reasons. The first is that it ended up being that way for stretches in 2024 when Tuten was absent. Though Jeramiah Coney was the bell cow against Syracuse, it was a mixture of him and Tyler Mason in last year's Duke's Mayo Bowl against Minnesota.

There will still be a hierarchical system snap-wise, but I think that Stewart ends up as the back with the most snaps, followed by Braydon Bennett, Marcellous Hawkins and then a mix of Coney, Mason and the other backups.

Only 50 days stand between us and the best time of the year…let the countdown begin 😤#ThisIsHome | #TeamOverMe pic.twitter.com/ZNl75RoieD

— Virginia Tech Football (@HokiesFB) July 12, 2025

Receivers (WRs/TEs): Does Ayden Greene become the "alpha" wide receiver in the room? Who shapes up to be WR2/WR3?

This receiver room is largely unproven outside of the transfers and even then, there's queries to made in that department. Donavon Greene is a stable option — when healthy. Cameron Seldon is a speedy weapon, dangerous both in the slot and on option plays. However, he also hasn't played at receiver since his high school days.

In-house, Ayden Greene is the likely de-facto wide receiver since he's been in the Pry system for two years already. That also comes with a caveat, given former offensive coordinator Tyler Bowen's exit to Ohio State.

However, Montgomery's style appears more fluid, both via his past coaching stops and in brief spurts of the spring game amid a mostly dull affair. While still an offensive coordinator at Auburn, Montgomery described his offensive game plan as one that "we want to push the ball down the field, we want to get involved in the run game, we want to get involved in the screen game, but keeping people off balance a little bit from a defensive standpoint... We're going to stretch the ball vertically as well as horizontally, and try to make you play out in space."

That gameplan, coupled with new additions to the receiver corps, presents a double-edged sword. On one end, not many know how Seldon, Donovan Greene and the other transfers will function into Montgomery's offense, or how Ayden Greene evolves.

On the other, Montgomery's system will only receive true verification of whether it works or not when they actually approach the field. Even then, the true answers about the play of the receivers won't reveal themselves until conference play is underway. By then, fans and media alike should have more of a grasp on how the players fit into Montgomery's scheme.

For now, Ayden Greene is my choice at WR1, while Donavon Greene and Cam Seldon round out my hypothetical starters.

Offensive Line: How effective can the O-line be at making Drones' life easier?

The O-line struggled with injuries throughout last season, with Layth Ghannam, Braelin Moore, Xavier Chaplin and others missing time. While they provided adequate run blocking for Tuten, Coney and Mason throughout the season, quarterback protection was a key weakness last season. With the offensive line frequently unable to protect him, Drones was forced to scramble out of the pocket to avoid pressure.

While his dual-threat nature means that the resulting situation is not often dire, it is something to pay attention to this season, given that two of the players that I mentioned are now no longer part of the program. Moore transferred to LSU and Chaplin moved to Auburn, respectively. All five starting spots on the Hokies' offensive line will need replacing.

This fall, however, brings a revamped unit under new offensive line coach Matt Moore, offering hope that improved health and fresh leadership can shore up one of last year’s biggest concerns.

Moore also brought three of his own players from West Virginia: Tomas Rimac, Kyle Altuner and Lucas Austin. Rimac is the key piece to watch; per his Virginia Tech Athletics profile, his 78.6 PFF grade in 2024 was fifth-best among all Power Four guards and he was one of only six to score above 75 as both a pass blocker and run blocker.

With Moore steering the ship and Rimac anchoring the line, Virginia Tech’s offensive line enters the season with more cohesion, a key ingredient for turning last year’s struggles into a strength.