Breakout Candidates to Watch on Virginia Tech's Offense in 2026

Virginia Tech's offense was rough to watch for most of 2025. The Hokies finished 3-9 overall and 2-6 in the ACC, and it showed every Saturday. James Franklin's first season in Blacksburg brings a new staff, a retooled receiver room and, for the first time in a while, a backfield that has defined shape to it. A few names stand out as guys who could go from depth options to guys quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer leans on every week.

Jeffrey Overton Jr., Running Back

On paper, Overton's 2025 doesn't look like much. Twenty-five carries, 146 yards, one touchdown. Context, however, is pviotal ere. He tore his ACL in December 2024, spent most of last season rehabbing, and didn't get on the field until the Louisville game. Once he did play, he averaged 5.8 yards per carry and broke off a 38-yard touchdown against Miami.

He's also bigger now. Overton was 178 pounds last year. He's listed at 205 heading into 2026. If that weight came on as muscle and he hasn't lost a step, he's the kind of back who can eat into the workload behind Marcellous Hawkins, who ran for 749 yards at 6.3 yards a carry last season. Overton appears to be fully healthy heading into his first full college season.

Takye Heath, Wide Receiver

Heath heading into his fourth year in Blacksburg, and for most of that time he wasn't highly regarded, even getting hurt on the first play of his college debut against Rutgers in 2023 and missing the rest of that season.

2025, however, offered the opportunity for him to make a mark. He played in nine games, started seven and caught 22 passes for 200 yards and three touchdowns, including a two-touchdown game against Cal on Oct. 24 that featured a 44-yarder and a game-winner from seven yards out in double overtime. He's a smaller receiver, listed at 5-foot-10, 163 pounds, but he's built for the slot, with route running and zone-coverage instincts that coaches have praised, and he's also handled punt return duties.

The problem is he's not the only slot guy in the building anymore. Duke transfer Que'Sean Brown, despite his size, was the Blue Devils' primary slot receiver and is widely projected to step in as Virginia Tech's starter there after catching 64 passes for 846 yards last season. That pushes Heath into a battle for snaps with a player who has a much bigger résumé, though a crowded room could just as easily mean a productive two-man rotation. Brown can slot in elsewhere on the Hokies' receiving front, offering Heath a road to starting if he can earn it.

Luke Reynolds, Tight End

Reynolds is the headliner of this transfer class. A former five-star recruit, he followed Franklin and offensive coordinator Ty Howle from Penn State, where he caught 26 passes for 257 yards in 2025, 163 of those yards coming after the catch. He's a junior with two years of eligibility left, which means Virginia Tech isn't just getting a one-year rental.

The spring game offered a glimpse of what could be coming. Reynolds led all pass catchers with five catches for 69 yards. Reynolds has the tools to put together the best season a Virginia Tech tight end has had in a long time.

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