Virginia Tech Reworks Future Football Series with Liberty

The Hokies are making changes to their series with the Flames.

Nov 21, 2020; Pittsburgh, Penn.; A helmet inside the Virginia Tech equipment trunk on the sidelines against Pitt. | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Virginia Tech football has reworked its future non-conference schedule, cancelling games vs. Liberty in 2029 and 2030, removing half of the two schools' four previously scheduled meetings.

As a result, the Hokies no longer have any Group of Five road games on their slate. Virginia Tech, in fact, does not have any Group of Five games slated after its series with Liberty now concludes in 2028. The only non-Power Four game currently on the Hokies' schedule is FCS North Alabama, which is set for Sept. 5, 2031.

Virginia Tech and Liberty mutually agreed to cancel their games, per media advisory, meaning that no buyout will be required.

The change is coming due to the Hokies adjusting future seasons' non-conference slates due to a nine-game ACC schedule now the norm.

The 2029 Liberty game would have been the final of three season openers in Blacksburg against the Flames. Virginia Tech will still play Liberty in the season opener in both 2027 (Sept. 4, 2027) and 2028 (Sept. 2, 2028).

As a result of the move, Virginia Tech now has one non-conference game available in 2029, while it gets to the three-game non-conference maximum in 2030. Here's the Hokies' new slate for both years:

• 2029: at Arizona (Tuscon, Ariz.; Sept. 8, 2029), vs. Maryland (Blacksburg, Va.; Sept. 15, 2029)
• 2030: vs. Arizona (Blacksburg, Va.; Aug 30, 2030), at BYU (Provo, Utah; Sept. 14, 2030), vs. Old Dominion (Sept. 21, 2030).

The move comes as part of a multi-season restructuring from the Hokies. Earlier this spring, Virginia Tech canceled its 2026 game vs. James Madison, which was set to be played in Blacksburg.

The Hokies previously announced that it was trimming its Old Dominion series last July. The 2027, 2029 and 2031 games in Norfolk, plus the 2028 Blacksburg game, were all shelved. That means that Virginia Tech has now halved its non-conference slate for the 2029 season, and will still have one game available.

Virginia Tech's 2027 and 2028 non-conference schedules are tentatively full, with Liberty, Maryland and Notre Dame being the three non-conference foes across both seasons.

Virginia Tech also removed South Carolina's 2034/2035 home-and-home series from its future schedule website.

Pivoting to this immediate season, the Hokies will open their 2026 season with VMI on Saturday, Sept. 5, officially ushering in the James Franklin era.

In the meantime, Virginia Tech's spring game will take place on Saturday, April 18, with admission free to all fans. The contest could be the first in-game glimpse at the Hokies' new quarterbacks, including Ethan Grunkemeyer and Bryce Baker, depending on the availability of both.