Virginia Tech Football's 2025 Season Comes To Close With 27-7 Loss to No. 18 Virginia

The Hokies end the season at a 3-9 mark, having lost six of their final seven contests.

Nov 29, 2025; Charlottesville, Va; Virginia wide receiver Kameron Courtney (5) is pushed out of bounds after a catch by Virginia Tech cornerback Thomas Williams (23). | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Though Virginia Tech football fought on Saturday, effort is only half the battle. For the Hokies, their execution wasn't up to snuff, resulting in a 27-7 defeat at the hands of their in-state archrival, Virginia.

FINAL. pic.twitter.com/amYLy2ZvDH

— Virginia Tech Football (@HokiesFB) November 30, 2025

"Good football team, well coached, did some nice things," said Virginia Tech's (3-9, 2-6 ACC) interim head coach Philip Montgomery, whose tenure as the Hokies' head whistle is over following the contest. "They've been resilient. They played extremely hard. They battled. I'm very proud and honored to be a part of that with them.

"It's been tough on them but their character showed through, kept us in a lot of ball games, gave us opportunities to go win a few. I'm extremely proud of them and to be a part of that. So, tonight wasn't our night, but, again, couldn't be more proud of them and the way they battled and the way they work."

Virginia Tech was outclassed by the Cavaliers (10-2, 7-1 ACC) from the jump, with its first drive coming to an abrupt halt after Virginia reserve linebacker Maddox Marcellus, making his first picked off the Hokies' starting signal-caller Kyron Drones.

On the Cavaliers' opening drive, they absorbed three minutes and 12 seconds off the clock, moving into enemy territory with a 26-yard reception to wideout Trell Harris, then the endzone with a one-yard rush from running back J'Mari Taylor.

Virginia Tech then embarked on its longest drive of the day, punctuated by a 31-yard dash by running back Jeff Overton. Yet, it came empty; kicker John Love's 45-yard field goal attempt was errant, setting up a Virginia drive that culminated in a wildcat play where Taylor floated it up over the lines to a waiting Sage Ennis.

With the score, Taylor became the first ACC back to notch a passing and rushing touchdown in the same contest since 2021. The last player to do so? Will Shipley, from Clemson. His offensive coordinator? Tony Elliott, now Virginia's big whistle.

In his final collegiate start, the redshirt senior tallied 21 yards in the first half. In the second half, Drones tallied a single completion: a 57-yard fourth-quarter strike down the middle to freshman wideout Shamarius "Snook" Peterkin when the Hokies trailed, 27-0.

Drones' outing marked the eighth straight time this season that he has failed to throw for 200 passing yards. It's also the fifth straight time that Drones threw for under 150 passing yards. In third-down situations, Drones went 0-for-8, picking up no passing yards, absorbing two sacks and throwing a pair of interceptions.

In contrast, Virginia signal-caller Chandler Morris was calculated and efficient throughout the contest, accumulating 99 first-half passing yards en route to an 182-yard outing. Midway through the fourth and final frame, Cavaliers second-stringer Daniel Kaelin entered the contest with the outcome already out of Tech's reach.

Virginia's effectiveness also extended to its ground game; tailback J'Mari Taylor paced the Cavaliers' effort with an 80-yard effort against the Hokes, with Harrison Waylee contributing 46, as well.

On the receiving front, Virginia was solid, with three different receivers going for over 30 receiving yards and eight logging at least one catch. The Cavaliers' offense didn't produce a remarkable outing, tallying 4.6 yards per play. However, that was because it didn't need to. Virginia tallied 83 offensive plays, nearly double Virginia Tech's output of 47.

The Cavaliers tallied only 0.4 yards more per play but with the disparity in offensive snaps, Virginia simply converted on more of its swings at the proverbial piñata — moving the ball downfield, in this analogy. In the contest, Virginia went 8-for-16 on its third-down conversions, punting the ball four times. In comparison, Virginia Tech struck out and went three-and-out seven straight times, a record dating back to at least 1987. In the final 30 minutes of game time, the Hokies held the ball for only seven minutes and one second, while the Cavaliers did so for 22:59.

The Hokies' drive-ending chart reads as the following: Interception. Field goal attempt — missed. Punt. Punt. Punt. Punt. Punt. Punt. Punt. Interception. Touchdown.

the effort was there — the execution was not. Nowhere was that more evident than on second down. Virginia Tech mustered just 34 yards on 15 second-down plays, a figure that repeatedly left the offense behind schedule. Virginia, meanwhile, nearly doubled that production, racking up 122 yards on 27 second-down snaps, an average of 4.5 yards per play that helped keep its offense in rhythm.

The field position told a similar story. The Hokies crossed into Cavalier territory on only 10 plays all afternoon and never once reached the red zone, underscoring the unit’s struggles to sustain drives. Virginia, by contrast, spent a significant portion of the game threatening to score: 18 of the Cavaliers’ 83 offensive plays, a 21.6 percent mark, came inside the red zone.

The lone score, which kept Virginia Tech's 395-game scoring streak alive, marked Peterkin's first career touchdown. During postgame media availability, the freshman wide receiver remarked that offensive lineman Kyle Altuner had told him that he would score.

"I went up to him, I told him, like, 'You're gonna score,'" Altuner said. "Like, just keep keep going. Keep going. Funny enough, he scored, and I was proud of him. So, that was good for him, for sure. I think he's gonna be a great player in the future."

Before the play, Peterkin noticed his cornerback's coverage style, notifying Drones before he went on to snag the pass en route to his first career touchdown.

"I really just saw that he was playing outside leverage, so I went to go tell [Drones]," Peterkin said.

Virginia now advances to the ACC Championship Game, where it will face Duke in Charlotte on Saturday, Dec. 6, with a potential berth in the College Football Playoff on the line.

As for Tech, the focus shifts to what comes next. Early Signing Day looms less than a week away, a pivotal moment for a program looking to reset its trajectory. Further down the horizon sits 2026, the first season under new head coach James Franklin, whose arrival signals the beginning of a new era in Blacksburg.

At the time of writing, Virginia Tech is scheduled to open its 2026 campaign on Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026 against VMI.