Josh Pate says 2025 could be a make or break year for Virginia Tech head coach Brent Pry
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Virginia Tech head coach Brent Pry is heading into a crucial fourth year. After a first year that saw the Hokies go 3-8. After the beginning of the 2023-24 season, the Hokies were out to a 1-3 start, things were looking as bleak as they could be. Yet the Hokies finished the season 6-3 and championed the first bowl game in the Brent Pry tenure.
After a number of expectations were raised for Virginia Tech's 2024-25 season, the ceiling was much higher for an eventually underwhelming squad. In Pry's third season, the Hokies went 6-7 and had to squeak a bowl game through a dominant Commonwealth Clash over archrivals Virginia in a 37-17 Tech win.
That changed the future of Virginia Tech football. The Hokies saw coordinators Chris Marve and Tyler Bowen leave the program, along with over 30 players, to the draft and the portal. Instead, Virginia Tech added new coordinators in Sam Siefkes and Philip Montgomery, while also tacking on 30 new players thanks to the portal.
Star college football analyst Josh Pate revealed on his show "Josh Pate's College Football Show" where the Pry ranks on a proverbial hot seat.
"Brent Pry at Virginia Tech may belong in this category as well. They've gone three wins, seven wins, six wins. They're 72nd in returning production this year. average recruiting ranking is. kind of where You would expect it, so yeah, those guys could be on the periphery of this conversation, but I think [Hugh] Freeze, [Mike] Norvell, [Luke] Fickell, [Brent] Venables, they are smack down in the middle of that conversation."
It is hard to disagree with a lot of what Pate is saying. While the Hokies have been able to see back-to-back bowl games, when the pressure was put on the Hokies to succeed like it was last year, Tech failed to reach even the minimal expectations that fans were placing on Pry and his regime.
Connor is a recent graduate from the esteemed Sports Media and Analytics program at Virginia Tech. He first found himself writing for recruiting database Rivals.com for just about two years before moving to Virginia Tech On SI. Connor has interviewed some of the highest-ranking members of Virginia Tech Athletics and looks to one day be a full-time writer covering Manchester United, his favorite soccer team.