PREVIEW: West Virginia Faces a Daunting Hokie Defense

The West Virginia Mountaineers (1-2) will travel to Blacksburg to take on the Virginia Tech Hokies (2-1) in the battle for the Black Diamond Trophy.

The Hokies have won consecutive games since the opening season lost at Old Dominion. The handled Boston College in their home open then dispatched Wofford last week.

Under first year head coach Brent Pry, the program is back to its roots, bringing back the iconic Virginia Tech lunch pail - a Hokie tradition introduced by former co-defensive coordinator Rod Sharpless in 1995 - Pry’s first season with Tech as a graduate assistant (1995-98).

West Virginia head coach Neal Brown sees the Hokies taking on the blue-collar mentality of their head coach and a group that plays hard and physical.

As in the past, Virginia Tech is led by its defense. Pry brings his version of the 4-3 defense from Penn State to Blacksburg and has his Hokies ranked fifth in the nation in total defense, allowing just 201.1 yards per game, including giving up a mere 42 yards on the ground per game which has resulted in their opponents averaging 12.3 points per game. Additionally, they get off the field on third down, with Hokie opponents success rate of 17.1%, ranking third in the country.

Senior linebacker Dax Hollifield and safeties Chamarri Conner and Nasir Peoples return after earning 2021 All-ACC Honorable mention, and currently lead the team in tackles.

Hollifield leads the team with 23 tackles, including tied for a team-best three tackles for a loss with defensive end TyJuan Garbutt. Connor’s 19 tackles rank second on the team with a team-high 10 solo tackles and Peoples comes in third with 13 tackles.

The Hokie offense has struggled to open the season, ranking 102nd in the country in scoring at 23.7 points per game and their 394.0 yards of offense per game ranks 93rd nationally.

The Hokies suffered a blow to their offensive attack after leading rusher KeShawn King left the game with an injury against Boston College which sidelined the redshirt junior last Saturday. He remains the Hokie rushing leader with an explosive 175 yards, averaging a team-best 7.6 yards per carry and a touchdown.

Redshirt senior Jalen Holston (5’11”, 210-lbs) has carried the load with a team-high 41 carries for 126 yards and two touchdowns, while redshirt freshman Chance Black (6’1”, 194-lbs) has 30 carries for 78 yards.

West Virginia native and former Marshall starting quarterback Grant Wells is the Hokies starting signal caller. He’s thrown for 651 yards and four touchdowns with a 65.6% competition percentage, with all four of his interceptions coming in the opening season loss to Old Dominion. He’s also chipped in 66 yards and a touchdown in the running game, averaging 3.3 yards per rush and has only taken two sacks on the season.

“He’s more athletic than people give him credit for,” said Brown. “I think he can run, and they pick and choose when they have him run. He does a good job scrambling. He’s got a super strong arm. The thing that he’s done well the last two weeks is he’s been accurate with the football.”

Redshirt senior Kaleb Smith (6’2”, 222-lb) and junior Stephen Gosnell (6’2”, 198-lbs) have combined for 234 yards on 15 receptions. Smith has battled injuries but leads the team in receptions with eight, accumulating 134 yards and a touchdown, while senior tight end Nick Gallo (6’4”, 240-lbs) has a team-leading 13 receptions for 102 yards.

West Virginia picked up its first win of the season, with a resounding 62-7 decision over Towson last week.

Quarterback JT Daniels continues showcase his talents, tossing for 753 tards and six touchdowns in two and a half games. Receiver Bryce Ford-Wheaton is having a career season and is on pace to be the first Mountaineer 1,000-yard receiver since Gary Jennings in 2018 while freshman running back CJ Donaldson is averaging 93.3 yards per game. He’s on track to become the second true freshman to rush for 1,000 yards and the first since Steve Slaton set the record in 2005.

“They’ve got multiple threats,” said Virginia Tech head coach Brent Pry. “They’ve got a solid veteran offensive line – four or five starters back – good size. They’ve got two talented backs, three talented receivers, got a solid tight and now they’ve got a quarterback that can run the show, run the offense and make the throws. So, I think they’re very well-balanced and there’s really not a weakness in their offensive unit.”

The Mountaineers lead the all-time series over the Hokies 29-23-1, but Virginia leads the series in Blacksburg 12-7-1.

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