Virginia Tech football: 5 takeaways from Hokies’ 44-21 win over Old Dominion

The Virginia Tech Hokies improved to 2-0 on Saturday with a 44-21 win over the Old Dominion Monarchs. It was another sold-out crowd in Blacksburg watching the Hokies get off to a blistering start. While that pace slowed in the second half, this game was never in doubt.

Here are five takeaways from Saturday’s win.
is looking the part

First off, how nice is it to watch a Virginia Tech game and not see a jet sweep in every series? OK, now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s talk about sophomore quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer. He completed 31 of 42 passes for 327 yards and two touchdowns. This comes one week after he missed only three passes in his first game as a Hokie. Grunkemeyer understands his role as the offense’s facilitator. He knows he has weapons, and his job is to put them in position to make plays after the catch. In two games, Grunkemeyer has been accurate. He has spread the ball around. Eleven different receivers caught passes from Grunkemeyer. When Grunkemeyer breaks from the pocket, he’s always looking downfield. When he has opportunities to run, he still looks to throw. It’s exactly what you want in your starting quarterback. It will be fascinating to watch Grunkemeyer as the competition stiffens in the coming weeks.

We aren’t here to sound any alarm bells. It was clear ODU came into this game intending to sell out to stop the run. That’s what the Monarchs did — and successfully. Virginia Tech finished the game with 42 carries for 89 yards. Yes, much of that lost yardage came from sacks. However, VT’s top two backs, Marcellous Hawkins and Jeffrey Overton Jr., combined to carry the ball 25 times for 90 yards. That’s less than four yards per attempt. Is that something to be concerned about long-term? No, at least not yet. It’s one game. Starting center Kyle Altuner, arguably Virginia Tech’s top offensive lineman, missed the game with an injury. It’s unclear how long he’ll be out. Finally, ODU’s decision to sell out to stop the run left open receivers all over the place. That doesn’t mean this will happen in the future, but the Hokies have some serious weapons at the skill positions now. So if a team decides to stop the run, expect a pass-heavy approach. If opponents sell out to stop the pass, expect a run-heavy approach. Regardless, offensive coordinator Ty Howle will still run a run-focused offense, but he proved on Saturday that he can break from the original plan and still call an outstanding game.

Moving forward, we’ll watch to see whether it’s the blocking or the defense that limits the Hokies on the ground. For now, we’ll go with the earlier options. One thing is certain: Hawkins and Overton earned every yard on Saturday.
is an All-American candidate

We knew Luke Reynolds was good. Did we know he was this good? Reynolds caught eight passes for 108 yards and two touchdowns on Saturday. He came close to catching another. When Grunkemeyer was in trouble, he looked for Reynolds. With his size, length and speed, Reynolds is a mismatch for linebackers and safeties. The depth of Virginia Tech’s tight end room could prevent Reynolds from posting even bigger numbers in 2026.

Still, through two games, it’s clear that Reynolds and wide receiver Que’Sean Brown are Virginia Tech’s 1a and 1b targets in whatever order you choose. If Reynolds continues at his current pace, he has a legit shot at being an All-American. And before you say, “It’s only VMI and ODU,” remember that this offense will run through Reynolds. This is a far cry from last year when former OC Philip Montgomery didn’t even seem to know that tight ends existed.

The Hokies came out and jumped on the Monarchs early. And despite the halftime score of 34-6, it could’ve been much worse. There was one play in the first half when Aycen Stevens forced a sack and linebacker Keon Wylie returned it for a touchdown. The only problem was Wylie dropped it just before crossing the goal line. Remarkably, the Hokies forced another fumble on the very next play, and it was also returned for a touchdown — it counted. There was one play where wide receiver Tyseer Denmark threw a beautiful pass downfield to Benji Gosnell for a gain of over 50 yards. Upon further review, Denmark’s knee was down before he threw the ball. There were multiple penalties again. The offense bogged down inside the 10, including once at the 1-yard line. Brown returned a punt all the way to the 1-yard line, but Tech’s offense couldn’t punch it in.

There was ODU QB Quinn Henicle’s 76-yard touchdown run in the second half. Yes, it was against backups, but they’ll be counted on at some point. One defensive end made a mistake, and it led to a long touchdown. Another area of concern was that the Hokies allowed three deep-ball completions. Sure, they were excellent throws, but the Tech defender still got beat.

Here’s the good news: the Hokies still won by 23 points. Still covered the spread. In years past, especially against ODU, when they made these types of mistakes, they lost. Or the game came down to the wire. Yes, they made plenty of mistakes, but not enough to overshadow another impressive win. Ultimately, this game was never close. The Hokies dominated from the opening kickoff. And it could’ve been so much worse. That should be music to the ears of Hokie Nation.

Mylachi Williams, Cortez Harris and Aycen Stevens have dominated through two weeks for the Hokies. In Saturday’s game, Williams and Harris each had two sacks, while Stevens had one and forced a fumble. Williams finished the game with four tackles, including 3.5 for loss, two sacks and two forced fumbles. He was everywhere. So, through two games, the trio of edge rushers has combined for 8.5 sacks and four forced fumbles. It’s hard to imagine wanting or expecting anything more from your edge rushers.

As the weeks go by, the competition will be tougher. Tech’s defense will be tested by bigger, stronger teams. But this group is different. They are built to play effectively deep into games. Recent Virginia Tech teams were not. When opposing offensive linemen are worn down, the Hokies have multiple effective pass rushers they can throw at teams. It’s necessary. When you have a dominant pass rush, it makes life much easier for the secondary. It’s early, but Virginia Tech’s defensive line looks like the real deal.