Football
8/29/2022 10:51:00 AM
of Brent Pr The week officially kicks off when the Virginia Tech football team travels to Norfolk to take on Old Dominion on Friday night, September 2nd. Kickoff is set for 7pm ET.
TV: Friday’s game will air on ESPNU with Kevin Brown (play-by-play) and Hutson Mason (analyst) on the call.
Radio: of Affiliates of the Virginia Tech Sports NetworkIncluding flagship station 105.3 FM, “The Bear” will air Friday’s game in Biscburg. Bill Roth When you play, he does the play work Mike Bernop Gives color feedback and Zach McKee Side reports.
Stream Catch the game online ESPN.com And in the ESPN mobile app.
Live Audio: Listen to the live audio report of Friday’s game HokieSports.com/watch And in the HokieSports mobile app.
Live statistics Follow the game live statistics HokieSports.comIncluding game-by-game updates and complete team and individual statistics.
social media: Stay connected with the Hokies on Twitter (@HokiesFB), Instagram (@hokiesfb) and Facebook (@Virginia TechF.B).
Three things to know
1. Pry will see a familiar face on the field in Old Dominion head coach Ricky Rah as he takes the field in his first game as the Hokies’ head coach. Rahne, in his third year at Norfolk, was previously part of the Penn State coaching staff with Pry from 2014-19. While Pree was the Nittany Lions’ defensive coordinator, Rahne served as Penn State’s quarterbacks coach, tight ends coach and finally offensive coordinator during his two seasons in state college. The two have combined to play 57 games over six years on Penn State’s staff and remain close friends.
2. Tech opens the season away from home for the first time since 2019. In a rare occurrence over the past four decades, the Hokies will play a true road game for the first time in four years and the eighth time since 1988. Campaigning away from Blacksburg may not be possible. As always, Tech is no stranger to Norfolk, having played 40 games in the 757’s history, recording 22 wins.
3. The Hokies have plenty of experience under the Friday Night Lights. The Tech Pioneers are credited with helping out Thursday night games, but the Hokies have played their fair share of Friday nights. Tech played the first of 42 all-time Friday games on October 21, 1892, a 14-10 victory at St. Albans. The Hokies are 6-4 in their last 10 Friday games, including a 17-10 win. 10 North Carolina in last year’s season opener.
Players to watch
Defensive back Chamari Connor: One of the most experienced veterans and undisputed defensive leaders on the Hokies team, Conner is coming off a season in which he finished third on the team with 85.0 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, five pass breakups, two forced fumbles and one en route to earning All-ACC honorable mention honors. Hacking. He will carry the lunch pail when the team takes the field Friday night and will look to set the tone for Tech’s defense throughout the night.
Quarterback Grant Wells: A transfer from Marshall, Wells was named Tech’s starting quarterback after a strong performance in fall camp. At Marshall, he completed 460 of 715 passes (64.3%) for 5,623 yards with 34 TDs while also rushing the ball 115 times for 237 yards and nine scores. Wells became the first freshman to earn first-team All-Conference USA honors after ranking 15th with 3,532 passing yards before earning honorable mention All-Conference honors in 2021.
Wide receiver Caleb Smith: With the offense’s top two targets gone a season ago, Smith has taken over the leadership role as an elder statesman. Following a successful summer and spring for Smith, he represented the Hokies at the ACC Kickoff where Prim described him as one of the team’s best recruits. The Bumpass, Virginia product totaled 20 receptions for 260 yards and two touchdowns in a season and will be ready for a big season in 2021 after some time off.
