Virginia Tech head coach Brent Pry is preparing for Boston College. (Ivan Morozov)[/caption]
Virginia Tech head coach Brent Pry spoke with the media after open practice on Wednesday and provided updates on injuries, notes on Boston College and more.
Practice Observations And Injury Updates
Here are some observations from the 25 minutes of practice reporters saw on Wednesday:
Practicing Multiple Positions
Connor Blumrick was splitting some time with the quarterbacks and the tight ends. He was part of the group of quarterbacks practicing read options with the running backs as the media entered the session before transitioning to the tight end group.
After spending the majority of last season at quarterback, Blumrick transitioned to a tight end/H-back role in the offseason. He played against Old Dominion and had one target but did not record any stats.
Kaleb Smith Continues To Progress
One of seven team captains, Smith missed the second half in Norfolk due to an injury. Right before halftime, the Bumpass, Va. native came up limping after a long pass play, and he came up holding his leg a few plays later. Pry listed him as day-to-day
"Kaleb's further along for sure," Pry said after Wednesday's practice. "He did a lot today with the training staff that made us all feel a lot better about him playing."
Smith played a big role in the first half at ODU, catching three passes for 45 yards. He had one of the Hokies' biggest plays on the night, a 39-yard reception from Grant Wells that put the offense at the Monarch 21-yard line. That set the table for Tech's first touchdown in the game, an 18-yard rush from Wells.
Running Back Room On The Mend
Running back Malachi Thomas was at practice but was watching from the side. The sophomore, who was previously deemed week-to-week, was dressed out. Pry said Thomas is a long shot to play for Virginia Tech on Saturday against Boston College, but "is an incredibly fast healer and has progressed really well."
"I’m not counting him out," Pry said of Thomas. "With a Saturday night game, I would probably run this thing all the way to Saturday morning if we can. If he’s ruled out before that, OK, but otherwise, that could be a gameday decision."
Thomas missed parts of spring practice and much of fall camp due to an injury to his left foot. As a true freshman in 2021, he burst on the scene in October with back-to-back games of over 100 yards rushing. Against Syracuse, he posted 21 carries for 151 yards; a week later, it was 25 rushes for 103 yards at Georgia Tech.
Pry said running back Jalen Holston has looked more like himself this week. The veteran did not practice much leading up to the season-opener at ODU, which limited his snaps, but could have an impact against the Eagles.
"This was a better week for him, absolutely," Pry said of Holston. "You know, he hadn’t practiced for quite a while, so it was good to get him some reps in the game. I don’t think he would tell you he was 100%, obviously, but he got some good work and he’s had a good week so far so he’s got a chance to be at his best on Saturday."
Holston had five rushes for 12 yards in the first game of the year. Keshawn King carried the running back room with 111 yards on 19 attempts, good for 5.8 yards per run.
Keli Lawson Will Play On Saturday
A 6-4, 215-pound redshirt freshman from Stephens City, Va., Lawson practiced at both Sam and Will linebacker in August. Though he picked up an injury that kept him out of parts of fall camp and forced him to miss the first game of the year, Pry said Lawson is going to play against Boston College.
Recruited as a wide receiver, Lawson played on both sides of the ball in high school. When Pry and his staff started in the winter, they moved him to linebacker. Though he hasn't taken a collegiate snap at that spot, the coaches are confident he has the tools to succeed.
"He’s tall and thin, but he flies around," Sam linebacker coach Shawn Quinn said of Lawson in August. "[He's] got great speed, really good range. He’s just really new to this, but you can see the arc where he’s going if he keeps his hunger and attitude. He’s gonna be a big time player for us when it’s all said and done."
Special Teams Notes
Virginia Tech committed a special teams error not seen very often in college football on Friday night.
Attempting a 38-yard field goal with less than two minutes before halftime, long snapper Enzo Anthony sent the ball over the hands of holder Peter Moore. The ball rolled into Tech territory, Moore's recovery attempt failed, ODU picked it up and took it to the house. It was a potential 10-point swing in a three-point game.
[caption id="attachment_7337669" align="alignnone" width="2100"]
(Ivan Morozov)
Pry said Anthony hadn't snapped the ball over somebody's head all spring and all fall camp, but he bounced back from the gaffe with a solid snap on the next field goal.
"He’s snapped in games, he’s a proven guy as a short snapper and he’s had a good week," Pry said of Anthony.
Justin Pollock is Tech's snapper in long situations such as punts, while Anthony handles the shorter distances like field goals. That decision came down to how they performed in practice starting in the spring, and they both have their strengths.
Outside of the miscue, Pry thought the Hokies were "average" on special teams at Old Dominion.
"I thought our punt team did a nice job covering, securing," Pry said. "There weren't many yards after the catch. I thought we did a good job there. I’d like to see us kick the ball through the end zone a little bit better. We had been doing that and we had to cover some kicks, which is going to happen at times, but there were a few too many.
"Punt return, some missed yardage there, we gave up some yardage that you don’t like to see happen, so we’ve got to improve our decision-making and what we do."
What To Expect From Boston College
Veteran quarterback Phil Jurkovec leads the Eagles' offense, and he's as experienced as they come in college football.
NFL scouts are high on the 6-5, 214-pound graduate student from Pittsburgh, and he's getting back into the groove after missing a portion of 2021 due to injury. Here are his career stats:
292-490 (59.6%), 3,977 yards, 29 TD, 11 INT; 161 rush, 601 yards (3.7 avg.), 8 TD
"First of all, he’s got the 'it' factor," Pry said of Jurkovec. "He’s one of those gutsy quarterbacks, he’s going to make big plays. He runs better than you think, and he runs tough. He can throw all the balls, he’s a veteran so he’s a battle-tested guy so we need to try and make it tough on him because he’s certainly good enough to beat you."
In his two previous games against Virginia Tech, here are Jurkovec's stats, taken from Chris Coleman's game preview:
2020: 28-of-51 (54.9%) for 345 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs
2021: 7-of-13 (53.8%) for 112 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT
The Hokies cruised past the Eagles in 2020, winning 40-14 in Blacksburg, but offensive issues - including Braxton Burmeister and Tre Turner missing due to injury - doomed Tech in Chestnut Hill last year. However, if Tech can get pressure against a young Boston College front, they could make Saturday night very uncomfortable for Jurkovec.