Hokies defensive end Antwaun Powell-Ryland and wide receiver Jaylin Lane were named ACC Players of the Week on Monday after their performances in Virginia Tech's 37-17 win over Old Dominion.
A 6-foot-3, 252-pound redshirt senior from Portsmouth, Powell-Ryland tied a school record with four sacks in his homecoming game. It's the second time he's accomplished the feat in his Tech career (vs. Wake Forest in 2023). He joins Hall of Famer Bruce Smith as the only players in school history to have multiple four-sack games.
"I know he was amped up to play this game," Tech head coach Brent Pry said of APR. "He got his one-on-one shots and he won most of those."
He led the team with seven tackles, too, along with linebacker Caleb Woodson, while forcing two fumbles. He's the fourth Hokies player since 1987 with multiple sacks and multiple fumbles in the same game, joining Brandon Semones (1994), Cody Grimm (2009) and Steven Friday (2010).
It's Powell-Ryland's second ACC Player of the Week award after his four-sack game in 2023 vs. Wake Forest.
Meanwhile, Lane helped the Hokies start quickly against the Monarchs with five catches for 106 yards in the first quarter.
The 5-foot-10, 196-pound graduate student from Clover, S.C., opened the scoring in S.B. Ballard Stadium with a 25-yard reception from Kyron Drones in the first quarter. He had gains of nine, 12, 14 and 46, the latter of which came on a broken play. Drones improvised and found Lane across the middle, and the wideout evaded a few defenders and tiptoed down the sideline for a huge play.
"I think he's finally greased up," Pry said of Lane. "He didn't get a lot of action in camp. He was injured, didn't get a lot of practice. I think he's kind of hitting his stride right now and we're getting the J-Lane back that we know and love from last year."
It was Lane's second 100-yard receiving game at Tech. He's already had an impact in a variety of ways this season after returning a punt 58 yards for a score against Marshall.
He's the first Hokies wideout to be named ACC Player of the Week since Kaleb Smith earned conference honors a nine-catch, 152-yard game at Pitt in 2022.