On Thursday night, Virginia Tech football head coach Brent Pry joined Zach Mackey and Mike Burnop on Tech Talk Live at McClain’s at First & Main. They discussed recruiting, the recent game against NC State, standout freshmen and other topics ahead of Georgia Tech.
This season, Tech Talk Live will air on Thursdays at 7 p.m. ET across the Virginia Tech Sports Network.
Brent Pry
Did you hit the road recruiting after last week’s game?
Yeah, we needed those couple of days, we had some guys that were playing banged up and not quite 100%, like a lot of folks are this time of year. It was good to rest those guys. It gave us a chance as coaches, the assistants, myself, we hit the ground running. Some of us Thursday night, some of us Friday morning, until Saturday afternoon. It was a good to get out in the footprint and hit those high schools. We caught a bunch of games as well Friday night.
Coach Shawn Quinn posted on Twitter he was on the road two hours after getting back at 3 a.m. It’s a grind, isn’t it?
I don’t think he needs but like four hours, as long as there’s a good breakfast waiting for him when he gets up, he’s ready to go. He likes to try those places. Wherever we are, he’d probably hit a spot down in Raleigh that was recommended to him.
How long did it take you to get over the NC State game?
We said that two weeks ago, we said that a week ago, so it’s tough. Getting up in front of the team, that’s the tough part. These guys are battling. They’re giving it everything they’ve got. It’s not equaling a win. But there’s things they know, we know, we have to do better as coaches and players, we have to be more consistent to win a game against a good team on the road. Have to learn how to close out a game.
That’s the tough part for me. It’s the staff, it’s the players, everybody that’s pouring into this thing. I want this for them more than anything. They had a great week, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, as I’ve mentioned before coming out there on a Sunday and making the corrections and then moving on and get it out of your system. This team is hungry for a win for sure.
What was the message at halftime?
I told the coaches as soon as I got in there, I said, “Listen, we have 49 yards offense, switch it up, change it up, we got nothing to lose, roll the dice, we have to do something different. It’s not working, open up Pandora’s box, let’s go.” So it was good, I’m certainly by no means an offensive expert. At that point, it was like, “Let’s change some things up and do a couple things.” Tyler [Bowen] did a good job. We got some momentum going, a couple of scoring drives. In the end, ironically, we don’t do what we need to do defensively to win the game. It’s about us playing well enough in all three phases to win the football game.
The defense was dialed in during the first half but not the fourth quarter:
We have to be able to get stops there. That’s on us as coaches and it’s a bit of a depth thing. Both corners played every single snap of the game. That depth has to be there. It’s unfortunate, we lost a couple of young corners midweek that would have supplied some depth there. There are opportunities and every Sunday, we do a great job of pointing out what the guys are doing well, we show it on film, we talk about it, there’s a ton to be encouraged about.
At the same time, we have to make the corrections necessary to improve so that we don’t make those same mistakes. We’re making some new ones each week, don’t get me wrong. We’re not making the same ones for the most part. People talked about the penalties, it was false starts, six interior, two on the exterior, two on special teams. I give credit to NC State, dramatic move calls. I’m fighting with the officials and they’re not wanting to hear it. We have to be better there. Learning opportunity, some of these lessons we’re learning, they have to be the foundation for who we want to be.
How difficult is it for the offensive line to not jump early?
It’s hard to feel better about those penalties, but in some way, I do because it’s not being lackadaisical, it’s not a lack of effort, it’s not a lack of being locked in. It’s about trying so hard and wanting to be so good on a snap, so ready, that you’re antsy and you flinch. They did a great job. To me, they probably crossed the line a little bit with their dramatics and their antics when they moved. That’s really not part of the rule. They did a good job. It was intentional, and once they got us, man, they smelled blood in the water.
They got the ball at the 43 from a bad punt, which they got a field goal off of. To lose the game by a point, a play here and there makes a huge difference:
Yeah. The field position switches, make a nice punt, make an extra nice punt, which he’s certainly capable of, and it’s different. Or, also in that drive, Mansoor [Delane] had an opportunity for an interception. Yep, both hands on the ball. We have to come down with it. That closes it up. It’s all over the film, the play that could make the difference.
What are ways to get the Peter Moore we saw last season?
Peter’s a captain. He’s a mature guy. He’s had success. It was about, “Hey, what’s different? What’s changed?” He and Coach Holt had a lengthy discussion. Our senior analyst on that side, Kerry Webb, “What’s different, is it the number of kicks? Is it when you’re kicking throughout the week? What do we need to do to make sure that we’re doing right, where it’s not affecting what you do on game day?” So it was pretty healthy. I think we found some things out. We made some adjustments. We’re looking for improvement there.
You had two drives starting at the four- and nine-yard line:
We lost the field position battle. When both defenses are playing good, field position is critical. Chance [Black] has been pretty reliable back there, and to muff both of those… you look at one he’s trying to catch it on the side, the other one, he’s in a hurry. You just can’t do it, you have to play in the framework and play with technique, he’s done it 100 times right. It’s the idea of just staying within the fundamentals and technique. Don’t lose sight of that. Everybody gets anxious and wants to make the play to win the game. Just play within your position and things will take care of itself and the play will come to you.
How do you relax a player who is in his head?
That’s part of the game. That’s part of the coach’s job, to make sure that guys can play level-headed, forget about the last play, don’t let it beat you twice and move forward. It’s hard. These guys are 18 to 22 years old, they want to win, they want to be the reason we win, and it’s tough. There’s a lot that goes into playing well for four quarters in all three phases.
Grant Wells had a great third quarter:
He made some good runs, he made some really heavy throws. His deep ball, that was on a dime, he’s playing better and better. He shows signs of really being an all-conference caliber quarterback. We have to continue to build some help around him, at the tight end, at the running back, and receiver. We have to have more consistency, a little more explosive plays, but there was a run in that game where he made two of their best defenders miss on the same play. He really has some good feet. He’s tough, the way he runs. We’re going to certainly build on that. He’s a dual-threat guy in my opinion. We have to make sure everybody defends him that way.
Is that something we can expect to see more of in the next few weeks?
I think so. We’ve talked about it as a staff and Grant’s certainly willing and able and excited to do that. It’s part of who he is and who he needs to be. I know as a defensive playcaller, it’s hard when a quarterback can pull the ball and take off with it, it’s tough. It’s an extra ball carrier back in the backfield that you don’t normally account for.
What goes into making a big play work?
Kaleb (Smith) has made some great plays for us down the field. Sometimes you feel like, “Hey, just throw it up, 15-20 times, and it’d be good for us. It’s what kind of technique is the corner playing with? Is he off? Is he pressing? Who is the corner? Is it a big body guy that’s going to give us a little more trouble? What kind of time does the quarterback have? There’s a lot of things that go into it.
You can’t run Kaleb Smith down the field four snaps in a row, he’s not going to look the same on the third and fourth play. We have to take our shots because he’s proven that’s one of our more efficient plays. Grant does a good job putting it where it needs to be and Kaleb, it doesn’t matter if they’re on him. He has a heck of a chance to go make that play. He’s a big, long body and he’s tough as nails.
It’s hard to think of many 50/50 balls where Kaleb Smith doesn’t come down with it:
He’s got great ball skills. He’s such a competitor. I’m telling you, he’s played about 90%. He’s been banged up. It was good to get him a little healthier. I think this week, he’ll be even better. He’s had a good week.
How about Dae’Quan Wright?
He’s a good, young prospect. He’s continuing to learn the offense and his role is growing each and every week. We’re excited about him. Coach Bowen is excited. Again, as a defensive play caller, when you look at matchups, normally you’re putting your linebackers, maybe a safety, on the tight end. You have to think, can our linebackers cover this gap? Can our can our safeties cover this guy? He’s a big body that runs well.
What about Mansoor Delane?
I couldn’t be more proud. We just his name corrected this week. It’s been Man-soor since he stepped on campus. His dad was in town for the Miami game and he said Mon-sore said, I said, “Hold on. Wait a minute. Did you say Mon?” and he said, “Yeah, it’s really pronounced Mon-sore.” So our fault. But you know, Mansoor never corrected us on it. But the proper pronunciation is Mon-sore.
He’s been incredible. He’s older than his age, he can practice the right way. He pays attention to detail. He doesn’t get flustered when he doesn’t make a play, he bounces right back. He’s a guy that’s 18 but has the aging experience of somebody that’s done it a couple years.
Tucker Holloway returned punts at NC State:
Another true freshman. We will have to make some tough decisions. Are we going to play him out the rest of the way because he’s played in three games? He looked really confident back there. He caught it easy, made me feel good about it. We worked hard this week on giving him a chance to get a return going and making sure we blocked folks well enough, so I’m excited about Tucker. He’s not just a good returner, he’s done a nice job at wide receiver in practice, and he’s one of the young guys we’re excited about.
What is the system for deciding how the season looks for freshmen?
That wasn’t my idea. That was James Franklin, we came up with this system at Vanderbilt, where when we evaluated true freshmen, do they have a chance to play and help us or not? When you’re looking at true freshmen, you can see all the talent in the world. The other thing that we have to evaluate is, are they academically adjusting? Are they socially and emotionally adjusting? Because there’s a lot that goes in, as we all can remember, to being a freshman in college. For them to be able to travel, be locked in on a game plan, and all those things.
If we just feel like a guy physically, or emotionally, just needs to be redshirted, if he’s raw in one way or another, we’re going to tag him with a red light, and then he’s in the scout mode, and he’s getting extra lifts in. A guy that’s green, we know we’re going to play him. He has the maturity, the talent, he can help us maybe on special teams, maybe on offense, defense, and limited role. If we’re not sure about a guy, we’re going to tell him he’s a yellow. He has to keep preparing like he’s going to play until it swings one way or another. You have that conversation every three-to-four weeks to evaluate where guys are because it can change over the course of the season based on injuries and development.
You had a big FaceTime call Wednesday night?
Wednesday night is our big call night. Mike Villagrana, Jalyn Ballein, they do a great job getting our top prospects on FaceTime for us. Last night, we hit 106 guys, between the 10 assistants and myself, we were on FaceTime with 106 players across our footprint. It’s a narrative that even when you’re 2-6, just the excitement and the enthusiasm and the guys that are intent and interested. Like I said many times, we were so behind in the 2023 class, guys that are going other places, that had never been to Virginia Tech, never seen our campus, never been to a game.
We had them at Penn State two, three, four times, North Carolina had them two, three, four times, and they never been to Blacksburg. We are changing that. We’re spending a lot of time on 2024, 2025, and even 2026. We’re going to make sure people know about Virginia Tech, what’s special about us, and we’re going to work like crazy to make sure we’re not behind ever again.
Are you excited to have all the legends back in town?
It’s awesome. I have tremendous respect for all those guys. The way Vince Hall, played, obviously Kam Chancellor, everything he did at Tech, and then the Legion of Boom, just what he’s done, what he did here at Tech, and then what he what he did in the NFL. What he’s accomplished, he’s at the pinnacle of the coaching profession. Then Mike Gentry, think about what he did for Coach Beamer. You talk about all the things that need to happen, need to be in place to do what coach did. Number one, to flip the script and start winning on a regular basis. Number two, to win it and do it for as long as he did it, it takes a lot of support.
I know Coach Beamer would say that, but Mike Gentry, you talk about a guy that was really hands on with the football team, involved with each and every member, just a really strong personality that was demanding and determined to get the best out of the guys. I know all the players over the years have tremendous respect for Coach Gentry. It’s an awesome group of people to go in on the football front. We’re excited to have them here this weekend. Rodney has helped us work out, Coach [Bruce] Arians is going to come talk to the team tomorrow, which is awesome. We’re looking forward to that. We’re going to spend some time with Kam and Vance. If Mike Gentry will come around, I mean, he doesn’t like to be seen right now, we’re going to drag him out and see if we can get him around the guys too. So it’s an awesome weekend for that.
Michael Vick was named to the ACC Football Honors class:
That’s a big honor. You think about all the good players in this league. For them to select Mike, it’s awesome for Mike, and it’s awesome for Virginia Tech football.
Are you excited to get back to Lane Stadium?
Let’s sell that thing out. Let’s get everybody out there, Hall of Fame game. I think the weather’s going to cooperate. These guys are playing their butts off. The more we pack it in, the better. I saw a bunch of students this week, they’re fired up to be back in that stadium. It’s the best atmosphere in college football, and it’s going to help us win this football game.
Three of the last four games have been on the road, but the support you get on the roads is good too:
The Hokie Nation is strong. That’s what we continually talk about with our recruits. It doesn’t matter if you’re in Lane Stadium, if you’re at Chapel Hill, in Raleigh, or wherever it is, you’re going to have a strong contingency, Hokies support.
What have you seen out of Georgia Tech the last couple of weeks?
They’re definitely a better football team than I expected. A lot of times you go through a coaching change mid-season, are guys really invested? Are they playing hard? Coach [Brent] Key is doing a good job, he played there. It’s important to him. He has a lot of passion. He has those guys playing together. They haven’t quit. They have some good athleticism on the perimeter. Obviously, the quarterback, number 10, he’s a good player, good athlete, he can run. He’s fast, he’s big, has a strong arm.
What’s the update on the Lunch Pail?
The defensive staff, we decided after the outing in Raleigh that it’s not about wins and losses. It’s just about how you’re playing the game. The demeanor, the mentality, all those things. We were just very proud of the mindset and the approach and the way those guys battled for four quarters. The Lunch Pail was awarded, was given back, to Chamarri [Conner] on Sunday, we were proud to do that. He’s having a really, really good year. Consistent, good in coverage, good in the run game. I’m talking to the scouts. They’re excited about him. He has all the intangibles. I’m very proud of the year he’s having.
Justin Pollock is wearing 25:
You talk about another guy that has been consistent all year, he’s the long snapper, he does it for the punting. He’s a tough guy. He’s one of the best guys Coach [Stu] Holt and I have ever seen at protection after the snap. Really, really good there. I mean, this guy, we’re fortunate to have him. A little bit more accuracy at times, but he’s certainly deserving a 25 this week.
How about Dax Hollifield and the Defender of the Nation Award?
Dax is also having a very good senior year. He’s been consistent, he’s reliable, he runs the show defensively. The Charlotte Touchdown Club is a big organization and he’s a North Carolina guy, so they’ve been following his career and this is good honor for him, well deserved. I’m excited about for him, his family. He’s been invested in this program for so long. It’s good to see him get a nice accolade.
How do you prepare throughout the week not knowing who will be Georgia Tech’s starting quarterback?
They’re playing a third kid. They have the true freshman, then they have the transfer, and then of course [Jeff] Sims. Some of the offense is similar, which is good, when you feel like, “Okay, if it’s the true freshman, it looks like kind of what they’re doing was Sims and we expect to see him.” Their offense is kind of what it is right now. They’re going to run the football, they’re committed to that. Misdirection, jet sweeps, QB counters. I mean, they’re doing it all, power read. It’s a good challenge for us. I’m glad we had a couple extra days to work on it.
The third quarterback, Zach Pyron, he’s a good dual-threat quarterback:
He’s a big kid like Sims is, and he runs a little bit closer the way Sims does. Zach Gibson, not so much, he’s more of a thrower. Coach Key is an offensive line guy, they’ve done a nice job, they’ve been sound, they’ve cleaned some things up, they simplified some things and gave them a chance to be efficient and play well.
How about linebackers Ayinde Eley and Charlie Thomas?
Those guys are good players. We certainly noticed them in the crossover. I can’t remember if we were playing Pitt or somebody, but we’re watching an offense that we’re playing and seeing Georgia Tech’s defense, and those two guys were all over the field, really playing well, and they’re playing at a high level right now.
Do you think their offensive line is struggling?
They’re slowly but surely getting better. Each week, they look improved, there’s less mistakes, but they have the size and some athleticism. They’ve had some injuries and they’ve moved some guys around, so we’ll see what that looks like when the game starts, who’s playing where. When your coach is Brent Key, I mean, that offensive line has a chance to play well.
What about defensive end Keion White?
We have to factor him in. We can’t throw the white flag up and have a gimme play there. He’s a good player. He can block, he can catch the ball. We obviously have to know when he’s in a game and where he’s at.
They can return punts and kickoffs but have had four punts blocked. Maybe you can pick up some hidden yardage there?
That’s where they’ve improved. I think they have had one kick blocked since the coaching change, but they’ve cut down on the looks. They’ve been a little bit more vanilla in their protection, but they’ve been better at it. In the return game, the [Nate] McCollum kid is a good player, he’s a good wideout, he’s a slot, he demands attention. He has a bunch of catches and then when he’s a returner, he’s dangerous at that as well. They have some skill around them that gives them a chance to move the ball, be efficient.
This will be one of the few matchups in Power Five football featuring freshmen corners on both sides:
I know those guys defensively, Coach [Geoff] Collins was a defensive guy, we’d studied together over the years and there’s no doubt in my mind that they have a good plan, a good system, Coach Thacker has been with Geoff [Collins] for a long time, so I’m not surprised to see them playing well defensively, and the ability to play a young corner.
How about Alan Tisdale?
Alan has done a nice job. He played really well against NC State. It’s important to him, he gives you everything he’s got. He’s getting better week by week, I wish we’d had him in the rotation for six weeks, think about where he’d be right now. He’s gotten himself back in game fashion. Alan’s a great complement to Dax because Dax doesn’t have to worry about Alan, Alan can get himself lined up and help echo calls and he’s a veteran. It’s been good to have him back out there. He’s an awesome kid. I love what he did for this football team. While he wasn’t able to play the way he invested, and embraced his role, it’s a lesson for everybody in the program.
Who’s going to step up at the running back position with Keshawn King listed as probable and Malachi Thomas as doubtful?
Keshawn looked pretty good today. He looked good yesterday. We have Chance Black, [Jalen] Holston, and Bryce Duke, we have those guys getting worked too to make sure they’re ready to go. We had to get a bunch of backs ready until we see, until what’s with both Malachi and Keshawn. So that’s just part of it at this point in the season.
How about Drake De Iuliis?
Drake’s a pleasure to coach. It’s great to have him on our roster. He was a guy that was going to leave, and we recruited him to come back and help us this year. He knew he wouldn’t be the guy, he wouldn’t be the starter, but he’s got a good role. He’s up. He’s got a positive attitude. He works hard every day. I’m happy that Drake’s with us. For all our younger tight ends in that room, Harrison [Saint Germain], Dae’Quan, and Benji Gosnell, Drake’s a great mentor to those guys.
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