On Monday, Hokies running back Bhayshul Tuten was named ACC Specialist of the Week for his 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in Saturday’s 39-17 loss at then-No. 5 Florida State. It’s the second time this year he’s earned conference honors after he was named ACC Running Back of the Week on Oct. 2.
After a five-yard rushing touchdown with less than a minute left in the first half, Tuten provided a huge spark when he took the opening kickoff of the second half back for six. Special teams coordinator Stu Holt previously mentioned how influential running backs can be in the return game, and Tuten showed it on Saturday in Tallahassee.
HE'S A DAWG AND HE'S COMING 😤#ThisIsHome pic.twitter.com/p4uTVj3etF
— Virginia Tech Football (@HokiesFB) October 7, 2023
“We were real pumped,” Tech quarterback Kyron Drones told reporters afterwards of Tuten’s long return. “… That’s a helluva play by Bhayshul. He’s a big-time player and he made a big-time play in a big game.”
A junior from Paulsboro, N.J., that was the first kick return for a touchdown in Tuten’s collegiate career. He was in that role at North Carolina A&T, his previous stop, and had 18 attempts for 330 yards with a long of 34. Through six games in Blacksburg, he has eight returns for 253 yards with a 99-yard score. His previous season-long before FSU was 35 yards, which came in Week 2 vs. Purdue.
“I necessarily wasn’t that confident he was going to take it the distance, but I was very proud that he did,” Tech head coach Brent Pry said after the game. “That was a heck of a play. It was blocked up really well. Great job by Coach Holt scheming that thing up. And we worked hard on it. It was a factor in the game. It was a part of us getting back in and giving us a chance in the fourth quarter.”
It was Tech’s first kick return for a touchdown since Demitri Knowles had a 93-yard return for a score at North Carolina in 2012.
Tuten has proven to be Virginia Tech’s best all-around offensive weapon in 2023. He has 740 all-purpose yards this season, 442 yards more than Jaylin Lane, who is second on the team with 298. He’s averaging 123.3 yards per game between his touches on offense and special teams.
His 330 yards on the ground lead the Hokies midway through the year — he’s averaging 4.2 yards per carry on 79 attempts and has two touchdowns — while he’s Tech’s second-leading receiver with 16 catches for 157 yards. He’s averaging 9.8 yards per reception and scored twice on passing plays, including one on a 12-yard screen vs. Pitt. Tuten had 146 all-purpose yards in that game, 109 of which came on the ground.
At Florida State on Saturday, Tuten had eight rushes for 29 yards and a score to accompany four catches for 25 yards in the passing game. He also finished with four kick returns for 156 yards. He joined elite company with his two-touchdown performance, becoming just the second Hokies player since 1987 to run for a score and return a kickoff for a touchdown. The other player to do so was former running back David Wilson in November 2010 vs. Georgia Tech.
Tuten is the fourth Virginia Tech player to earn league honors this season, joining Drones (Oct. 2), linebacker Keli Lawson and punter Peter Moore (Sept. 11). He’s the first Tech player since Raheem Blackshear in 2021 to earn ACC honors twice in a season.
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I probably haven’t been paying attention but didn’t realize there was a “specialist of the week” Regardless, Tuten certainly was special this week.
Has any ACC player ever won Player of the Week in consecutive weeks in two different categories? That was impressive.
Funny, I thought it was just me but many times this season It seemed guys from games I watched had opportunities but didn’t go for the tackle.
Because it appears to happen so often I think I’m wrong. Angles on TV may be deceiving vs being on the field. I do see a lot of missed tackles. Guys not rapping up is a biggie!
They don’t practice tackling like they used to.
Stu Holt drew up a beauty. I am not sure Tuten was touched on the play. That unit must have been locked in.
I’m sure number 20 is hearing about it from his coaches – he waited a long time to make a dive to attempt a tackle.
Really wish I knew more about special teams blocking and overall design, because it seemed like the majority of FSU players were drawn over to the near side of the field (from the camera perspective) and Tuten didn’t come within 10ft of an FSU player until he was crossing the 35 – even during the game I remember seeing that and saying “Huh, how is there such a massive gap up top?”
Regardless of whether it was schemed, an FSU blunder, or both, definitely nice to have someone back there with the vision to actually see it and take advantage.