The Hokies welcome a new head coach — and 50 new players.
Ahead of the 2026 season, optimism is — and likely should be — tempered for the Virginia Tech football program. After all, the Hokies are coming off the back of a 3-9 season, where they fired then-head coach Brent Pry after losing their first three games of the 2025 campaign.
Yet, the feeling amid spring ball is that this season can bring around better fortunes under new head coach James Franklin. No. 1: Apart from Franklin's record against the AP Top 10, his teams generally took care of business, otherwise. Though Franklin has a 4-21 record against AP Top 10 foes, the Big Ten and the ACC are on different footing. Virginia Tech stands in a favorable position in each of its first seven games, to the point where there is a remote chance that the Hokies could start 7-0. That leads me to my second point.Virginia Tech draws a tough end-of-season slate, facing Miami, Clemson and SMU , with all of those showdowns coming on the round. However, the Hokies draw a bye week between facing the Tigers and the Mustangs. Here's a quick look at Virginia Tech's first seven foes of the season:Of course, for Virginia Tech to start 7-0, they would need to take down a remodeled Old Dominion, beat Maryland on the Terrapins' home turf, conquer its multi-sport woes in Chestnut Hill — softball did so with a 42-7 three-game sweep over the Eagles — and topple the Yellow Jackets.As with many of these statements brought before you, Virginia Tech can just as easily start the season in a middling position rather than challenging at the forefront of the ACC. The likelihood of the Hokies starting 7-0 can be comparable to starting 3-4 or 4-3.To some extent, that comes at both a benefit and detriment for Virginia Tech. As with every preseason, no team knows what it stacks up like except against itself. That applies doubly so for the Hokies, who welcome in 50 incoming players and of course, their new head coach. For what it's worth, I think this team has a vastly elevated ceiling to the year before it. However, with precious little content to go off of — just three practices have been open thus far to the media — my breath will be held in check for this upcoming season. There is a roadmap to an eight- or nine-win campaign in 2026, but it will take rectifying woes that have haunted Virginia Tech in recent years — specifically, in late-game execution.Hughes serves as Virginia Tech On SI's lead editor, a position he has held since July 2025. He is a sophomore at Virginia Tech, majoring in multimedia journalism with a minor in creative writing. Hughes is also the assistant editor-in-chief for 3304 Sports, as well as an on-air talent for 3304's SportsCenter-style studio show. He is also a staff writer for Steering Wheel Nation, having written pieces on several motorsport series, including Formula 1 and the NTT IndyCar Series.The College Football Playoff’s Future Rests on the Big Ten. Will Tony Petitti Compromise?
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