Two Weeks In: What to Note From Virginia Tech Football So Far

Aside from Joseph, Old Dominion's rushing attack, tailback-wise, is anchored by Trequan Jones and Maurki James. Against NC Central this past weekend, Jones was dominant, tallying 163 yards and a trio of rushing touchdowns on only five carries. While taking the context is important — NC Central is an FCS school far from the level of a squad like Virginia Tech — Jones is still one to watch for the Hokies and one that must be limited for Tech to walk out of Lane Stadium on Saturday with its first victory of the season.

Should the Hokies lose agan, it clouds the future of Pry's tenure even further. Per Bookies.com, Pry is currently listed as the second-most likely head coach to be fired, possessing 5-to-1 odds and sitting at +450. Pry's buyout currently sits at $5.825 million, meaning that the potential question of firing him resides on how comfortable that Virginia Tech's leadership is with absorbing the cost required to start over with a new head coach.

Which thus begs the question: factoring money into the question, does it cost more for Pry to remain with the program until his contract expires? How does that impact future recruiting classes under Pry? And would his replacement, if needed, produce a better output? For now, these questions remain hypothetical and likely unanswered until the end of the season. Currently, the mood is unclear about the remaining length of Pry's tenure.

Because of all these questions floating around, Old Dominion becomes a game within itself: one to claim the actual victory on the field and another entirely for Pry to stake his case towards retaining his job, not just for the remainder of this season but of the rest of his contract, as well.

It's hard to get any worse from the point where Vanderbilt tallied more second-half points (34) than Tech's yardage (21). And the 21 yards is a generous number, aided by a 31-yard tally on the Hokies' final drive from second-string quarterback William "Pop" Watson III and reserve running back Jeremiah Coney. Excluding that, the Hokies fall into the negative, with -10 net yards in the second half before the 2:12 mark of the final quarter.

For Virginia Tech, the message is simple: win, and do so convincingly. If Pry wants to quiet concerns about his job security, a strong performance is needed to counter the growing sense of apathy among parts of the fan base. Old Dominion may not be an easy out, but it’s still one of the weaker opponents on Tech’s schedule. A loss here would be particularly damaging, marking the Monarchs’ second win over the Hokies in just four years.

Virginia Tech football will take on Old Dominion on Saturday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m. ET in Blacksburg; viewing will be available on the ACC Network.