Virginia Tech Football 2026 Position Preview: Offensive Line

In part 5 of our Virginia Tech football position-by-position previews, I'll be giving an in-depth look at the Hokies' offensive line unit, previewing the returnees from the 2025 unit and who's new, who's favored to start this year, the biggest question mark surrounding the group and what the bottom line to take away from the unit is.

Previous Installments

• Quarterbacks
• Running Backs
• Wide Receivers
• Tight Ends

Returners:

• Montavious Cunningham (Gr.): Cunningham started four games at right guard for the Hokies last season, while earning a 55.0 season grade from Pro Football Focus (PFF), including a 52.8 run block grade and a 62.4 pass block grade on 233 offensive snaps.

• Brody Meadows (r-SR.): Meadows logged 328 snaps as a redshirt junior in 2024, but he suffered an injury in preseason camp that sidelined him for the entirety of the 2025 season.

• Johnny Garrett (r-SR.): Garrett started 10 games at left tackle in 2025, allowing only two sacks, earning him a 49.2 PFF season grade, with a 54.7 run block grade and a 38.2 pass block grade.

• Layth Ghannam ( r-Jr.): Ghannam played in all 12 games, making 10 starts at left guard last season. In 598 offensive snaps, Ghannam allowed five sacks, nine hurries and 14 pressures, giving him a 35.8 PFF pass-blocking grade.

• Aidan Lynch (r-So.): Lynch made 10 starts at left tackle last season and struggled. He allowed two sacks, 22 hurries and 27 pressures, as well as 11 penalties for a 45.6 PFF offensive grade, the lowest among eligible returning linemen.

• Kyle Altuner (r-So.): Altuner started all 12 games at center last season, logging 793 snaps played — the most among Power Four freshman centers. Altuner earned a 58.5 PFF grade (64.0 run block, 54.9 pass block) and allowed just one sack and two QB hits all season.

• Tommy Ricard (r-So.): Ricard recorded a 35.7 PFF pass block grade — lowest among returning linemen — on 156 snaps (two starts) last season. He split snaps between right guard (108), left guard (40) and center (8).

• Lucas Austin (r-So.): Accumulated only nine total snaps across two games on the offensive line last season. Primarily played on special teams.

• Elijah Haughawout (r-So.): Haughawout did not see game action in 2025.

• Gavin Crawford (r-Fr.): Crawford played in two games last season before redshirting. He was a 247Sports three-star recruit out of Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney, MD.

• Nathaniel Wright (r-Fr.): Wright did not see game action and redshirted last season. He was ranked as the No. 53 overall interior lineman in the class of 2025 by 247Sports coming out of Forest Park High School in Woodbridge, VA.

Newcomers:

• Logan Howland (r-Jr.): Howland arrives as the Hokies' most experienced incoming transfer, having played in 19 games across three seasons at Oklahoma. The 6-foot-6, 325-pound left tackle earned a 60.0 PFF grade across the first five games of the Sooners' season last year before suffering a season-ending injury.

• Justin Terry (r-So.): Terry joins the Hokies as a transfer from Ohio State, where he played 57 offensive snaps across six games at right tackle last season, posting an impressive 80.1 PFF pass-blocking grade. Although the sample size was small, Terry showed promise, allowing zero pressures. He spent his freshman year at West Virginia under current Hokies OL coach Matt Moore.

• Justin Bell (r-Fr.): Bell saw no game action last season before redshirting at Michigan State. Bell was ranked as the 84th offensive tackle in the class of 2025 out of Dakota High School in Macomb, MI.

• Michael Troutman III (r-Fr.): Troutman followed James Franklin to Blacksburg from Penn State following his freshman season, where he redshirted. He was a consensus three-star recruit out of DePaul Catholic High School in Wayne, NJ.

• Marlen Bright (Fr.): Bright was a three-year left tackle starter at DePaul Catholic High School, earning all-state honors three times, including two first-team all-state selections. Bright was the 16th-ranked recruit out of New Jersey according to 247Sports.

• Benjamin Eziuka (Fr.): Eziuka was a three-time all-state selection at Detroit Central Catholic High School in Novi, MI. He is a four-star recruit and the sixth-ranked prospect in the state of Michigan according to ESPN.

• Roseby Lubintus (Fr.): Lubintus — a 6'5, 374-pound offensive tackle from Elizabeth, NJ — ranked as the No. 2 offensive lineman in New Jersey and the 15th overall recruit in the state.

• Tyrell Simpson (Fr.): Simpson is a three-star recruit out of North Brunswick High School (Leland, NC). He's ranked as the No. 87 offensive tackle nationally and the No. 36 overall recruit in North Carolina.

• Maddox Cochrane (Fr.): Cochrane was selected for three first-team all-state selections while at Benedictine Prep in Goochland, VA. He is ranked as the No. 4 overall offensive lineman in the state of Virginia.

• Thomas Wilder (Fr.): The potential headliner of true freshman offensive lineman arrivals, Wilder arrives in Blacksburg as a four-star recruit and the 34th-ranked offensive tackle in the nation, according to 247Sports. Wilder attended Green Run High School in Virginia Beach, VA, where he was a two-time all-state selection.

• Buddy Wegdam (Fr.): Wegdam is ranked the No. 17 overall recruit in Virginia, where he attended Woodberry Forest High School. He's a consensus three-star recruit.

What is the projected starting five?

With the pieces in place, this is how I'd pencil in the starting five today:

LT: Logan Howland
LG: Brody Meadows
C: Kyle Altuner
RG: Montavious Cunningham
RT: Johnny Garrett

Howland is probably the easiest call of the five. I have him starting over Aidan Lynch at left tackle. Lynch gained valuable experience this past season, but Howland's a proven SEC-caliber lineman.

At left guard, I lean towards Meadows given how well he played in 2024, but with an injury sidelining him for all of last season, there's a world where Layth Ghannam gets the nod instead, even after grading out poorly last season.

Center and right guard are the easy picks. Altuner is already penciled in at center, and Cunningham looks set to grab a starting job in 2026.

At right tackle, I am choosing Garrett with a slight edge over Justin Terry that's based mostly on experience.

Biggest question mark:

How will the offensive line fare with limited experience and production ?

There's no questioning that this offensive line group is short on live-game snaps. The five combined for just 29 starts in 2025 — and nearly half of those belong to Altuner alone, who started 12 games as a redshirt freshman. Garrett and Cunningham chip in with 10 and 4, respectively, while Howland made three starts before his season was cut short due to injury and Meadows missed the entirety of the season. Outside of the starting five, the drop-off in experience is even steeper, with little proven depth behind them.

Bottom line:

There's uncertainty up front for Virginia Tech heading into 2026.

The group ceiling comes down to a handful of questions: Can Meadows and Howland bounce back from injury? Can Cunningham hold up at the ACC level? Can Altuner continue to improve?

Those questions are currently unanswered, but if the answer to any of them is yes, this group might surprise some people.