After last week's offensive issues, Virginia Tech actually gave some reason for optimism on offense despite still having some significant issues on their way to a 35-16 loss at Rutgers. The offensive line remains a major problem, but that's something that I think everyone knows at this point and isn't really a takeaways because it's been reality so don't expect anything focused on that here.
With that said, here are my offensive takeaways from the Hokies' loss to Rutgers.
1. Kyron Drones' Solid First Career Start
He may not have set the world on fire, but Kyron Drones was solid in his first career start making some plays while not being near a main reason why Tech lost this game.
Drones went 19-32 for 190 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception while running for 79 yards on 18 non-sack carries plus a fumbled handoff early between him and Bhayshul Tuten. The two turnovers were definitely mistakes for Drones but outside of those, the Baylor transfer acclimated himself well making some plays with his legs and passing down the field while also doing fairly well within the offense.
On a side note, I think Tyler Bowen did a pretty decent job building a gameplan to let Drones get into rhythm with some underneath and short passes before taking some down-field shots.
There's no doubt that Drones helped bring a spark to the rushing attack while he also looked comfortable as a passer especially on designed rollouts and scrambles.
After the game, head coach Brent Pry was pleased with what he saw though he also still wants more from Drones.
"I would say inconsistent, but I think there's really good things. He made it hard to defend him. I think he had some nice balls today. He did a really nice job running the ball. He did miss a few reads that I think left some plays on the field. His decision-making was pretty good. First college start, I think there will be a lot to build from. Certainly some good things, but I think he would be the first to say a bunch of things we need to be better at," Pry said.
That seems like a slightly harsh but fair assessment about Drones from Pry as the Baylor transfer definitely wasn't perfect in this game. However, this was a solid performance from Drones especially given that this was his first career start and coming on the road without his two best wide receivers.
Looking ahead to next week, I'd probably stick with Drones even if Grant Wells is healthy enough to be effective.
