Virginia Tech had their fair share of struggles with safety play last season as Nasir Peoples and Jalen Stroman both dealt with injuries throughout 2023. That forced Tech to turn heavily to their backups with Mose Phillips having the highs and lows you'd expect from a freshman and Jaylen Jones having his growing pains with the trial by fire situation he had playing on the defensive side of the ball for the first time.
With Peoples' eligibility running out, safety felt like a potential spot where the Hokies could look for an addition via the transfer portal to start alongside a healthy Stroman in 2024. Instead, the Hokies stuck with the core they had while adding a four-star freshman in Quentin Reddish and giving sophomore CB Braylon Johnson some reps at safety starting in the spring.
That's created a very healthy competition and a room growing more quality depth from Brent Pry's perspective, with Mose Phillips in particular sticking out.