Good morning Hokies on a busy Monday! It was a disappointing weekend as Virginia Tech blew a 21-3 lead on their way to a 38-31 overtime loss at Syracuse. With that loss and Clemson’s loss to Louisville, the shine off Saturday’s game is gone a little bit but there are still plenty of stakes with the Hokies having the chance to play spoiler. Basketball season also starts tonight with the annual Cassell doubleheader while VT Wrestling cruised past Chattanooga to open their season over the weekend.

This is our Monday newsletter that we send every week to those who have signed up. If you want our thrice-weekly newsletters in your Inbox, go to the subscribe link at the bottom and sign up for free today.

Another One-Score Loss

Deja vu, Virginia Tech loses a one-score game.

Once again, the Hokies had a chance to pick up a big, one-score victory on the road at a pretty good Syracuse team. It was there for the taking and this time, it was the defense that crumbled on the way to disaster for the Hokies.

The loss now has the Hokies at 1-11 in one-score games under Brent Pry. That is simply unacceptable to be frank and also puts him at a level of performance in tight games that is beneath even a man known for being the worst in tight games during his head coaching tenure, Nebraska’s Scott Frost.

Here’s a look at three coaches and how they fared in one-score games at their most recent head coaching jobs.

• Scott Frost (Nebraska): 5-22
• Justin Fuente (VT): 12-12
• Brent Pry (VT): 1-11

After the game, Brent Pry had this to say about the one-score game struggles.

“I’ve got to do better. We’ve got to play better. The really good teams, that’s part of it, you get over the hump, you learn how to win those close games. We’ve got to do a better job there. And when we do, you certainly like your win total a little bit better. It’s not horseshoes. It’s not good enough to be close. We’ve got to get over the hump, find ways to win games at the end.”

When you’re in year 3 still trying to “get over the hump” in one-score games, losing to less-talented teams in the process, and not seeming to have a clear understanding of why your team is struggling in these situations, that’s a major concern to me.

Postgame Highlights

Injury Updates: Brent Pry said after the game that Kyron Drones is “day-to-day” while Bhayshul Tuten falls into the same boat. He also had this to say about the process to get to the point where both Drones and Tuten were out.

“It was touch and go. Kyron wasn’t able to do much all week, so we prepared as though he wasn’t playing. And Bhayshul was a gametime decision,” Pry said.

Hokies of the Game: Collin Schlee (2 touchdowns) and Mansoor Delane (6 tackles, 1 INT, 1 FF) were our TLP Hokies of the Game against Syracuse. You can read more on why those two were our picks here.

Stat of the Game: After only allowing 3 points in the first half, Virginia Tech allowed touchdowns on four of six second half drives for Syracuse. For a defense that had been known for bending but not breaking when they were pressed, this was simply a defensive disaster that cost the Hokies dearly on a day where VT’s offense gave them enough even without factoring in that Kyron Drones and Bhayshul Tuten were both out.

Best Postgame Quote: This week, best postgame quote moreso focuses on insightful with mike LB Jaden Keller providing this regarding what changed for the Hokies’ defense in the second half.

“They just made a bunch of adjustments and we just didn’t adjust well in the second half. We didn’t finish as well as we started, which is what we were focused on. So we’re definitely gonna have to work on it even more in the upcoming week.”

Yeah, not great when your starting mike linebacker is saying that the defense didn’t adjust well. Not a great look for anyone on that side of the ball Saturday.

Looking Elsewhere

ACC Championship Game Race Update: The second ACC loss officially takes Virginia Tech out of the ACC Championship race. Meanwhile, Miami and SMU are now in control of their own destiny after Clemson’s stunning upset loss to Louisville and SMU’s rout of Pittsburgh. Both the Hurricanes and Mustangs should be favored comfortably in their remaining games and seem destined for Charlotte. Meanwhile, at least one of Pitt and Clemson will be eliminated from the ACC race soon when they face off in 12 days now that both teams have one conference loss. Both SMU and Miami will likely be rooting for Clemson to pick up a second conference loss sooner rather than later given their talent level.

Bowl Projections: Here’s the latest rundown on VT’s bowl projections.

• ESPN's Mark Schlabach: Pinstripe Bowl vs Wisconsin
• ESPN's Kyle Bonagura: Military Bowl vs Army
• CBS Sports: Gasparilla Bowl vs Nebraska
• 247 Sports: Fenway Bowl vs Navy

Wrestling Starts Strong: Virginia Tech rested many of their starters as they cruised past Chattanooga and then shined in the Southeast Open in Salem. The Hokies have a trio of battles to watch at 165 between veteran Connor Brady and the intriguing Mac Church, at 197 between returning starter Andy Smith and redshirt freshman Sonny Sasso, and at heavyweight between returning starter Hunter Catka and former #1 HWT recruit in the country Jimmy Mullen.

Women’s Soccer Waits for NCAAs: Virginia Tech crashed out in the first round of the ACC Tournament Sunday with a 2-0 loss at North Carolina. Now the Hokies wait for the NCAA Tournament where they should have a strong enough seed to host their first round game, but likely not their second round game unless there’s an upset.

The Week Ahead: Here’s a look at the Virginia Tech Athletics schedule from now through Sunday.

Monday (11/4)

• Women’s Basketball vs UNC Wilmington (5pm in Blacksburg)
• Men’s Basketball vs Delaware State (8pm in Blacksburg)

Wednesday (11/6)

• Volleyball at Virginia (6pm in Charlottesville)
• Men’s Soccer at No. 5 Duke (7pm in Durham)

Thursday (11/7)

• Men’s and Women’s Tennis at ITA Sectionals

Friday (11/8)

• Volleyball vs Virginia (12pm in Blacksburg)
• Cross Country at the Hokie Open (4pm in Blacksburg)
• Men’s Basketball vs USC Upstate (7pm in Blacksburg)

Saturday (11/8)

• Football vs No. 19 Clemson (3:30pm in Blacksburg)
• Wrestling at the Mountaineer Invitational (Boone, NC)
• Swimming & Diving at the Hokie Belt Challenge #2 (Christiansburg)

Sunday (11/10)

• Women’s Basketball vs Iowa (5:30pm in Charlotte at the Ally Tipoff)