Virginia Tech moved to 4-0 after escaping a tight scare on the road against Boston College. Jeffery Overton led the charge for the Hokies, putting up 209 yards, while Que'Sean Brown led the receiving category with 51 yards on eight catches.
The earliest scoring opportunity for either team came in the early second quarter, where the Hokies had a fourth-and-one at the Boston College 26, but were stuffed on a misdirection run, just short of the line-to-gain.
Virginia Tech (4-0) started the game off slow against the Eagles of Boston College (2-2), with the scoreboard holding a pair of goose eggs until the final moments of the first half, where John Love put through a 45-yard kick to give Virginia Tech a 3-0 lead heading into the break.
The weather was a problem all game long, keeping the Hokies to just 127 yards in the first half, and keeping both teams scoreless until the final 20 seconds of the opening portion.
Weather cleared up a bit, but never looked good in the second half. Boston College went three and out to start the second half, forcing a punt. Que'Sean Brown put together a big-time punt return, bringing the ball back 50 yards to the Eagles' 10-yard-line.
The Hokies weren't able to capitalize and were forced to settle for a 22-yard kick, giving them a 6-0 lead.
Boston College instantly answered, scoring their first points of the game.
Boston College put together a 25 yard effort before coming to a third-and-four, where Mason McKenzie pulled a zone read and took off down the right side of the field before finally being stopped at the Virginia Tech five on a last-ditch effort by Tyson Flowers.
One play later, McKenzie walked into the end zone for a touchdown, giving Boston College a 7-6 lead, putting the Hokies behind for the first time all year.
Things got concerning on the next drive, where the Hokies started slowly moving the ball before Marcellous Hawkins caughed up a third-and-10 carry and Boston College brought it back to the Virginia Tech 22.
The Hokies stood tall, though. Cortez Harris tallied his second sack of the afternoon for a 13 yard loss, bringing Boston College back to the 35. An incomplete pass brought Boston College to fourth down, forcing a punt and getting Virginia Tech out of a stressful situation.
That wasn't enough to shift momentum though, as Virginia Tech turned it over on downs for the second time of the game at the Boston College 33, and the Eagles capitalized on the stop, scoring a 9-play touchdown, capped off by a second Mason McKenzie rushing touchdown.
Trailing 14-6, the Hokies needed a big-time effort to bring momentum back their way.
They answered with a 10-play, 80-yard touchdown drive. A big play from Overton and a crucial fourth-down holding call allowed them to move the ball down the field, before Marlion Jackson capped off the drive by winning a jump-ball in the end zone for a touchdown on a great throw from Ethan Grunkemeyer.
Grunkemeyer finished the game going 22-for-35 with a touchdown and 147 yards.
Marlion Jackson was second in receiving yards for the Hokies, totaling 41 over three catches. Que’Sean Brown was Tech’s leading receiver with eight catches for 51 yards.
A handoff to Jeff Overton Jr got the Hokies a two-point conversion and tied the game at 14 a piece.
Then, the defense stepped up like it had in the first half, forcing a punt and setting the Virginia Tech offense up at their own 24.
The tide instantly shifted towards the Hokies, as Jeff Overton took off down the right side, going the distance for a 76-yard touchdown run.
Overton ultimately finished the game with 209 yards and a touchdown, coming across 25 carries. He averaged 8.4 yards per carry while also adding three catches for 19 yards. His 209 yards were the sixth most for a Virginia Tech player since 1987 including the most since Bhayshul Tuten ran for a school record 266 yards against BC in 2024.
The Hokies averaged 5.3 yards per carry as a team, with Marcellous Hawkins being held only to 19 yards on ten carries.
Boston College was then forced to punt, but never saw the ball again. Virginia Tech closed the game off by running out the final 3:25 on the clock, thanks to three runs of 10+ yards for Overton on the final drive to close out the game.
Part of Tech’s success was due to some strong performances on the defensive line headlined by Cortez Harris who had three tackles including two sacks plus two QB hurries. Aycen Stevens had a sack of his own and three other DL had at least one tackle for loss (Mylachi Williams, Kemari Copeland, Javion Hilson). Noah Chambers led VT with eight tackles while Quentin Reddish had three pass breakups.
Special teams were also a strength for the Hokies as John Love made both field goal attempts including a 45-yard field goal while Que’Sean Brown returned five punts for 89 yards.
The Hokies are now 4-0 for the first time since 2017 with a serious chance at jumping in the top 25 this week given their two road Power 4 victories.
Virginia Tech now turns its attention towards Pittsburgh, who they face in Lane Stadium on Friday night. Both teams are 4-0 after the Panthers beat Bucknell 59-0 today, with the winner on Friday night being almost a lock to jump in the top 25 if they aren’t already ranked.
