BLACKSBURG, Va. — Virginia Tech found a way to win against Georgia Tech on homecoming, but James Franklin wants the Hokies to carry their strong starts into the second half.
Speaking Monday ahead of a trip to Clemson, Franklin outlined a practice adjustment aimed at improving Virginia Tech’s performance after halftime. He also discussed defensive communication, Aycen Stevens’ emergence and the growing contributions of younger players.
The Hokies have played five consecutive games decided by 10 points or fewer, making consistency and attention to detail particularly important as they prepare for another road test.
“I’m proud of our guys. We’ve been resilient. We found different ways to win,” Franklin said. “But we got to take another step this week.”
Practice changes target second-half struggles
Virginia Tech allowed three points before halftime against Georgia Tech and 21 afterward. The offense, meanwhile, produced just 102 second-half yards, including 35 passing yards from Ethan Grunkemeyer.
Franklin credited Georgia Tech with returning to concepts that had shown promise in the first half and making defensive calls that challenged the Hokies’ offensive schemes. Virginia Tech’s response will include changing when it practices against its own starting units.
The Hokies typically begin practice with competitive periods before transitioning to scout-team work. Franklin plans to move some of those competitive periods to the middle of practice, creating another opportunity to rehearse coming out of a break with urgency.
“We’re going to move some of those good-on-good periods to basically after halftime of practice, just to train ourselves,” Franklin said.
Tight end Luke Reynolds supported the adjustment, saying the responsibility extends across the offense, defense and special teams.
“I think we’ve been doing a good job starting fast,” Reynolds said. “I think what we can improve is coming out of the second half, and, you know, starting fast in the second half and then finishing the game strong again.”
