The 2023 Virginia Tech Football season is upon us as the Hokies look to start the second year of the Brent Pry era with a victory after last year's stunning season-opening loss at Old Dominion. They face a Monarch team hungry to repeat last year's triumph and beat the Hokies for the first time in Blacksburg, but also lacking some of the biggest stars from last year including now VT WR Ali Jennings along with former TE Zack Kuntz and former RB Blake Watson.
Before we get into the picks, you can check out all of our pregame coverage at the links below.
- VT-ODU Preview, Keys to the Game, Players to Watch
- VT Eager for Their Season Opener After Long Offseason
- Ali Jennings Ready to Make a Big Impact for VT Starting With His Debut Tonight
- VT vs ODU Football Visitor List
- 2023 Virginia Tech Season Predictions
- 2023 Virginia Tech Bold Predictions
- 2023 Virginia Tech Offensive and Defensive MVP Predictions
- 2023 Virginia Tech Breakout Player Predictions
So can the Hokies avenge last year's loss and start the 2023 season 1-0 with a victory over Old Dominion? And if they do, will they be able to cover the roughly 16-point spread? Here's our staff's picks for the Hokies vs the Monarchs.
Tim Thomas
There will be plenty who have their worries about facing Old Dominion given last year's loss, but this ODU team may be one of the worst in FBS. Even with the Hokies having the issues that they have, Tech is rightly a 16-point favorite and should be able to take care of business.
ODU has a new offensive coordinator and new QB who are both from Fordham, but that QB was the backup there and the challenge of making his first career start at Lane Stadium immense. Add in the fact that this should be a pretty solid defense for the Hokies led in part by a talented group of cornerbacks plus playmakers like LB Keli Lawson and DE Antwaun Powell-Ryland, and it feels like a recipe for disaster.
Meanwhile, this will be an important test to see what the Hokies have in a very revamped offense headlined by an offensive skill position overhaul with players like Jennings, Jaylin Lane, Bhayshul Tuten, and Da'Quan Felton. While Tech should be better at the skill spots, I'm intrigued to see if Grant Wells can translate improvement in practice into greater success on the field. I also think this offensive line is going to be a big issue for the Hokies this season even if ODU isn't really able to test it much.
Overall, I think Tech's defense will dominate and special teams will help give the Hokies some shorter fields with a good enough offensive performance to cover the spread.
Prediction: Virginia Tech 31, Old Dominion 10
Peyton Seay
The Hokies will avenge last season’s opening game loss to the Monarchs with a victory Saturday night. Their potential strengths play right into the key for defeating a team like ODU that gives up so much on the ground. On defense, even with the question marks on the defensive line, the Hokies should still be able to dial up some sneaky coverages to shake up ODU’s Wilson in the backfield. Making his life miserable in the pocket should lead to dominating the time of possession and controlling this game.
You can read more in Peyton's pregame keys to the game and players to watch here.
Prediction: Virginia Tech 24, Old Dominion 10
Ryan Duvall
With a spread of 15.5 points, I’ve got Virginia Tech covering in the season opener. ODU is a familiar face for the Hokies, as Tech was upset 20-17 by the Monarchs, who were led by receiver Ali Jennings and his 122 yards on five receptions.
Now, Jennings is on the opposite sideline, teaming up with former Middle Tennessee star Jaylin Lane in what should be a bolstered offense for senior quarterback Grant Wells. The Hokies will be out for revenge after last season’s loss, and a sold out Lane Stadium could enjoy a nice week one victory.
Prediction: Virginia Tech 30, Old Dominion 14
Raza Umerani
It goes without saying that the Hokies have no excuse to lose this game. They’re at home in a raucous environment, they have the revenge factor after last season’s opening loss to this Old Dominion team, and they have a roster that improved in almost every area they needed to.
I’m hoping to see a vastly improved offensive performance out of Tech, and it feels like that’s what we should get. We’ll finally see the revamped wide receiver group led by former Monarch Ali Jennings III, and hopefully Grant Wells looks like a true QB1 with his arm and his legs. It will also be interesting to see how Kyron Drones fits into the gameplan – whether that’s in goal-line packages, trick plays, or full-length drives.
Defensively, I want to see the front seven dominate the trenches. I’m looking forward to seeing the new pass-rushing duo of Keyshawn Burgos and Antwaun Powell-Ryland get after it of the edges. I can’t wait to see what linebacker Keli Lawson looks like in his first game as the will linebacker in the unit. And I’m always excited to watch the guys in the secondary work, especially Mansoor Delane and newcomer Derrick Canteen. This is a defense that will be facing a quarterback in Grant Wilson who hasn’t played a single snap of FBS football. They have everything they need to dominate.
The only questions I have lie with the offensive line. It’s a young group that’s still developing, and they’re not going to have Nick Gallo lining up at tight end to help out in the run game. The Hokies are going to want to establish the run early and often with Bhayshul Tuten and Malachi Thomas, but that won’t happen if the big guys up front don’t get the kind of push they need. It’s worth noting that Tech’s best rushing performance last year was against this very ODU team, and the Monarchs seem to have gotten worse on defense since that game.
At the end of the day, Virginia Tech simply has more talent on both sides of the ball, and you can always count on a primetime Lane Stadium crowd to make things difficult for the visitors. It might take a few drives for the offense to get going, but I think once Wells and the running game settle in, the Hokies should cruise to a 1-0 start to the 2023 campaign.
