Opponent preview: What to know about Virginia Tech
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In a cramped visiting media room at Doak S. Campbell Stadium, Dino Babers said Syracuse’s offense will improve based on the defenses it faces. Just minutes before, the Orange lost 41-3 to No. 4 Florida State.
“I’d be very surprised if the offense does not go back to exactly the way it looked previously,” Babers said. “That’s what I’m anticipating.”
Babers’ confidence comes despite SU only scoring three touchdowns over its last three games against Clemson, North Carolina and FSU. The Orange will now travel to face a weaker Virginia Tech team that is 3-4 and has a below average scoring offense and scoring defense.
Here’s everything you need to know about Syracuse’s next opponent:
All time series
Syracuse leads 11-8.
Last time they played
Garrett Shrader had the best performance of his first season with Syracuse against Virginia Tech in 2021. He notched 236 passing yards and rushed a then-career high 174 yards for five total touchdowns. The Orange won 41-36 in its first victory at Lane Stadium in 20 years.
Unlike any of SU’s games in 2021, this matchup with the Hokies was an offensive shootout. Through three quarters, no team was ahead by more than seven points. To start the fourth, with SU down 26-20, Shrader rushed for his third touchdown on the ground, putting the Orange up 27-26. Virginia Tech then scored 10 unanswered points in the fourth, capped off by Malachi Thomas’ 47-yard rushing touchdown.
With SU down two scores, Trebor Pena got a 51-yard return. Shrader then marched his offense down the field in seven plays, resulting in a 12-yard touchdown pass to Courtney Jackson. After the Orange defense made a stop, Shrader connected with Damien Alford on a 45-yard game-winning score with 19 seconds left.
The Hokie report
The loss to Syracuse would serve to be Justin Fuente’s second-to-last home game as Virginia Tech’s head coach. After the Hokes’ loss to Maryland in the Pinstripe Bowl, the program let Fuente go. Then came former Penn State defensive coordinator Brent Pry, who went 3-8 in his first season with VT in 2022.
This year, it seemed Pry’s team was bound for another last place finish in the Atlantic Coast Conference. After a season-opening win over Old Dominion, Virginia Tech lost three straight to Purdue, Rutgers and Marshall by a combined score of 83-50. In the defeat to the Boilermakers, starting quarterback Grant Wells was lost to a leg injury. He has not played since. The Hokies have struggled in his absence and hold the third-worst scoring offense in the ACC.
Backup quarterback Kyron Drones, like Shrader, is far more efficient when running the ball. Drones holds a 58 percent completion rate with pedestrian passing stats of 1,043 yards and six touchdowns. On the ground, he’s tallied 344 yards and four touchdowns.
But Drones has shown flashes. In VT’s 38-21 win over Pittsburgh on Sept. 30, Drones threw three touchdowns and ran for two more. Last week against Wake Forest, the Baylor transfer completed 69% of his passes and had two passing touchdowns.
The Hokies go as far as Drones takes them on offense. Since he became the team’s starting quarterback, Drones has gone 2-0 when completing over 60% of his passes and 0-3 when he is under 60%.
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How Syracuse beats Virginia Tech
The Orange’s “Mob” defense allowed 112 combined points against Clemson, North Carolina and Florida State. And while SU’s offense hasn’t helped, the unit has to take advantage of a struggling Hokie offensive line which has allowed 54 quarterback pressures for seventh-most in the conference.
With no real playmakers on Virginia Tech’s offense, SU outside linebackers Leon Lowery and Derek McDonald can focus on getting to Drones without too much trouble. Caleb Okechukwu can also serve as a disruptor. Expect defensive coordinator Rocky Long to blitz heavily, especially on third downs.
On the other side of the ball, Shrader and his offense will now face a less star-studded defense. Even so, receivers like Alford, Isaiah Jones and Umari Hatcher need to create some form of separation against VT’s defensive backs.
Babers feels confident in his offense to perform like it did during the first four games of the season, but the Orange need to prove it.
Stat to know: 35.9 average depth of target
Though Drones averages just seven yards per pass attempt, Hokie receiver Da’Quan Felton serves as a viable deep threat. Felton averages 35.9 yards on his depth of target, meaning he’s almost 36 yards off the line of scrimmage when he usually catches the ball — higher than any qualified receiver in the ACC.
Orange cornerbacks Isaiah Johnson and Jeremiah Wilson have been burned before and need to be prepared for a deep threat, though they probably don’t expect it.
Player to watch: Antwaun Powell-Ryland, No. 52, edge rusher
SU’s offensive line needs to play better. Against FSU, Jared Verse and Kalen DeLoach had no trouble breezing past Enrique Cruz Jr., Mark Petry, J’Onre Reed and others to get to Shrader.
Though Babers said opposing defenses won’t be as challenging, Virginia Tech has Antwaun Powell-Ryland.
Among edge rushers in the ACC, Powell-Ryland is first in pass rushing productivity and fifth in pass rush win rate, per PFF. The former Florida Gator also has four more sacks than anybody on his team. Listed as the left defensive end on VT’s depth chart, Powell-Ryland will most likely match up with Petry.
Expect this matchup to define Shrader’s Thursday afternoon and SU’s offensive production.
