From intern Connor Mardian:

Brent Pry previews Miami

The Hokie Haven 3-2-1: Loss in Steel City

My prediction is that we'll see another special teams TD this year (probably should have also included defensive but now I'm STUCK WWITH IT), what are yours?

With an assist from PFF, a look at the performances Saturday afternoon. I know the result stunk, but these represent a big step forward in most cases (of course, you don't get credited for two missed tackles when the RB gets 80 yards after you miss the tackle, either, so there's a few spots where tiny improvement in process can lead to massive improvement in results).

Snap counts and grades: Another Hokie disappointment in Pittsburgh

I will say that I don't really see how Nick Gallo and Parker Clements can continue playing starters' minutes. The staff has to try other options (or in the case of TE, give the other, much better-performing, options more snaps).

The team shifted to thinking about Miami immediately in the postgame locker room Saturday. Had a good Sunday-Monday shifting gears and ready to rock.

Virginia Tech lost a pledge from Tink Kelley last Thursday, and while I've been continuing to put out content about it, I wanted to let the behind-the-scenes story get a little bit of its own shine and not get buried by coverage from the Hokies' game. So a bit on the backstory here.

Kelley is a kid who was flying under-the-radar a bit, with only Louisville beating Virginia Tech to the punch in offering among Power-5 programs. The Hokies always felt (and still feel, though they don't have a commitment from him anymore) that Kelley was a steal. The trick was going to be hoping other programs didn't notice him in time. With a really good start to his senior year, that was obviously going to be tough. Kelley had always made vague hints about visiting other programs, even when he felt solidly committed to the Hokies. The question was going to be if the right programs not only offered, but genuinely pursued him.

The No. 1 "right program" was always going to be Clemson, just a few minutes away from his home in upstate South Carolina. The Tigers began giving him indications last week that they were interested in an offer, and that was enough to pull back from VT. The "official" offer didn't take long to arrive. But how serious is Clemson about him? That's always been the question, and while the offer is there, it's still worth asking, given there are plenty of kids with Kelley's skillset that Clemson could land in a given class (though we're seeing not very many that VT has a chance to snag).

"He's a take," said a source in Clemson. "Dabo was always going to come back for him. He isn’t [a take] on talent alone. But his level at next-door Daniel, this still felt inevitable. He was definitely a Power-5 kid, and it shouldn't have taken a program like VT as long to offer as it did."

Clemson has shown a priority on landing prospects from D.W. Daniel High - and coming from that program can be an important tie-breaker on the priority list. The Tigers want to keep relationships at the school strong, and have always done what they feel they need to in order to make that happen. Have a kid with FBS-adjacent talent? If you're a friend of the program, a Preferred Walk-On opportunity is going to be waiting for him. If you have a guy with Power-5 talent, the Tigers aren't going to let him slip through their grasp and risk some of those positive relationships*.

At this stage, it doesn't look like Clemson will reverse course on him. The Tigers are very patient in issuing offers, and don't tend to blanket the country, region, or especially their state with non-committable options. When they offer, they tend to mean it, particularly for a kid they don't think is gonna wait long to commit. If something happens, and they ultimately decide they don't want Kelley to end up in their 2023 class, there's a legit shot that Virginia Tech is back in the driver's seat (and I wouldn't imagine that the Pry staff engages in the petty scorned-lover BS that Fuente's group did). However, at this stage, it seems like a longshot for Kelley to land anywhere other than right around the corner from his high school.

His cousin, athlete Thomas Williams, is still solid to VT - not least of which because it seems a Clemson offer is not coming for him - which is still a solid recruiting win (remember, the Hokies offered and landed him before they even really knew about Kelley), and in the end, it should continue to keep pipelines open in the Palmetto State.

* For what it's worth, this is the type of relationship-building that the previous coaching staff was famously horrible at in the Commonwealth, and that Brent Pry's group has done a much better job with. It takes time, though, which is how you see VT losing guys from Roanoke, the Tidewater, and Fairfax County to programs that have been at it longer, namely Penn State.

Y'all know the stakes. Let's do this.

My prediction's in the story. Get yours in below!

2022 Virginia Tech Hokies football preview: Pittsburgh

Pitt basketball player

Mike Young's squad will play next Sunday at Liberty, the following Sunday in Blacksburg against Richmond:

lfg

I caught up with Panther-Lair's Jim Hammett for the lates on the Panthers:

Opponent intel: Pittsburgh

Tink Kelley's gonna be a star, man:

Hokie Haven Friday Night Lights 2022: Week seven

Malachi Thomas officially back in the mix, and some shakeup at the No. 2s at a number of defensive positions.

Updated Virginia Tech depth chart: Pitt

We've already talked plenty about possible incoming Transfer Portal moves, both before and during the 2022 season (and will continue to do so, with coaching changes happening at a blistering pace, including some schools with connections to the current coaching staff). But we've also reached a point where we're going to begin hearing rumblings around possible departures, as well.

In the first year after a coaching change, that's only natural: guys don't have direct connections to this staff, but wanted to stick it out a year because of heir love for the program. But they may not be in coaches' plans and vice versa, or may simply feel like they're not a fit for the program going forward. Guys who feel like they don't have a path up the depth chart - including those who were hand-picked for a different offense by a previous staff - are obvious candidates in both categories if they don't fit in.

Rumblings from both Blacksburg and the Garden State indicate that redshirt freshman Tahj Bullock is trending in that direction (with a return to home-state Rutgers, which was one of his finalists when he picked VT, the likely landing point). It makes sense all around: he wasn't the previous staff's first choice - they offered only after losing a commitment from Texan Dematrius Davis - and his skillset is less of a fit with the offensive philosophy of the new group. Meanwhile, he's been passed on the depth chart by a player a year younger than him (Devin Farrell), with a starting quarterback who has at least one more year of eligibility in Grant Wells, and it's hard to see a way he sees the field without a change of scenery.

New rules mean that the Transfer Portal is closed for new entries until after the season, so he won't be in until then, but I would expect that it'll happen pretty quickly as soon as that's available. There's always "good attrition" and "bad attrition" and in a coaching change, more falls into the positive category. This is one that will likely turn out best for both player and program.

Last week was not hyper-great for the Hokies, but this one looks like it's shaping up to have better results on the out-of-town scoreboard:

Opponent watch and rooting guide 2022: Week six

Hokies may be one team that ultimately looks to the Portal for game-ready talent (shocker, I know). From our buddy @Russ Wood:

ACC storylines to watch as December portal window approaches