CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2019 Virginia Tech

8–⁠5 (5–⁠3 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Justin Fuente.

Schedule and results

Virginia Tech in 2019, game by game: lost at Boston College 28–35; won vs. Old Dominion 31–17; won vs. Furman 24–17; lost vs. Duke 10–45; won at Miami 42–35; won vs. Rhode Island 34–17; won vs. North Carolina 43–41; lost at No. 16 Notre Dame 20–21; won vs. No. 22 Wake Forest 36–17; won at Georgia Tech 45–0; won vs. Pittsburgh 28–0; lost at Virginia 30–39; lost vs. Kentucky 30–37+45−35Lost 28–35 at Boston College-7Boston CollegeWon 31–17 vs. Old Dominion+14Old DominionWon 24–17 vs. Furman+7FurmanLost 10–45 vs. Duke-35DukeWon 42–35 at Miami+7MiamiWon 34–17 vs. Rhode Island+17Rhode IslandWon 43–41 vs. North Carolina+2North CarolinaLost 20–21 at No. 16 Notre Dame-1No. 16 Notre DameWon 36–17 vs. No. 22 Wake Forest+19No. 22 Wake ForestWon 45–0 at Georgia Tech+45Georgia TechWon 28–0 vs. Pittsburgh+28PittsburghLost 30–39 at Virginia-9VirginiaLost 30–37 vs. Kentucky-7Kentucky
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 31atBoston CollegeL 28–⁠3537%
Sep 7vsOld DominionW 31–⁠1770%
Sep 14vsFurmanW 24–⁠1774%
Sep 27vsDukeL 10–⁠4548%
Oct 5atMiamiW 42–⁠3533%
Oct 12vsRhode IslandW 34–⁠1785%
Oct 19vsNorth CarolinaW 43–⁠4163%
Nov 2at16Notre DameL 20–⁠2123%
Nov 9vs22Wake ForestW 36–⁠1745%
Nov 16atGeorgia TechW 45–⁠059%
Nov 23vsPittsburghW 28–⁠057%
Nov 29atVirginiaL 30–⁠3942%
Dec 31Bowls & playoffvsKentuckyBelk BowlL 30–⁠3750%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Kentucky 37–⁠30 in the Belk Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 3rd in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 38th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 123 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 13: 25
  2. Wk 14: 23
Record
8–⁠5
Conference
5–⁠3 tied for 3rd in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked peak No. 23
Points
401–⁠321
Coach
Justin Fuente
Elo
1581 +70 this season
SP+ rating
8.0 No. 38 of 130; offense No. 54, defense No. 38, special teams No. 24
SRS
2.1 No. 55 of 130 in FBS
Returning
75% of last season’s EPA, No. 31 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 26 roster talent No. 29 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Brad Cornelsen
Defensive coordinator
Bud Foster
Offense
Spread
Defense
4–⁠4

How good, play by play

  • Offense78th of 130
  • Defense38th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted70th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted46th of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0942%1.1778th of 130
Defense0.0537%1.4038th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.10 off
0.07 def		43% off
38% def		—70th off
46th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.1own 3118% allowed
Defense3.2own 2821% caused

CORE rating 2.7, 47th of 130 (offense -0.9, defense -3.6).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsHendon Hooker QB1,552 yds
Passing touchdownsHendon Hooker QB13 TD
Rushing yardsDeshawn McClease RB843 yds
Rushing touchdownsDeshawn McClease RB7 TD
Receiving yardsTre Turner WR553 yds
Receiving touchdownsDamon Hazelton WR8 TD
TacklesRayshard Ashby LB119 tkl
SacksChamarri Conner DB5.5 sacks
InterceptionsCaleb Farley DB4 INT

Top recruits in the 2019 class

Doug Nester OG★★★★No. 107
Jaden Payoute ATH★★★★No. 163
Bryan Hudson OG★★★★No. 202
J.R. Walker ATH★★★★No. 266
Tayvion Robinson ATH★★★★No. 339
Keshawn King RB★★★★No. 346
Ny’Quee Hawkins S★★★★No. 379
Jacoby Pinckney WR★★★★No. 413

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2019 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.832
Running backs23.50.882
Receivers33.30.878
Offensive line43.50.902
Defensive line33.00.861
Linebackers12.00.760
Defensive backs23.50.876
Athletes and specialists43.80.901
Whole class203.30.877

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2020

The 2020 draft
Rd 3Dalton Keene TENew England Patriots

Roster 116

The 2019 roster

116 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2019 line; 54 have a stat line. See the roster

2019 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Clemson8–⁠014–⁠12
Virginia6–⁠29–⁠5
Louisville5–⁠38–⁠5
Virginia Tech5–⁠38–⁠5
Wake Forest5–⁠48–⁠5
Pittsburgh4–⁠48–⁠5
Boston College4–⁠46–⁠7
Miami4–⁠46–⁠7
Florida State4–⁠46–⁠7
North Carolina4–⁠57–⁠6
Duke3–⁠55–⁠7
Syracuse2–⁠65–⁠7
Georgia Tech2–⁠63–⁠9
NC State1–⁠74–⁠8

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.