Virginia Tech vs. Pitt: Grunkemeyer, Hokies Adjust After BC
A day after the Hokies’ stormy road win against Boston College, Ethan Grunkemeyer was back in Blacksburg, watching film and jotting down the most notes of any session so far this year.
For the first time all season, quarterbacking didn’t look easy for him.
The weather was inarguably a factor in that, but Grunkemeyer, who posted season lows in several categories Saturday, said while those conditions can be challenging, they aren’t an excuse.
“Some of the weather stuff is where you really get down and hone in on your mechanics,” Grunkemeyer said. “Sometimes, when the weather’s like this” — he pointed toward a clear sky — “some of that stuff you can compensate for. But I was able to learn from a lot and make some of the corrections coming into this week.”
In other words, wind and rain may limit a quarterback, but every-game fundamentals are just as important as always, perhaps even more so. While Grunkemeyer did enough to help Tech win — limiting turnovers and mixing in a gorgeous fade-route touchdown to Marlion Jackson — PFF graded him at a season-low 52.4, the worst mark of any offensive player besides Benji Gosnell.
That performance sent him back to work Sunday, meeting with quarterbacks coach Danny O’Brien to talk about the issues they saw come up on film.
Chief among them was a mechanical miscue in his feet, which may have contributed to his second-lowest career completion percentage (62.9%) in games he attempted 20 or more throws. It’s been a focus for him in practice so far this week, and he’s seen tangible progress.
“Some of it was just my feet going into the throw,” Grunkemeyer said. “It popped up today on one thing. I made the correction and fixed it to have a big explosive play in practice today.
“So just kind of small stuff like that, with my feet and seeing some of our different concepts. But we were able to really get a good beat on those and get them fixed.”
Grunkemeyer’s go-to target, tight end Luke Reynolds, was a similar story on Saturday; he had opportunities with five catches but managed just 15 yards. The Eagles were hyper-focused on denying him the ball and limiting his movement, and for the first time all season, that worked out for a Tech opponent.
Like his quarterback, Reynolds aims to adjust and figure out how to impact the pass game once again. Though Grunkemeyer said his presence is felt even when that doesn’t work out.
“I think that Luke may not have had the game that he’s kind of had receiving the ball-wise, just from the standpoint of having 100-some yards,” Grunkemeyer said. “But I think if you go back and look at the film, he’s grown a ton as a run blocker.”
PFF gave Reynolds a team-high 79.2 grade for his run blocking, but perhaps far more important was his teammate’s review in Tech’s film sessions this week. Grunkemeyer laughed as he recalled a number of plays where Reynolds was “just putting guys on the ground.”
“Maybe he didn’t show up on the stat sheet as much as he has in the past couple games, but I think he may have had his best blocking game,” Grunkemeyer said.
Adjusting On Defense
Hokies safety DQ Smith doesn’t say much, according to his coaches.
He committed to Virginia Tech just four days before its season opener against VMI and has been acclimating since. What he has over many of the defensive backs in experience — 48 games under Shane Beamer at South Carolina — he lacks in time with defensive coordinator Brent Pry’s scheme. But he’s catching on fast.
“[Getting him] was huge,” said Hokies safeties coach Anthony Midget. “A guy like that, has starter experience, can come in and help mentor some of the young guys, he’s done a good job with that. … Also, with a guy that’s played so much football, it’s been easier for him to learn the system.”
Funnily enough, Shane Beamer was asked Tuesday why South Carolina didn’t get Smith after he returned to college football and responded a touch miffed. The Gamecocks have allowed an opponent passer rating of 157.9 this season.
Shane Beamer’s quite snappy today.He didn’t like this question about choosing not to bring back DQ Smith after the Gamecocks have given up 8 TD passes in 2 SEC games … pic.twitter.com/boPrgK1RXJ— Brad Crawford (@BCrawford247) September 29, 2026
Midget said Smith keeps his voice down and focuses on spending extra time in the playbook. He may not be a vocal leader yet, but he’s becoming a bigger part of Tech’s defensive game plan every week.
He played a season-high 27 snaps against Maryland after seeing just 11 in his Tech debut against Old Dominion. That number dipped to 17 against Boston College, though, which could be explained by a shift in the Hokies’ defensive approach. Maryland’s spread offense demanded more coverage personnel, while the Eagles leaned heavily on quarterback draws, counters and zone reads with Mason McKenzie.
With the Hokies back to facing a more traditional — but still mobile — quarterback in Pitt’s Mason Heintschel this Friday, it will be interesting to see how Smith is utilized and whether he ever claims a top safety spot ahead of Tyson Flowers or Quentin Reddish. There’s more skill and physique overlap with the former.
On the topic of Heintschel, playing him after chasing McKenzie all over the backfield is another adjustment Tech’s defense is looking to make. Not only are the quarterbacks extremely different, but Heintschel is simply a bigger threat — closer to Malik Washington of Maryland, whose season high is still his 359 yards and three touchdowns against the Hokies.
Heintschel’s 13 passing touchdowns are fourth in the nation, and he has just one interception this season. The Hokies are preparing for him on a short week and must quickly forget the way they were forced to play McKenzie. Midget feels that adjustment will be easy, though, with the defense already having seen all types of quarterbacks.
“McKenzie was a guy that was going to run the ball and do some things with his legs, and then you go play Maryland, they throw the ball,” Midget said. “Then you play ODU, gave you a little bit of both. So we feel good from the versatility we’ve seen from some of these different quarterbacks. That’ll help us.
“But obviously, he’s a guy that can throw the ball. He can also extend plays with his legs, so it’ll be a big challenge for us.”
In addition to his passing prowess, Heintschel has registered 110 rushing yards on 26 carries so far this season, adding a rushing touchdown against Syracuse two weeks ago. Amid his 403-yard, six-touchdown game against Bucknell Saturday, he ripped off a 21-yard scramble to move the chains on 3rd-and-3.
“I feel like this dude is a little underrated with his legs,” said Hokies defensive end Aycen Stevens. “I feel like he can run the ball really well. Maybe not as well as the Boston College dude, but … a lot more than people give him credit for.”
All the Hokies’ recalibrating and fine-tuning this week builds toward Friday’s 7 p.m. ET kickoff in Lane Stadium, a high-stakes ACC matchup against their toughest opponent of the season. Whether they emerge 5-0 will hinge largely on those adjustments, especially for their star pairing of Grunkemeyer and Reynolds
“Not saying we got to play perfect because we will never play perfect, but we got to play well in all three phases, and we got to be able to do it for four quarters against a real challenging opponent,” said Hokies head coach James Franklin. “You know, both teams undefeated, ACC implications, national implications, but for us, most importantly, just finding a way to be 1-0.”