Heading into the season, there were several freshmen or redshirt freshmen expected to make an impact this year. Whether it’s redshirt freshman Reiss Gannam, who earned the starting left guard spot at the beginning of the year, or true freshman Quentin Reddish, who had five tackles in a 31-7 win over Stanford. , this freshman class has many contributors.
Quentin Reddish has a season grade of 64.5 and is one of the players rated highly by PFF on a weekly basis. Reddish is one of the hardest hitters in the secondary and has been on the deep two-tier charts since the beginning of the year. He rotates from the boundary to the field and still has some work to do in terms of coverage, but Reddish could be the best run defense safety on the entire team as a freshman.
Unfortunately, Reiss Gannam is injured and will not be ready for games against Miami, Rutgers, and Stanford. Before that, he was one of the surprising contributors to Virginia Tech’s offensive line. He is an exceptional athlete, standing 6 feet 5 inches tall and weighing over 300 pounds. He has impressed the coaching staff athletically and has improved over the past year. If Gunnam returns, he will likely move back to left guard, a position currently occupied by Virginia Tech veteran Bob Schick.
Other first-year students were also active this year.
Freshman quarterback William Watson came out in a special formation to gain rushing yards.
Freshman wide receiver Takie Heath has one catch and several run blockdowns on the season.
Despite some injuries in the secondary, freshman defensive back Thomas Williams has excelled in pass coverage.
Freshman linebackers George Ballance and Brody Jones also had unexpected knockdowns, recording one and three tackles, respectively.
Virginia Tech has a strong senior class, and while the impact of some of the freshman players has waned, when these Hokies played they made an impression on both sides of the ball. There’s still room for improvement and I’d like to see Takie Heath make an even bigger impact on offense, but as a full class, Virginia Tech did a great job with the freshmen.
Midseason grade: B-
