The 2016 Virginia Tech Hokies football team represented Virginia Tech in the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Hokies were led by first-year head coach, Justin Fuente and played their home games at Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, Virginia. They competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference in its Coastal Division.
The Hokies finished the 2016 season with a regular season record of 9–3, winning its sixth ACC Coastal Division title. The Hokies played Clemson in the ACC Championship Game; Clemson won the game, 42–35.
Virginia Tech played Arkansas in the Belk Bowl on December 29, 2016. Arkansas took a 24–0 lead into halftime. However, in the second half, several Arkansas turnovers along with defensive adjustments, allowed Virginia Tech to score 35 unanswered points and win, 35–24. The comeback was the greatest in the team's 124-year history.
The Hokies finished the season with a record of 10–4, and ranked #16 in both the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll.
Schedule
Schedule source:
‡ – Current NCAA record for largest attendance for a collegiate football game.
Game summaries
Liberty
Vs. Tennessee
Boston College
East Carolina
North Carolina
At Syracuse
Miami (FL)
At Pittsburgh
At Duke
Georgia Tech
at Notre Dame
Virginia
Vs. Clemson–ACC Championship Game
Vs. Arkansas–Belk Bowl
Rankings
Personnel
Coaching staff Name Position Seasons atVirginia Tech Alma mater Justin Fuente Head coach 0 Murray State (1999) Bud Foster Associate head coach/Defensive coordinator/Inside Linebackers 29 Murray State (1981) Galen Scott Assistant head coach/Safeties 0 Illinois State (2001) Zohn Burden Running backs 1 VMI (2006) Brad Cornelsen Offensive coordinator/Quarterbacks 0 Missouri Southern State (2000) Brian Mitchell Cornerbacks 0 BYU (1995) James Shibest Special teams coordinator/Tight ends 0 Arkansas (1987) Vance Vice Offensive line 0 Oklahoma State (1990) Holmon Wiggins Wide receivers 0 New Mexico (2003) Charley Wiles Defensive line 20 Murray State (1987)Reference:
Honorary #25 Beamer Jersey At the start of the 2016 season, Head Coach Justin Fuente began a tradition of selecting an outstanding special teams player to wear the #25 jersey in honor of former head coach, Frank Beamer, who wore #25 as a player for Virginia Tech.
The players honored in the 2016 season are: GameOpponentPlayerGame 1LibertySteven PeoplesGame 2TennesseeSean HuelskampGame 3Boston CollegeTim SettleGame 4East CarolinaGreg StromanGame 5North CarolinaCam PhillipsGame 6SyracuseJoey SlyeGame 7MiamiAnthony ShegogGame 8PittsburghDivine DeabloGame 9DukeChuck ClarkGame 10Georgia TechAdonis AlexanderGame 11Notre DameCJ CarrollGame 12VirginiaSam RogersGame 13ClemsonWoody BaronBelk BowlArkansasTerrell Edmunds
References
External links