# 2024 VMI Keydets football team

The 2024 VMI Keydets football team represented the Virginia Military Institute as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 2024 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Keydets were coached by second-year head coach Danny Rocco and played at Alumni Memorial Field in Lexington, Virginia.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 29 | 7:00 p.m. | at No. 15 William & Mary* | Zable StadiumWilliamsburg, VA (rivalry) | FloSports | L 7–41 | 8,096 |
| September 7 | 1:30 p.m. | Bucknell* | Alumni Memorial FieldLexington, VA | ESPN+ | L 28–35 | 6,295 |
| September 14 | 3:30 p.m. | at Georgia Tech* | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA | ACCNX/ESPN+ | L 7–59 | 31,729 |
| September 21 | 1:30 p.m. | Norfolk State* | Alumni Memorial FieldLexington, VA | ESPN+ | L 10–32 | 3,108 |
| October 5 | 3:00 p.m. | at Samford | Pete Hanna StadiumHomewood, AL | ESPN+ | L 3–27 | 3,617 |
| October 12 | 1:30 p.m. | at Wofford | Gibbs StadiumSpartanburg, SC | ESPN+ | L 16–31 | 4,248 |
| October 19 | 1:30 p.m. | The Citadel | Alumni Memorial FieldLexington, VA (Military Classic of the South) | ESPN+ | L 10–13 | 8,277 |
| October 26 | 4:00 p.m. | at No. 19 Chattanooga | Finley StadiumChattanooga, TN | ESPN+ | L 10–31 | 8,071 |
| November 2 | 1:30 p.m. | Furman | Alumni Memorial FieldLexington, VA | ESPN+ | W 21–17 | 4,012 |
| November 9 | 1:30 p.m. | No. 10 Mercer | Alumni Memorial FieldLexington, VA | ESPN+ | L 0–34 | 3,580 |
| November 16 | 1:00 p.m. | at Western Carolina | Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire StadiumCullowhee, NC | ESPN+ | L 28–58 | 13,022 |
| November 23 | 12:00 p.m. | East Tennessee State | Alumni Memorial FieldLexington, VA | ESPN+ | L 9–16 | 3,825 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||

## Game summaries
### at No. 15 William & Mary (rivalry)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Keydets | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| No. 15 Tribe | 14 | 14 | 13 | 0 | 41 |
at Zable Stadium • Williamsburg, VA
* Date: Thursday August 29, 2024
* Game time: 7:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 86 °F (30 °C)
* Game attendance: 8,096
* Referee: Todd Bowman
* TV announcers (FloSports): TBD
| Statistics | VMI | W&M |
| First downs | 14 | 21 |
| Total yards | 241 | 446 |
| Rushing yards | 145 | 205 |
| Passing yards | 96 | 241 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 12–25–2 | 15–20–0 |
| Time of possession | 32:04 | 27:56 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| VMI | Passing | Collin Shannon | 8/19, 62 yards, INT |
| VMI | Rushing | Hunter Rice | 17 carries, 81 yards, TD |
| VMI | Receiving | Hunter Rice | 1 reception, 29 yards |
| William & Mary | Passing | Darius Wilson | 11/15, 190 yards, 2 TD |
| William & Mary | Rushing | Bronson Yoder | 10 carries, 54 yards, TD |
| William & Mary | Receiving | Hollis Mathis | 2 receptions, 71 yards, TD |

### vs. Bucknell

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bison | 7 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 35 |
| Keydets | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 28 |
at Alumni Memorial Field, Lexington, Virginia
* Date: Saturday September 7, 2024
* Game time: 1:30 PM
* Game weather: Sunny, 73 °F (23 °C)
* Game attendance: 6,295
* Referee: Brian Hilpisch
* TV: ESPN+
| Statistics | BUCK | VMI |
| First downs | 22 | 20 |
| Total yards | 451 | 378 |
| Rushing yards | 111 | 212 |
| Passing yards | 340 | 166 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 28–37–1 | 24–37–1 |
| Time of possession | 29:14 | 30:46 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Bucknell | Passing | Ralph Rucker IV | 28/37, 340 yards, 3 TD, INT |
| Bucknell | Rushing | Paul Neel | 8 carries, 37 yards, TD |
| Bucknell | Receiving | Eric Weatherly | 9 receptions, 105 yards |
| VMI | Passing | Collin Shannon | 21/32, 129 yards, INT |
| VMI | Rushing | Hunter Rice | 18 carries, 166 yards, 2 TD |
| VMI | Receiving | Ivan Thorpe | 6 receptions, 47 yards |

### at Georgia Tech (FBS)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Keydets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Yellow Jackets (FBS) | 17 | 21 | 14 | 7 | 59 |
at Bobby Dodd Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
* Date: Saturday September 14, 2024
* Game time: 3:30 PM
* Game weather: Rain, 76 °F (24 °C)
* Game attendance: 31,729
* Referee: Tim Hedgepeth
* TV announcers (ACCNX): Shawn Kenney (play-by-play) and Forrest Conoly (analyst)
| Statistics | VMI | GT |
| First downs | 5 | 30 |
| Total yards | 104 | 572 |
| Rushing yards | 12 | 190 |
| Passing yards | 92 | 382 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 13-19-0 | 23-32-0 |
| Time of possession | 30:16 | 24:44 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| VMI | Passing | Chandler Wilson | 10/15, 51 yards |
| VMI | Rushing | JoJo Crump | 5 rushes, 16 yards |
| VMI | Receiving | Owen Sweeney | 1 reception, 34 yards |
| Georgia Tech | Passing | Haynes King | 17/22, 275 yards, 3 TD |
| Georgia Tech | Rushing | Trelain Maddox | 9 rushes, 53 yards, TD |
| Georgia Tech | Receiving | Eric Singleton Jr. | 5 receptions, 102 yards, TD |

### vs. Norfolk State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Spartans | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Keydets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Alumni Memorial Field, Lexington, Virginia
* Date: Saturday September 21, 2024
* Game time: 1:30 PM
* TV: ESPN+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Norfolk State | Passing |
| Norfolk State | Rushing |
| Norfolk State | Receiving |
| VMI | Passing |
| VMI | Rushing |
| VMI | Receiving |

### at Samford

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Keydets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Pete Hanna Stadium, Homewood, Alabama
* Date: Saturday October 5, 2024
* Game time: 3:00 PM
* TV: ESPN+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| VMI | Passing |
| VMI | Rushing |
| VMI | Receiving |
| Samford | Passing |
| Samford | Rushing |
| Samford | Receiving |

### at Wofford

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Keydets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Terriers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Gibbs Stadium, Spartanburg, South Carolina
* Date: Saturday October 12, 2024
* Game time: 1:30 PM
* TV: ESPN+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| VMI | Passing |
| VMI | Rushing |
| VMI | Receiving |
| Wofford | Passing |
| Wofford | Rushing |
| Wofford | Receiving |

### The Citadel (Military Classic of the South)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Keydets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Alumni Memorial Field • Lexington, VA
* Date: Saturday October 19, 2024
* Game time: 1:30 p.m.
* Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| The Citadel | Passing |
| The Citadel | Rushing |
| The Citadel | Receiving |
| VMI | Passing |
| VMI | Rushing |
| VMI | Receiving |

### at No. 19 Chattanooga

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Keydets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. 19 Mocs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Finley Stadium • Chattanooga, TN
* Date: Saturday October 26, 2024
* Game time: 4:00 p.m.
* Game weather: 0 °F (−18 °C)
* TV: ESPN+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| VMI | Passing |
| VMI | Rushing |
| VMI | Receiving |
| Chattanooga | Passing |
| Chattanooga | Rushing |
| Chattanooga | Receiving |

### Furman

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Paladins | 7 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| Keydets | 7 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
at Alumni Memorial Field • Lexington, VA
* Date: Saturday November 2, 2024
* Game time: 1:30 p.m.
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Furman | Passing |
| Furman | Rushing |
| Furman | Receiving |
| VMI | Passing |
| VMI | Rushing |
| VMI | Receiving |

### No. 10 Mercer

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 10 Bears | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Keydets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Alumni Memorial Field • Lexington, VA
* Date: Saturday November 9, 2024
* Game time: 1:30 p.m.
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| Mercer | Passing |
| Mercer | Rushing |
| Mercer | Receiving |
| VMI | Passing |
| VMI | Rushing |
| VMI | Receiving |

### at Western Carolina

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Keydets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Catamounts | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium, Cullowhee, NC
* Date: Saturday November 16, 2024
* Game time: 1:00 p.m.
* TV: ESPN+
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| VMI | Passing |
| VMI | Rushing |
| VMI | Receiving |
| Western Carolina | Passing |
| Western Carolina | Rushing |
| Western Carolina | Receiving |

### East Tennessee State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Keydets | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
at Alumni Memorial Field • Lexington, VA
* Date: Saturday November 23, 2024
* Game time: 12:00 p.m.
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
* Statistics
* First downs
* Total yards
* Rushing yards
* Passing yards
* Passing: Comp–Att–Int
* Time of possession
| Team | Category |
| East Tennessee State | Passing |
| East Tennessee State | Rushing |
| East Tennessee State | Receiving |
| VMI | Passing |
| VMI | Rushing |
| VMI | Receiving |