# 2016 Virginia Tech Hokies football team

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. Since 2004, Virginia Tech has played in the Atlantic Coast Conference and is currently 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

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 3 | 12:30 p.m. | Liberty* | | Lane StadiumBlacksburg, VA | ACCN | W 36–13 | 62,234 |
| September 10 | 8:00 p.m. | vs. No. 17 Tennessee* | | Bristol Motor SpeedwayBristol, TN (Battle at Bristol) (College GameDay) | ABC | L 24–45 | 156,990$^‡$ |
| September 17 | 3:30 p.m. | Boston College | | Lane StadiumBlacksburg, VA (rivalry) | ESPNU | W 49–0 | 60,054 |
| September 24 | 12:30 p.m. | East Carolina* | | Lane StadiumBlacksburg, VA | ACCN | W 54–17 | 63,712 |
| October 8 | 3:30 p.m. | at No. 17 North Carolina | No. 25 | Kenan Memorial StadiumChapel Hill, NC | ABC/ESPN2 | W 34–3 | 33,000 |
| October 15 | 3:45 p.m. | at Syracuse | No. 17 | Carrier DomeSyracuse, NY | ESPNU | L 17–31 | 33,838 |
| October 20 | 7:00 p.m. | Miami (FL) | | Lane StadiumBlacksburg, VA (rivalry) | ESPN | W 37–16 | 63,507 |
| October 27 | 7:00 p.m. | at Pittsburgh | No. 25 | Heinz FieldPittsburgh, PA | ESPN | W 39–36 | 40,254 |
| November 5 | 3:30 p.m. | at Duke | No. 19 | Wallace Wade StadiumDurham, NC | ESPNU | W 24–21 | 38,217 |
| November 12 | 3:30 p.m. | Georgia Tech | No. 14 | Lane StadiumBlacksburg, VA (rivalry) | ESPNU | L 20–30 | 65,632 |
| November 19 | 3:30 p.m. | at Notre Dame* | | Notre Dame StadiumSouth Bend, IN | NBC | W 34–31 | 80,795 |
| November 26 | 12:00 p.m. | Virginia | | Lane StadiumBlacksburg, VA (Commonwealth Cup) | ESPN2 | W 52–10 | 63,120 |
| December 3 | 8:00 p.m. | vs. No. 3 Clemson | No. 23 | Camping World StadiumOrlando, FL (ACC Championship Game) | ABC | L 35–42 | 50,628 |
| December 29 | 5:30 p.m. | vs. Arkansas* | No. 22 | Bank of America StadiumCharlotte, NC (Belk Bowl) | ESPN | W 35–24 | 46,902 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings after November 1 released prior to gameAll times are in Eastern time ||||||||
    Schedule Source:
‡ – Current NCAA record for largest attendance for a collegiate football game.

## Game summaries
### Liberty

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Flames | 6 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| Hokies | 7 | 17 | 9 | 3 | 36 |

### Vs. Tennessee

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hokies | 14 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 24 |
| #17 Volunteers | 0 | 24 | 7 | 14 | 45 |

### Boston College

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hokies | 14 | 7 | 21 | 7 | 49 |

### East Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Pirates | 0 | 0 | 14 | 3 | 17 |
| Hokies | 14 | 24 | 9 | 7 | 54 |

### North Carolina

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #25 Hokies | 6 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 34 |
| #17 Tar Heels | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |

### At Syracuse

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #17 Hokies | 3 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 17 |
| Orange | 7 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 31 |

### Miami (FL)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hurricanes | 3 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 16 |
| Hokies | 3 | 13 | 14 | 7 | 37 |

### At Pittsburgh

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #25 Hokies | 6 | 10 | 13 | 10 | 39 |
| Panthers | 0 | 14 | 7 | 15 | 36 |

### At Duke

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #23 Hokies | 7 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 24 |
| Blue Devils | 7 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 21 |

### Georgia Tech

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Yellow Jackets | 6 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 30 |
| #18 Hokies | 0 | 0 | 7 | 13 | 20 |

### At Notre Dame

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hokies | 0 | 14 | 7 | 13 | 34 |
| Fighting Irish | 10 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 31 |

### Virginia

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cavaliers | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 10 |
| Hokies | 7 | 21 | 24 | 0 | 52 |

### Vs. Clemson–ACC Championship Game

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| #19 Hokies | 7 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 35 |
| #3 Tigers | 14 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 42 |

### Vs. Arkansas–Belk Bowl

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Razorbacks | 17 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| #18 Hokies | 0 | 0 | 21 | 14 | 35 |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
| AP | — | — | — | RV | RV | 25 | 17 | RV | 25 | 23 | 18 | RV | RV | 19 | 18 | 16 |
| Coaches | — | — | — | — | RV | RV | 19 | RV | 25 | 21 | 22 | RV | RV | 18 | 19 | 16 |
| CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 19 | 14 | — | — | 23 | 22 | Not released |

## Personnel
### Coaching staff

| Name | Position | Seasons at Virginia 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:
| Game | Opponent | Player |
| Game 1 | Liberty | Steven Peoples |
| Game 2 | Tennessee | Sean Huelskamp |
| Game 3 | Boston College | Tim Settle |
| Game 4 | East Carolina | Greg Stroman |
| Game 5 | North Carolina | Cam Phillips |
| Game 6 | Syracuse | Joey Slye |
| Game 7 | Miami | Anthony Shegog |
| Game 8 | Pittsburgh | Divine Deablo |
| Game 9 | Duke | Chuck Clark |
| Game 10 | Georgia Tech | Adonis Alexander |
| Game 11 | Notre Dame | CJ Carroll |
| Game 12 | Virginia | Sam Rogers |
| Game 13 | Clemson | Woody Baron |
| Belk Bowl | Arkansas | Terrell Edmunds |