Two weeks, two quarterbacks, 656 passing yards.
That's what Virginia Tech's pass defense has given up since Oct. 10: 321 yards to Cal backup Jackson Brousseau in his first start, then a career-high 335 yards to Georgia Tech's Alberto Mendoza. Against most offenses, that's the story of the week.
Clemson isn't most offenses. True freshman Tait Reynolds has one touchdown pass this season; the Tigers have two as a team (last in FBS), and they rank 132nd nationally in pass efficiency.
Something gives Saturday at 7 p.m. on ESPN. A win at Clemson (4-2, 2-1 ACC) would make Virginia Tech (5-2, 2-2) bowl eligible in coach James Franklin's first season.
Here are three players to watch on the Hokies' defense.
Stevens didn't record a sack in 2025. He finished with 14 tackles and half a tackle for loss.
Seven games into this season, the senior has eight sacks, tied for second in the country. He came to Blacksburg from Indianapolis as a linebacker recruit and moved to the defensive line in 2024. Franklin said Monday that Stevens has thrived since the new staff arrived and is bigger, stronger and faster than he was.
Against Georgia Tech, he had 2.5 sacks. Now he gets a Clemson line that has allowed 17 sacks in six games. Its right side starts sophomore guard Easton Ware and fifth-year tackle Collin Sadler, and that's where Stevens has done most of his damage. If he's in Reynolds' face early, everything else on this list gets easier.
Wylie leads Virginia Tech with 37 tackles and has led the team in each of the last two games, with nine at Cal and 10 against Georgia Tech.
Saturday, his assignment is Gideon Davidson. The Clemson sophomore has 430 yards and five touchdowns at 5.4 yards per carry, and his 75-yard touchdown put away Cal. He's the most dependable piece of Clemson's offense.
Virginia Tech allows 87.4 rushing yards per game, 10th in the FBS. Georgia Tech still found a crack: Trelain Maddox's 42-yard touchdown run in the third quarter started the Yellow Jackets' comeback. Clemson allows 7.7 tackles for loss per game, 134th nationally, so the chances to hit Davidson in the backfield will be there.
Win first down, and Clemson is a freshman quarterback facing third-and-long.That is where Stevens and the rest of the defensive line should feast.
The last time Clemson saw Reddish, he was running the other way with one of its field goals. As a true freshman in 2024, he caught Keyshawn Burgos' block of a 46-yard Nolan Hauser attempt and returned it 77 yards for a touchdown. It was Virginia Tech's first blocked field goal returned for a score since 2016. Clemson still won 24-14.
The junior from Charlotte, N.C., is back after an injury that cut short his 2025 season. He picked off Mendoza in the second quarter against Georgia Tech, his first interception since Week 2 of last season.
His job is the deep middle. Reynolds is two of 21 on throws of 20 yards or more, so Clemson isn't built to beat the Hokies over the top. It beats them when a coverage breaks down, the way back-to-back 15-yard Virginia Tech penalties helped Cal's winning drive. If the Hokies keep everything in front, Clemson has to drive the length of the field with a freshman. Drives that stall end with Hauser, who is 15 of 16 on field goals this season.
Two years ago, Reddish beat Clemson by taking a Hauser field goal away. On Saturday, making the Tigers settle for one might be just as good.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/virginiatech as Three Virginia Tech Players On Defense To Watch Against Clemson .
