Virginia Tech Coach Brent Pry Not Worried About Grant Wells Turnovers Becoming A Pattern

BLACKSBURG — Virginia Tech quarterback Grant Wells averaged nine steals in last week's 20-17 rout of Old Dominion.

That number will likely put him with a front-line staff that values ​​ball protection above all else, but Brent Pry doesn't seem fazed after watching film of the Wales game.

"We put them both on him," Pry said. "One was a bad decision, the other was a bad throw. Not something that fit the pattern or anything like that.

Former Chief Justin Fuente's philosophy is not without reason. Tech is 26-6 when he has a winning turnover margin during his tenure and 6-22 when he has a negative turnover margin. In those 60 games, the Hawkeyes had just 46 interceptions.

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Wells' four interceptions last week nearly matched Tech's total last season (five in 316 attempts). Tech's overall interception rate during Fuente's tenure was just 2.1%.

The Tech coach knew Wells could win a lot when he was hired. He led Conference USA with 13 interceptions last year and had nine as a freshman.

Offensive coordinator Brad Glenn has repeatedly said the loss isn't a problem for Wells in the offseason, and Pry echoed that during his press conference Monday when he said there were no warning signs pointing to the ODU game.

"He had days in the preseason where he threw some bad balls, made some bad decisions," Pry said. "The day was a little jumpy. We haven't really seen it yet. I think it happened that night.'

The most controversial obstacles in the Old Dominion are the first two. Late in the first quarter, Wells took a bad snap trying to go first. He missed his target by about 10 yards.

He threw another interception deep in ODU territory on Tech's next possession, securing the receiver out of bounds in one-on-one coverage. That corner missed the ODU 27-yard line for an easy catch.

The other two had liquor.

"There's a lot that starts with listening," Pry said. “Sometimes defender, sometimes wide, sometimes defence. You go back and see each one and really understand what the point is. So we get it, and apparently no one feels worse than the donation. But he is a vet. I'm looking for him to jump in and play well."

Tech hosted a Boston College team Saturday night that gave up just 110 yards against Rutgers. Rutgers is 13-of-22 (59.1%) with longest interceptions and completions allowed at 21 yards.

That's not particularly surprising given that Boston College's defense ranks third in the FBS (173.5 yards allowed per game) and has nearly 10 interceptions as many touchdowns allowed (14).

Tech was one of three teams to rush for 100 yards against Boston College last season. The only time the Hokies were held to less than 100 yards during Fuente's tenure was the 2016 monsoon game at North Carolina.

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