Bhayshul Tuten, Ali Jennings injury update: Pete Thamel gives latest on Virginia Tech stars ahead of Rutgers game
Virginia Tech will have to wait until kickoff to see the fates of Bhayshul Tuten and Ali Jennings, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
“Two big game-time decisions for Virginia Tech today against Rutgers,” Thamel wrote on Twitter. “Star tailback Bhayshul Tuten and star wide receiver Ali Jennings are questionable and their status is expected to be decided in pregame, per ESPN sources.”
The star running back and wide receiver combo are key for the Hokies and are much needed against Rutgers Saturday.
This season, Jennings has just four catches, but for 117 yards and one touchdown, averaging 29.3 yards per catch for Virginia Tech. Tuten has 52 carries for 269 yards, four touchdowns, 5.2 yards per carry and 11 catches for 24 yards and a touchdown.
Virginia Tech and Rutgers have some history, dating back to when both schools were in the Big East. In the most recent meeting, the Scarlet Knights beat the Hokies 35-16 in Piscataway last season.
Legendary coach Frank Beamer recently spoke about the progress of Rutgers under Greg Schiano during his second stint as head coach. That echoed from his first rebuild.
“I thought he did an amazing job,” Beamer told NJ Advance Media. “He convinced a lot of all those great players that come out of New Jersey to stay at home and play and at Rutgers. He did such a good job of recruiting, and that’s a great area to recruit from. We’ve been up there and tried to recruit quite a bit ourselves, so I understand how many good players come out of that area. His deal was, he got them to stay home and play right there at Rutgers.”
On the flip side, Virginia Tech is 2-1 on the season, bouncing back last week with a 37-17 win over Old Dominion on the road.
“Coach Schiano is a really good defensive coach, over a long career,” head coach Brent Pry said of Rutgers’ defense. “They’re sound, physical, and play with good fundamentals. They are a big, physical group and return a bunch of guys. They picked up a transfer from Florida State that’s helping them. Two of their better defensive players haven’t played yet, the middle linebacker and the defensive end, haven’t played yet, but I expect them to return. They were dressed but not playing in the first two weeks. They’ve got a good group and a couple of defensive backs that can really run.
“I don’t know that they’ve been tested yet as a defense. Akron moved the ball at times, and Howard had some success running the ball, but those games were over by the middle of the third quarter. The defense is a good group a big, strong, and tough to move around.”