Four days into spring practice for the Virginia Tech Hokies, head coach James Franklin revealed a position change. Redshirt freshman quarterback A.J. Brand had moved to wide receiver. Franklin spoke to Brand about the switch and Brand wanted to play receiver.
“So, A.J. is going to move to wideout, that was the position he wanted to move to,“ Franklin said. ”The reality is, a couple of things, he’s too good of an athlete, and he’s too good of a guy. Everybody on the team loves him. He’s got an infectious personality. Right now, where he was at on the depth chart, we had a conversation with him and his father, that it was my opinion, and our opinion, that this was in his best interest, and the team’s best interest. I think he can help us on offense. And I think he can help us on special teams. This is just a way to get another really good athlete and another really good person the ability to earn a role to help us win games come the fall.“
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After Franklin revealed that Brand was moving positions, he was asked about a “loaded and crowded” wide receivers room. Franklin interjected.
“Well, first of all, I’m going to be honest, I don’t see it like you guys,” Franklin said. “I hate when you say ‘a crowded room,’ because I don’t see it that way. To me, a crowded room is we got three or four guys, or two or three guys, that were first-team All-ACC. There’s a ton of opportunities for guys to get on the field. Crowded to me means there’s not opportunities for guys to make a name for themselves. We don’t have that. We got AG (Ayden Greene), who’s been an established guy here for a while. And then we got a bunch of guys battling AG and others. I don’t see it as crowded. Crowded is you got nine starters back on offense and nine starters back on defense, that a bunch of them made first-team All-ACC or second-team All-ACC, but we’re not in that position.”
Franklin was then asked about junior wide receiver Que’Sean Brown, the transfer from Duke who had 64 catches for 846 yards and five touchdowns last fall. Franklin complimented Brown.
So, if we can take anything away from what Franklin said, two receivers are standing out: Greene and Brown. That’s not a surprise. Heading into spring practice, most everyone believed it was those two, alongside tight ends Benji Gosnell and Luke Reynolds, who were the top targets in the passing game.
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This means there’s an opportunity for Brand and others. Young players, such as Brodie Adams, Chanz Wiggins and Snook Peterkin, are some of the other notable receivers. Adams, a redshirt sophomore, was a prized recruit in 2024 and is looking to finally break out after dealing with injuries. Peterkin, a two-sport standout, is definitely a player to watch.
Ideally, some of the younger players begin separating themselves in the spring and are ready to take on a more significant role in the fall.
