GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Atlantic Coast Conference announced Wednesday that Virginia Tech football student-athletes OL Silas Dzansi, LB Dax Hollifield and WR Kaleb Smith will accompany head coach Brent Pry to the 2022 ACC Football Kickoff held at the Westin in downtown Charlotte on Thursday, July 21.
The Hokies are entering their first season under the direction of Pry, who was introduced by Virginia Tech Director of Athletics Whit Babcock in December 2021.
Dzansi (6-5, 325) – The Woodbridge, Virginia native enters his sixth season in Blacksburg, where he will be one of the leaders on the offensive line. Dzansi started seven games in 2021; four at right tackle, two at left guard and one at left tackle. For his career, Dzansi owns 23 starts in 38 games. He already owns a degree in criminology.
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Hollifield (6-1, 239) – The Shelby, North Carolina native enters his fifth season at Tech, where he anchors the defense at mike linebacker and is a team captain. In 2021, he led the Hokies in tackles with 92, including 44 solo efforts. Hollifield also led Tech's defense with 9.0 TFL and 4.5 sacks. He earned All-ACC Honorable Mention accolades and was also a Charlotte TD Club Defender of the Nation Award nominee last fall.
Smith (6-2, 215) – Had the most productive season of his career in 2021, starting 11 games and hauling in 20 passes for 260 yards and two TDs. The Bumpass, Virginia native owns 20 starts in his three seasons in Blacksburg and has a receiving average of 12.7 yards. Smith wore the No. 25 jersey at West Virginia in 2021 and led the team in receiving with a career-high six receptions for 58 yards against the Mountaineers.
Virginia Tech opens the 2022 season on Friday, Sept. 2 at 7:30 with an in-state matchup at Old Dominion that will be broadcast to a national audience on ESPNU. It will mark the first time Tech has faced an opponent from the state of Virginia in the season opener since a 36-13 victory over Liberty in 2016, and the contest is the first season opener at a Virginia school since Tech defeated Richmond 20-9 in 1982.