Even though VT is a "tech", the vast majority of their students are non-tech (Ag, teaching, etc). And the engineering they do have is the more "practical" type, civil and mechanical. There are some great engineers that have come out of VT. Especially the older ones. But now the culture there is to skip Friday classes because they can. (According to two VT recent engineering alum.) What put VT on the map was Beamer winning. So they put a lot of resources into their football program. VT in general has more the UGAg type mentality.
UVa students are more like GT students in that they are generally more inquisitive about life. UVa, while predominantly a liberal arts school, has the more theoretical engineering and sciences, material science & physics etc. They haven't been on the football map since the early '90s like we haven't.
Guess which team I pull for?