Brent Pry shook up his coaching staff in the offseason by bringing in new coordinators, but it didn’t help. Pry, 16-21 through his first three seasons at Virginia Tech, opened 0-3 to start his fourth. After a blowout loss to Old Dominion on Saturday, he was fired the following morning.
The Hokies have struggled in the decade since longtime coach Frank Beamer retired. Justin Fuente, his successor, got off to a good start, winning 19 games in his first two seasons, before fizzling out, to be replaced by Pry and his mediocre tenure. Who could be next? There’s one call the Hokies must make first: to South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer, Frank’s son.
Could Beamer Ball return to Blacksburg?
The younger Beamer, 48, knows the program as well as anyone in coaching. He’s done a very good job with the Gamecocks, proving he can land blue-chip recruits and develop a winning culture. He’s 31-23 and has gotten the best of ACC power Clemson in two of their past three meetings. Beamer is very happy in Columbia and knows that the grass isn’t always greener, especially when you have a good job. Still, Beamer grew up in Blacksburg and might be tempted to rebuild his dad’s old program. It’s probably a long shot, but the path to win a conference title — and thus a College Football Playoff berth — is probably a lot easier in the ACC.
Other candidates
Memphis head coach Ryan Silverfield, a 45-year-old from Florida who went to college in Virginia at Hampden-Sydney, deserves a long look here. The former NFL assistant has done an excellent job with the Tigers. Over the past three years, he’s 24-5. Last year, the Tigers finished No. 24 in the country. Along the way, his teams beat Tulane and USF, who are coached by Jon Sumrall and Alex Golesh, two of the top Group of Five coaches. The one possible downside: The Hokies hired a Memphis coach before (Fuente), and it didn’t go great. But Silverfield is quite different, and that shouldn’t be a dealbreaker.
USF head coach Alex Golesh got off to a fast start this year, blowing out Boise State and then upsetting USF in Gainesville. The 41-year-old with his ultra-fast-paced offense is 16-13 at a place that had gone 4-29 before he showed up. He definitely should be in play for the Hokies.
Southern Miss head coach Charles Huff hasn’t been in Hattiesburg, Miss., for long, but he’s off to a nice 2-1 start, including thumping a previously undefeated Appalachian State. Huff knows the area. He’s from Maryland, played college ball at Hampton and has recruited the region very well. He was a highly regarded assistant, having learned under Nick Saban and James Franklin, among others, before leading Marshall to 10 wins last year, in his fourth season at the school. Overall, he’s 34-21 as a head coach and should get a long look here.
There’s a good in-state option in James Madison head coach Bob Chesney. He’s 48 and a proven winner at the lower levels (he left Holy Cross for JMU). In his first season he led the Dukes to a 9-4 record that included a 70-50 rout of North Carolina and a bowl win against Western Kentucky. The Pennsylvania native is 121-51 in four stops as a college head coach. I’ve heard that if Virginia makes a change with Tony Elliott, Chesney would be in play, but he’s someone Tech should be considering.
Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein, a 35-year-old play-calling whiz from Louisville, Ky., could be in the mix. He’s done a terrific job with the Ducks and is on a lot of athletic directors’ short lists. He will get a head coaching job sooner or later, but I’m not sure VT is the best fit.
Ohio State OC/wide receivers coach Brian Hartline has long been one of the top position coaches in college football. The Ohio native, a former NFL wideout, has proven to be a superb recruiter and teacher and will be very picky about what head coaching jobs he might consider. This is a good job and geographically, Hartline might make some sense for VT.
The wild card
The wild-card candidate is probably the greatest player in Hokies history: Michael Vick, who carried them to the 2000 BCS title game.
The Hampton Roads product from Newport News, Va., jumped into the college coaching ranks last winter, taking the job at FCS Norfolk State. He’s 1-2 and learning on the job. It’s too soon to tell much from how things are going to go for him as a college coach, though he would be able to recruit very well in his home state. But getting a more experienced, proven head coach might seem like a safer option after Pry, a first-time head coach, failed to gain any traction building up this program.
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