Tech Talk Live Notes for November 30, 2015

Justin Fuente

Fuente is honored to be at Virginia Tech and he’s very excited about the challenges at hand. He’s appreciative of the reception he and his family have received from the Virginia Tech family.

Fuente takes his charge of representing Tech very seriously. He’s looking forward to having the chance to build on Coach Beamer’s foundation. He thinks it’s great to be able to follow Frank Beamer. It’s a great opportunity, and he looks forward to using Beamer as a resource.

It didn’t take Fuente and Bud Foster long to get on the same page. They hit it off from the very start. Fuente wanted to get to know Foster, and he was everything Fuente was led to believe. Foster wants the best for Virginia Tech. It was a no-brainer. One of the biggest draws to Virginia Tech was the opportunity to keep Foster.

Fuente is an offensive coach, but he worked for a defensive-minded coach in Gary Patterson at TCU. You have to leave your ego behind and do what it takes to win the game. He believes in being up-tempo, but not so up-tempo that it sacrifices the defense. The bottom line is that you have to find a way to win games.

Fuente will get a handle on recruiting over the next few weeks. He and his staff will formulate a plan and then hit the road recruiting. He’ll continue to build the staff, and it will likely be completed after the bowl games are finished.

Bud Foster

Foster and Fuente met in Memphis last Monday and talked for about an hour and a half. He went with Whit Babcock, who allowed the two to talk alone. Foster didn’t know where he was going, though he was speculating that he was going to see Dan Mullen. He didn’t realize that he was going to meet Fuente until halfway through the flight.

Foster and Fuente hit it off. They both played at Murray State. He had a great college career, and he’s had a great coaching career. They had a lot of connections, and both men felt comfortable with each other. Knowing what Fuente has done offensively is exciting to Foster.

Foster believes going against a spread offense in practice will help the defense. He thinks he and Fuente can cross examine each other and make each other better. He’s looking forward to growing as a coach.

Fuente and his new coaches will be working from the press box in Lane Stadium until the current staff vacates their offices after the bowl game. Foster will be working for both staffs…coaching for Frank Beamer as they prepare for the bowl, and helping Fuente recruit.

Winning the UVA game meant a lot. This was UVA’s best offensive team in a number of years. They are good up front and they have good backs. Matt Johns was a hot quarterback. They put up a bunch of points on some pretty good defenses down the stretch. Tech played well early, and they got some help from the offense in the second half. He was happy that the defense stepped up big at the end of the game.

The end of the game was a special time. It was great to celebrate with Frank and Shane Beamer. Tech fans really showed up, and that was great to see.

Foster wished Mike London the very best. This is a tough business.

Foster is glad the game didn’t go to overtime. He’s not sure he could have taken another overtime game.

It’s been a great ride with Coach Beamer. Foster has been very blessed to work for the best coach and the best family. He’s really looking forward to being part of the Fuente era. He’s very excited to get back to Tech’s old winning ways. Justin Fuente really reminds Foster of a young Frank Beamer. As good as Tech has been, the best days are ahead.

Frank Beamer

Beamer’s secretary Diana Clark is retiring. She was perfect for the job. She’s been great through the years.

Saturday was a great day for the Hokie Nation. The fan support in Charlottesville was amazing. They were loud and supportive, and they helped the Hokies win.

Tech hung in there and kept battling against UVA, and found a way to win. They found a way to make plays when it counted. They responded under pressure, and Beamer is really proud of his players and coaching staff.

Beamer is glad Bud Foster is staying at Virginia Tech. He’s the best defensive coordinator in the country. All of Tech’s coaches will be okay, whether they stay at Tech or not. They are good coaches and they will land on their feet.

AJ Hughes and Joey Slye were great on Saturday. They are two very good kickers. Beamer feels like their backups are good as well.

It meant a lot to beat UVA for the 12th straight year. It clearly meant a lot to the fans. Beamer told the team that they were representing a lot of people on Saturday.

Beamer wants what is best for Virginia Tech. He wants to see things keep growing. He feels like Tech got a great coach in Justin Fuente. They met on Sunday night, and he is very impressed with Fuente. Beamer thinks he’ll do a great job.

Beamer told Justin Fuente that the best thing they have around Virginia Tech are the people. Everything always gets back to people, whether that’s the fans or the support staff. The fans really make the program.

Tech will practice for about an hour this Saturday. They want to stay in shape and keep their timing down. When they find out which bowl they play in, they’ll formulate a final practice plan for December.

John Ballein will stay at Virginia Tech in an administrative role. Beamer is very glad to see that. He’s the best at what he does. Ron Zook brought Ballein to Beamer and said they should hire him. Ballein had a mohawk at the time, and Beamer wasn’t so sure about him, but Zook talked him into it.

Virginia Tech has held the Commonwealth Cup for 4020 days. #Hokies

— Commonwealth Cup (@CommonwlthCup) November 30, 2015