Justin Fuente, who had a 43-31 record in six seasons at Virginia Technology, is the Hokies football coach, athletic director Whit Babcock announced Tuesday.
Defensive coach JC Price will serve as interim head coach for the remainder of the season while the school begins its national search to fill the position.
Babcock said it was a mutual agreement to split up. When it became clear that Babcock could not secure another year, Fuente decided it would be best to leave immediately rather than end the season.
Babcock said the acquisition has been negotiated down from $10 million to $8.75 million so it can be done now. If the Hokies wait until December 15, the buyback will drop to $7.5 million.
“I understand Justin’s point,” said Babcock, “Hey, if I weren’t a guy, you wouldn’t believe me, that we need to do this.” “I don’t want to draw Justin into a corner. there. I don’t think he abandoned anyone. I think his meeting with the team today was great.”
Includes all four of his seasons as a coach at Memphis, Fuente has a career record of 69-54.
“To the incredible young men I have had the honor of coaching, many of you have had a lasting impact on our family,” Fuente said in a statement. . “I can’t thank you enough for your dedication and commitment to doing your best, whether it’s on the field, in the classroom, or in your personal life.
“…Thank you to the fans of Hokie Nation. I will encourage all of you to continue cheering for this football team – your support means a lot to all of them.”
Heading into the 2021 collegiate season, Fuente is one of seven Latino head coaches in Division I, according to Dr Mario Longoria, who has written a briefcase on Latinos in football. Others: Mario Cristobal of Oregon, Dave Aranda of Baylor, Manny Diaz of Miami, Andy Avalos of Boise State, Marcus Arroyo of UNLV and Danny Gonzales of New Mexico.
Fuente was hired from Memphis in 2015 to replace legendary Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer, and the move was welcomed at first for several reasons. Not only did Fuente help revive the troubled Memphis show for four seasons — including a triumphant season 10 in 2014 — but he also agreed to continue to coordinate the defense of Bud Foster, one of the pillars of the success of the show. Hokies under Beamer.
Fuente is also known for his ability to develop midfield, both during his time at Memphis and before that as offensive coordinator at TCU – and crime is the biggest area that Virginia Tech needs to tackle. In the final years of Beamer’s reign, it became a constant struggle to qualify with an offense that didn’t come close to having the desired effect.
From the very beginning, Fuente enjoyed great success, leading 10-4 and losing by a margin Clemson in the ACC championship game. The next year, the Hokies won nine matches. But soon, problems began to surface. Foster was no longer as effective as the defensive coordinator and that unit began to struggle. He resigned after the 2019 season.
Virginia Tech is also particularly affected by player transfers. By May 2021, the Hokies have lost 43 players to the gate – including the former starting midfielder Josh Jackson (Maryland) and Hendon Hooker (Tennessee). Fuente struggled to recruit in the Virginia area, but perhaps his biggest failure was his inability to develop into midfield following the departure of Jerod Evans after the 2016 season. That Hooker went on to find success. The immediate strike against Tennessee this season only helps underline that point.
Asked multiple times to answer what happened in the past few years after the initial success, Babcock declined to elaborate, saying only that the group had no real consistency or identity.
“If you look out there, there’s not a lot of AD that we probably haven’t overlooked,” Babcock said. “It’s like a five-star hire – sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. You just have to do the best you can and I think we got off to a great start with Justin and then things didn’t go as planned. where we want it to go.”
Also, Fuente rubbed some people in Blacksburg the wrong way when he discussed it with Baylor about the head coach job opening in 2020. Babcock said on Tuesday Baylor’s situation had nothing to do with the decision to let Fuente leave.
Despite all the negativity surrounding the show after 2020 ended, after 5-6 seasons, Babcock decided to stick with Fuente for one more season.
“I believe in Justin,” Babcock said at the time. “It’s not always fashionable to hold someone off when people are screaming, but he’s ours and I believe he gives us the best chance for success.”
Babcock was behind Tuesday’s decision, saying, “I’m not going to change the decision we made last year. It’s been well thought out.”
But the same problems persisted this season, as Virginia Tech sat at 5-5 heading into its game at Miami on Saturday. Most striking, of course, are the ongoing struggles over offense – where Braxton Burmeister failed to turn the tide in midfield for the Hokies. Add in painful last minute losses West Virginia, Notre Dame and Syracuse – with the Hokies blowing away their chances of winning at the end of each game – and continuing to let Fuente coach become too impossible.
Babcock on Tuesday said he believes the football program has the ability to compete for the annual ACC championship, noting recent investments in facilities and an increase in the size of its overall staff. In searching for a head coach to take over the program, Babcock noted a proven track record of success, community engagement, imprint recruiting, player development and an ability to thrive. in the new NCAA era.
Although he does not rule out assistants, preference is given to candidates with head coach experience.
“We’ve been through a tough transition after a legend, and we’ve prepared better, better prepared for infrastructure than we did a few years ago, and I still believe that we can be the preeminent program in the ACC,” Babcock said. “It’s cyclical. It’s Hokies for a while, then Seminoles and Clemson and it’s there to take over. So I think we have one of the best jobs in America. Everyone AD will all say the same, but I think it stacks up with anyone.”
