Jared Shanker, ESPN Staff Writer 8y

Justin Fuente remodeling Virginia Tech house that Beamer built in own image

Repeatedly, Virginia Tech coach Justin Fuente has been asked about the pressures of following a coach lionized by a fan base.

Jimbo Fisher, a bit of an expert in the field, said pressure isn’t the biggest issue when following a legendary coach. Fisher, one of the few coaches to successfully succeed a beloved figure, said it’s breaking some of the loyalties that can be the biggest challenge.

"It’s more so from the inner workings of the people around you," said Fisher, who won a national championship in his fourth season after replacing Bobby Bowden in 2010. “People will say, 'That's the way we’ve always done it.' If they get ruffled and have to do things different than ever before, people don’t like that change.

"He’ll have to be very authoritative and know what he wants and demand what he wants. He’s been very successful, but I think that’s going to be the key."

The transition between Fuente and Frank Beamer, who retired after 23 straight winning seasons and 29 total, has been smoother than what Fisher endured following the 2009 season when Bowden was pushed out. Beamer has remained active at Virginia Tech and has willingly lent a helping hand when needed despite his initial preference for the Hokies to hire his replacement from within.

In his first nine months as coach, Fuente has held meetings with the people within the football offices to create a unified vision. Outside input is valued and Fuente’s system isn’t rigid, but there’s a required acceptance into his new model.

“There’s been some turnover in those areas and there’s been some holdovers. From those who have stayed like our trainer and now new strength coach, they have hit it off,” Fuente said. “The ones who stayed, support staff in recruiting or secretarial support, have meshed really well. We have meetings like, ‘Listen, this is the way we’re going to do things. It doesn’t mean we can’t share ideas or tweak things, but this is the baseline.”

Growing pains as an assistant at TCU and first-time head coach at Memphis will help Fuente install his new structure in Blacksburg, Virginia. There will be those who want Fuente to adhere to Beamer’s program blueprint, which turned the Hokies into a national brand after a history filled with unranked, bowl-less seasons.

At TCU, Fuente tried to mimic his mentor Dick Winder when it came to coaching quarterbacks.

“What am I doing?” Fuente had to ask himself. He needed to find his own coaching style, which incorporated but didn’t replicate Winder’s style.

It was the same when he arrived at Memphis, where he planned on rebuilding TCU along the banks of the Mississippi River. Memphis’ day-to-day operations and practices were going to look just like what he ran at TCU, where he coached in two BCS bowls.

If Fuente was going to build Memphis, it was going to be in his own image. In the three years before Fuente’s arrival, the Tigers were 5-31. In the Tigers’ two seasons in the AAC, they were 19-7 under Fuente, who left after four seasons.

“I said I want the program to look like TCU, how it operated and all, but I realized we could do that but it’d have to be my interpretation and fit my personality. It can’t be Coach [Patterson’s],” Fuente said. “The best way to motivate and teach was to be myself. I realized through some time there I needed to be myself again. I needed to go back and quit being what you think the head coach should be and be who you are.”

The standards Beamer established over his four decades at Virginia Tech will be met, Fuente said. He said the program will conduct itself with the same values Beamer instilled.

What should look mostly similar to the Beamer era is the Hokies’ defense. Fuente retained Bud Foster, Beamer’s longtime defensive coordinator who was once considered a favorite to be promoted after Beamer’s eventual retirement. There have been no concerns about where Foster’s allegiances reside, Fuente said, even after Foster served as an assistant under Beamer all 29 seasons.

Defense has been the program’s identity, but defensive end Ken Ekanem said it feels as if the offense will be spotlighted more with Fuente. The new offense will push the tempo, which Ekanem said could pressure the defense in ways similar to the bowl game. The Hokies scored three touchdowns on drives of four plays or fewer in the first quarter, and they won 55-52.

“[Foster] was brought up in, and I mean it as a compliment, an old-school way where you just don’t do those things and I don’t think [previous loyalties] ever crossed his mind,” Fuente said. “He’s all about coaching the defense and what’s best for Virginia Tech, and that’s what’s made it really nice.”

The house that Beamer built is in order under Fuente.

^ Back to Top ^