Talk of Shane Beamer going to Gamecocks has Tech fans’ attention
Nobody has made it official, but it sure seems like former Virginia Tech football player and assistant coach Shane Beamer’s slow dance with South Carolina has serious potential to bloom into a relationship.
If Beamer ends up getting his first head-coaching gig in the Southeastern Conference about 265 miles south of where his father, Frank Beamer, became a coaching legend for nearly three decades in Blacksburg, how will that sit with Virginia Tech fans?
As of now, the feelings of Tech fans are moot. Shane Beamer doesn’t have the South Carolina job yet, and Tech doesn’t have an opening for its football head-coaching position.
Of course, Shane Beamer’s impressive assistant-coaching résumé has featured stops at Mississippi State, South Carolina, Virginia Tech, Georgia and his current role as Oklahoma’s assistant head coach for offense and tight ends and H-backs coach. He’s gained broad experience coaching on both sides of the ball over the course of the past 16 years.
It’s not a stretch to think he’s amply prepared for the next step — now.
Embarking upon his first foray into head coaching at an SEC East locale where he already understands the landscape — and the challenges of competing in the same state with a Goliath up the road in Clemson — and one that has shiny football facilities less than two years old seems rightfully opportunistic.
As for Tech — well — frankly, discussion about any interest Shane Beamer may or may not have in following in the considerable footsteps of his dad at Tech amounts to wasted breath. Until further notice, and like it or not, it’s Justin Fuente’s job.
Perhaps the more interesting conversation centers around whom Shane Beamer might hire for a coaching staff should he get the South Carolina job. Maybe it’s a non-issue if he’s still loving the good life on Claytor Lake near Blacksburg, but if he’s asked, could former Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster be enticed to come out of retirement and take the Gamecocks’ defensive coordinator role?
That’s cart-before-the-horse stuff. Just a few things to keep an eye on as we head deeper into the holiday season ...
On a day when no football games were played, Notre Dame suddenly clinched a spot in the ACC championship game on
Dec. 19.
The conference’s decision Tuesday to consider Notre
Dame, Clemson and Miami — the trio still in contention for the championship game — based on a nine-game conference schedule instead of a 10-game conference slate because of pandemic-related cancellations locked up a date in the title game for the Fighting Irish. Clemson (-22.5), which lost earlier this season to Notre Dame, can do the same Saturday with a win at Virginia Tech.
Not a bad football debut thus far for a Notre Dame program that didn’t know in early spring that agreeing to become a tempo
rary ACC football member wouldn’t be such a bad deal, but also not an unexpected result to this point. Nothing short of winning the conference title would make Notre Dame’s season a success.
As for Notre Dame’s future in ACC football? Check back once all the post-pandemic beans are counted in South Bend. That’s what really matters (isn’t it always?).
With the Fenway Bowl, the Holiday Bowl, the Pinstripe Bowl and the Sun Bowl all canceled, a good chunk of the ACC’s primary second-tier bowl tie-ins are out of the picture this season. Though every team is eligible for bowl consideration this season, regardless of win-loss record, there are going to be fewer postseason opportunities for ACC programs.
Other than involvement in the College Football Playoff and the Orange Bowl, bowls with ACC tie-ins that are still scheduled to be played are the Gator Bowl, the Cheez-It Bowl, the Duke’s Mayo Bowl, the Military Bowl and the Gasparilla Bowl. Simply put, there isn’t going to be a ton of room for ACC teams that currently have four or five wins — Virginia Tech (4-5), Wake Forest (4-3), Pittsburgh (5-5) and Virginia (4-4).
Of those four teams, Wake Forest looks like it has a good shot to finish the regular season with a winning record, with games at Louisville and against Florida State left. Also, if you take the four aforementioned teams in a collective group, Wake Forest is the only team without a loss against teams in the group, going 2-0 against U.Va. and then-No. 19 Virginia Tech.
Pitt only has to win at Georgia Tech to finish with a winning record. Both U.Va. and Virginia Tech, which play each other Dec. 12, have to win out to finish above .500.
In other words, if wins and losses are the biggest factor, it’s looking pretty good for
Wake Forest and Pitt, while the Commonwealth has work to do.
Virginia Tech men’s basketball coach Mike Young had three or four players per game in the Hokies’ first three games take a knee during the national anthem in support of social justice and reform.
His take on it?
“I will — and they know this — I will support them,” Young said. “With regards to the anthem, I asked them to talk to their parents if they thought it was appropriate for them to take a stance, and I wanted them to talk to me because I wanted to intelligently talk to (reporters) if you were to ask why — ‘What are you protesting? Don’t protest to protest.’ — A couple of them did, and I’ll keep those conversations between us.”
That’s about as reasonable an outlook as a coach could have regarding the matter.