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FEDEX ORANGE BOWL: VIRGINIA TECH v CINCINNATIDecember 31, 2008Frank BeamerMIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA JASON ALPERT: Coach, if you could just talk about any difference between your preparations between this year's Orange Bowl and last year's Orange Bowl. COACH BEAMER: Yeah, we have prepared differently. I feel good about our preparation. We had more full-speed work back in Blacksburg. We scrimmaged a little bit. Since we've been down here we've had curfew earlier, we've been up early in the morning, alert, practiced well, feel good about our preparation. And in the end, you know, it's important -- when it's all said and done, it's important to this football program, to our players, to our coaches, to our fans that you're successful in that last ballgame, and it's not every day you get a chance to be successful in an Orange Bowl. Sometimes I think we take these Bowl games a little bit for granted, but I'll tell you, going through this year and not sure that you could win enough to get to a Bowl game, I don't think we ever need to take these things for granted. How many times do you get to play in an Orange Bowl, a game like this? As I was watching the video yesterday at the luncheon, all the great teams and all the great players that have played in this Orange Bowl, and for us to have an opportunity to be champions of an Orange Bowl, I don't think we ever want to take that for granted. I feel good. I feel very good at how we prepared. Now it's taking it to the field and playing that way, and hopefully that will be the case. Q. With such a late kickoff tomorrow, what's your plan during the day in terms of meetings and whatnot? COACH BEAMER: We're not going to change. This is Friday to us. We'll go through a normal Friday. Actually another thing that's different, we're changing hotels tonight. Where we're staying is a great, great hotel and there's a lot of great Hokie fans around there, but I want to get it more like a normal Friday. So we're going to change hotels. After we go out and work out at the stadium this afternoon, we'll go to our other hotel. Tomorrow the coaches come over and we do some walking around, we do some meetings, and it is a little bit later than we normally play. But you know, with TV anymore, you're always adjusting your schedule. You play at different times, 12:00 noon, 1:00 o'clock, 3:00 o'clock, 7:00 o'clock, whatever. You know, we're going to make it as much normal as possible. Q. I've heard you say now a couple of times, talk about how important the Orange Bowl is and how you don't get an opportunity to play this every day, and I'm wondering, is this a message that you really have to hammer home with your team simply because you were in this game last year and your kids were just in the stadium six, seven weeks ago, whatever it was? COACH BEAMER: Yeah, I went back after that luncheon yesterday and we talked a little bit because sometimes I think even our fans, we've gone to however many straight Bowl games it is, and sometimes I think all of us start thinking it just happens. It doesn't just happen. And again, being with this football team this year and every week, knowing it's going to be a close football game and got to get it to the fourth quarter and try to win it and not absolutely sure you can get enough wins to be Bowl eligible, it kind of brought it back to me a little bit. And I told our players, again, take advantage of the moment because it's not every year we can get to a game like this. So I think it's important to understand how big the Orange Bowl is, representing the ACC, us trying to get to ten wins and be one of three teams that's won ten games the last five years, how big that really is. And one of these days you look back and could be very, very proud if you get it done. Q. To follow up on what you just said, have there been years -- when you're in a streak that's 16 years in a Bowl game, have there been years where players maybe took it a tiny bit for granted? COACH BEAMER: No, I think -- since our game last year, we went through two years where we probably -- you feel like you had a great opportunity to win. You know, you had a great opportunity to beat Georgia, a great program in the Chick-fil-A Bowl, and then you had an opportunity last year to beat Kansas in the Orange Bowl, and we didn't get it done. And when that happens, you go back and you look at things. You know, it really is, it's your mindset. I mean, it's how you think about the game coming up. I believe that. And particularly in a Bowl game where it's a month since your last ballgame, there's time in there. So how your mind is thinking, what your mindset is I think goes a great deal towards how you play in the game. Hopefully our minds are right, and I think -- I do believe this is an important ballgame to this football team. Q. What motivated you to change your preparation procedures? It sounded like you've turned it into more of a business situation in taking some of the free time out of the plan here. COACH BEAMER: Well, the fact that we haven't represented Virginia Tech in a Bowl the last couple years the way I thought we should. Again, I can remember last year, after the tough loss to Boston College and then we came back and won four or five straight, beat some really good football teams and then won the ACC Championship against a team that beat us in a devastating loss right there in the middle of the year. And then it was almost like a sigh of relief, and there was such a feeling of accomplishment. But then we came down here and didn't play as well as we needed to. And Kansas, I don't want to take anything away from Kansas because they played great. But when you lose games that you have a chance to win, that's the ones that get me, get our program. We've been to, I guess, 16 straight, and we've really kind of had the same procedure for a long, long time, and we've won some Bowl games. But in the last couple years we didn't win, so with that, we go -- after the game last year, we went back as a football staff and said, if we can get back to a Bowl game, what do we need to do differently, and these are the things that we came up with. And again, I think we're very, very well prepared for this Bowl game. Hopefully we'll play well. Q. Sounds like the changes were driven by the results more than anything else? COACH BEAMER: Oh, absolutely, absolutely. I think, again, the leadership, how you think about a Bowl game and how you prepare for it, you know, that goes back -- what you're thinking is kind of how you play. Q. You referred to the evolution of the game in terms of television. In what other ways has college football changed since you started at Virginia Tech, and how have you adapted to those changes? COACH BEAMER: Well, I think the internet is a completely different thing, and I haven't adapted to that because I don't read it. I think call-in talk shows make it different. People can say that. It's not like you guys; you've got to have sources and you've got to back up what you say or what you write or what you do. But when people can just say things and not be accountable for them, I'm not sure that's a great thing. You know, I think on the internet there's a lot of that. And if enough people say it, it kind of takes off. So I think that's kind of been a big change. I think the other thing is that money has gotten to be a lot more. Salaries have gotten to be up there. And I think when there's a lot of money involved, I think people want results quicker. Coaches, rather than having time to get your foundation like we did at Virginia Tech and people hanging in there with us through some times, that probably wouldn't happen anymore. It probably wouldn't go that way anymore because people want results quicker. That's just the way it is. I think those are the -- I think the world is different. I get this a lot, but I think kids and how you -- there's a lot of issues out there, and for kids to come and stay focused on their schoolwork and take care of themselves off the field and go in a successful direction, it's probably not as easy as it was back years ago. So I think there's a lot of things that have changed a little bit. Q. Have you adapted well to that last part you just mentioned, the way kids have changed and society has changed? COACH BEAMER: I think so. I still believe that the most important thing in coaching is your relationship with the players, and can they trust you, do they believe in you. Because what happens is when things get rocky, the only people that can get you out of it are those players. The only way you can get out of it is for those players to go play better. Our alumni can't get us out of it, the media can't get us out of it, radio talk shows can't do it, the internet can't do it. It's the players. Still, your relationship with the people that you're working with, that's the most important thing. That hasn't changed for me since we started coaching. Q. Could you just talk a little bit about the match-up with Cincinnati, their strengths and your strengths and how you counter each other? COACH BEAMER: You know, I think Brian and his coaching staff have done a heck of a job. They've got good players, but they're coached well. You look at them, they do things well. I think just like most of the teams in the ACC, I think Cincinnati is very, very good defensively. They've got ten seniors, and there's nothing like maturity and experience. You watch them play, they play hard and they know what they're doing and they've got their scheme and they're very good. Offensively, I think -- again, they know what they're doing. They operate efficiently. I think anytime you go through five quarterbacks and win 11 games, it makes an amazing statement because I'm a big believer in how that quarterback plays goes a long ways in how your football team plays. And when you've got that much change in your quarterback position and win that many games -- I think Pike, he gets the job done and he's very efficient. I don't think he's fast, but he's nifty, and he buys time and gets the ball out there to his good receivers. Then their kicking game, when you've got a punter that's leading the country in punting that can flip field position on you, and I'm a big, big believer in field position, and when you've got that guy that can hit it 50, all of a sudden they can field position you. I think they're a good, good football team, very, very good. Very solid, very efficient, very well coached and with a lot of good players. You know, I know being a member of the Big East is big. It got us to the Orange Bowl a few years back, and of course Cincinnati is here in the Orange Bowl now, and it looks like to me what's happening in that program, this is just the start of things to come. We respect what they've done a lot. Q. With a program like UC's, where they are in their evolution right now, is it more significant to get to this kind of a game or to win it? COACH BEAMER: I think both. I mean, when we were able to get to the Sugar Bowl and beat Texas, I know that was a big steppingstone for us. You know, I think there's two things there, but you get to these games, it's big, and like I said earlier, you can't take that for granted because it's not going to happen every year; it's too competitive out there. But then when you get there, to win it, it's another step, another big step. I think it's two big steps. I guess I'd say it that way. Q. You kind of referenced it in response to Paul's question, but in terms of the evolution of Cincinnati's program, a fledgling member of the Big East, first major Bowl game, does this stage of their program remind you of Virginia Tech in '95 in New Orleans? COACH BEAMER: Yeah, yeah. You see it growing and you see it taking off, and you've got to have that conference affiliation, I think, because it gives you an avenue to the Bowl games and it gives you an avenue to TV and so forth. One of the things I said coming down here, I mean, representing the ACC, that's special for us, but it also gives us a chance to visit with some of our Big East friends, our great friends from the Big East that treated us so well. So this is kind of a special Bowl for us, Virginia Tech, in that regard. Yeah, you see this program, the state they're in, Ohio, great football. Now they're with a great conference. You just see it taking off. I think it's a very, very good coaching staff, so yeah, like I said -- I think this is just the start of things for Cincinnati myself. Q. How well do you know Brian Kelly, and as a successful coach yourself, do you see certain traits in him that have contributed to his success? COACH BEAMER: I don't know him well. I know his past. I know he's been successful. I came from 1-AA football; Jim Tressel came from 1-AA football; he came from was it Division II football or 1-AA. I'm a great believer in -- people sometimes get tied up in classifications and so forth. But I'm a great believer that if you can coach, you coach, and I think for sure he can coach. His success in the past points to it and his success right now points to it. I don't think it's the level you came from; I think it's just how you operate your football program. Q. Just out of curiosity, why are you typically so guarded when discussing your opponent with the media, not necessarily this week, but you're kind of notorious for talking up the opponent even if it's a school most of us have never even heard of? COACH BEAMER: I don't do that (laughter). No, I tell you how I feel, really. I've always been respectful of our opponent. I tell you how I feel. That's the way we do it. Q. All week you haven't really wanted us to ask about next season, but is there a carryover from a Bowl game into the preseason ranking the following year? COACH BEAMER: I think this Bowl wraps up this season. You know, I know it carries over to those alumni meetings that I go to in May and June (laughter), and they have a way of reminding you what you did in a Bowl game. But I think this wraps up this football team and this season, and then we start again with some new players and different guys coming in there for next year. But I think this is the final chapter for this year. Q. Just an update, how has Brooks progressed as a starter this week down here, and is plan B still to move Shuman over and Warren into the center spot if Brooks doesn't work out? COACH BEAMER: Yeah, you know, he's done okay, and he's going to be a good, good player. He's very athletic, good size, good pop. He just hasn't played very much. With Marshman gone, now you really affect two positions. You move Render over and then you move -- so you've got two new starters. You don't like doing that, but rather than taking Brooks and moving him over, we felt like this was a better way to go. I think he's going to play as well as he possibly can play. I think he's going to give great effort. I think he's practiced well, and hopefully he's going to play well. Q. But is the option still there to move Shuman over to guard and Warren in the center? COACH BEAMER: Yeah, we could do that some during the ballgame, get Warren in there at center and let Shuman play some guard. Q. This is the annual question you get during Bowl week so I apologize, but the continuity of your staff, particularly being able to keep somebody like Bud for so long, A, can that luxury be ever overstated; and B, when he was linked to the Clemson situation a couple weeks ago, was it mixed emotions on your part? Was there concern that this might actually be the opportunity for him? COACH BEAMER: Well, you know, my feeling is Bud deserves an opportunity to be a head coach, and I told him anything I could do to help him with that Clemson job I would, and that's the way I -- any time any guy on my staff has a chance to advance himself, I'm going to try to help him, because if they've served me well and served Virginia Tech well, then the right thing to do is if they've got an opportunity to advance, they need to advance. Having said that, you hope they're going to stay with you forever, but I think -- and generally it's a good coaching staff. I think the main coaching positions there I've been able to keep in place. I think it helps you a lot as far as being a consistent winner, and you can kind of go back and look at the number of Bowl games consecutively we've gone to and being one of five teams that have a chance to win ten ball games for the last five years, I think all that goes into it. You know, our meetings don't take long. We know what we're trying to do in practice, how we're going to practice, what period we're going to do what. I think in a ballgame, I think sometimes you lose this, but the more you've been together and you're making a decision in a ballgame about three seconds, the more you've discussed it or done it before, the better chance you've got of getting it right, which could affect the whole ballgame. I think it really affects recruiting because when you're sending the same coaches back into the same schools year after year and building those relationships, I think it really affects that. So I think if you've got good people, you try like heck to keep them together, keep them with you, and that's what I've done at Virginia Tech. Q. How do you -- when there's so much familiarity, when it's the same coaches year after year, when it's the same conversations on the sideline year after year during games, adjustments, that sort of thing, how do you find ways to keep it fresh and to keep the relationship sharp? COACH BEAMER: Well, I think if you're having success, you don't want to change it. I think if it's working, we don't want to change it here, we want to keep it the same. You know, I think sometimes when you do -- what you're saying is when you have a staff that's been together for a long time, you've got to be careful not to get stale. But I think there's enough competitiveness in our offensive people and defensive people that we understand how fragile this thing is. There's a thin line between winning and losing and getting on a winning -- getting your winning momentum going and keeping it going and then getting on losing and you can't get off of it. There's a thin line there. We've been on both sides of it, so that probably keeps us going. Q. I have a fashion question for you. COACH BEAMER: All right (smiling). Q. The hardware on your right hand, what ring is that, and is there any significance to you wearing that this week? COACH BEAMER: No, this is from last year, ACC Championship, and usually I just wear the one from last year. The thing I've found, our seniors always design our Bowl rings, and so we've got 16 of these. But the thing I've found is they design big rings, they don't design small rings. They usually are big. So I just kind of wear the one from last year. Q. You would go with something a little more modest then, I assume? COACH BEAMER: Yeah, if they'd design it. But I'm going to go with what they design (smiling). Q. You were talking about Bud and continuity a little while ago. Given that you lost, what, seven starters and a handful of draft choices off last season's defense but yet statistically I think you're giving up one point more a game and 20 fewer yards, is this arguably one of his best jobs if not his best, and has it been satisfying from your standpoint to see this defense improve despite those personnel losses? COACH BEAMER: Yeah, I don't think there's any question that our defensive staff, Bud, they've done a heck of a job. And not only have we lost those guys and a lot of them are on NFL teams now, but Macho changed positions and Kam Chancellor changed positions. So yeah, I don't think there's any question how we perform down the stretch and how the defense has continued to get better, this is one of our defensive staff's best jobs for sure. JASON ALPERT: Coach, thank you very much for your time. End of FastScripts |
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