Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 14 No. 1 | August 2021

28 Inside Hokie Sports hosted by former players Darryl Tapp (’06) on June 23rd and Mike Saunders (’66) on July 14th. Thanks to Samm Stewart, Assistant AD for Football Engagement, for the Happy Hour events! With that being said, we are confident that the rest of Hokie Nation, like us, has had their fill of Zoom, Skype & Teams calls over the past 15 months! We are ready for the colors of fall in the New River Valley, the smell of the grills going at all the tailgates, the taste of turkey legs on the smoker, the sound of Skipper firing, the feeling you get from witnessing the most electrifying entrance in college football… And we look forward to seeing Hokie Nation there to share in those experiences again! We are looking forward to celebrating some significant milestones in our Hokie Football history with you this fall. The Claiborne Boys (teammates who played under Head Coach Jerry Claiborne in ’61- 70) will be celebrating their 60t h (’61 team) and 50th (’70 team) Reunions and they will be hosting their annual Fall Claiborne Boys Reunion , all at the Middle Tennessee game in September. All those who played under Coach Claiborne are encouraged to participate! Key contacts are Terry Strock (’62) for ’61 team (strock@vt.edu ) and Perry Tiberio (’71) for ’70 team ( sptiberio1970@gmail.com) . Football alumni will also be celebrating the 35th anniversary of the team that brought home Hokie Nation’s first bowl game victory… the 1986 Virginia Tech Hokies . They battled the NC State Wolfpack in the Peach Bowl on December 31, 1986. The game came down to the final seconds, where Chris Kinzer (’89 ) was able to kick a 40-yd field goal as time expired to give the Hokies a 25-24 win down in Atlanta, GA. Members of the ’86 team should contact Chad Beasley (’02) for more information on this event! As always, we are looking to reconnect with all former football players. If you are a Hokie Football Alumnus and would like to receive football alumni news and event updates, please contact C had Beasley-’02 (beasleychad@yahoo.com) . GO HOKIES! MEN’S TENNIS The VT men’s tennis team is coming off an impressive season that saw four spectacular Hokies— Chase Bernstine (’21) , Mitch Harper (’21) , Ryan Kros (’21) , and Alex Ribeiro (’21) —wrap up their careers, while a new wave entered Blacksburg. A pair of freshmen— Ryan Fishback (’25) and Jordan Chrysostom (’25) —jumped onto the scene and made their mark in their first seasons with VT, earning a berth in the ’21 NCAA Doubles Championship. Along with success on the court, the Hokies continued to hold their high standard of academic success. Ten Hokies received various honors for their work in the classroom, including ITA Scholar-Athlete awards, ACC Academic Honor Roll recognition, and several spots on the All-ACC Academic Team. As a team, VT earned the ITA 2021 All- Academic Team award for the fourth-consecutive year. The program looks forward to reuniting with its alumni in a planned Spring 2022 Alumni Weekend during the upcoming season. For more insights and a connection to the program and Monogram Club, contact Preston Lemon-’09 (prestonlemon@gmail.com ). 2021-22 MONOGRAM CLUB BOARD Sport Directors: Chad Beasley (Football); Carl Gellis (Wrestling); Michelle Hall (Volleyball); Whitney Herr (Women’s Golf); Elissa Hill (Women’s Tennis); Charlie Howe (Men’s Soccer); Preston Lemon (Men’s Tennis); Mike Ligon (Men’s Golf); Jamie Little (Women’s Basketball); Kristin Longo (Lacrosse); Blair Nelson (Women’s Soccer); Nolan Nichols (Managers, Video & Trainers); Chip Runyan (Baseball); John Schmidt (Swim & Dive); Whitney Showalter (Softball); Mary-Catherine Steigerwald (Spirit); Brian Walter (Cross Country/Track & Field); TBD (Men’s Basketball). Officers: Brian Walter (President); Mike Saunders (Vice President); Pete Dawyot (Treasurer); Blair Nelson (Secretary; Sharon McCloskey (Advisor) Continued from page 27 Former Student-Athletes Supporting Current Student-Athletes! The Monogram Club proudly announces the For Those To Come Endowment! To date, the Monogram Club has contributed $25,000 to start the endowment and since raised an additional $9,000 from generous members and donors. This gift will provide a perpetual stream of financial support to a scholarship for a student-athlete over an infinite time horizon. Make your gift today by visiting Monogram.HokieSports.com/ForThoseToCome