Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 12 No. 4 | March 2020

16 Inside Hokie Sports STARTING ERA A NEW Justin Hamilton takes over as Virginia Tech’s defensive coordinator following Bud Foster’s retirement, and a new set of coaches are in the process of building their vision of the Hokies’ 2020 defense by Jimmy Robertson A fter more than three decades of working with the Virginia Tech football program, Bud Foster retired at the conclusion of the 2019 season, leaving a hall of fame void within the program. Now, Justin Hamilton takes on the task of attempting to replace one of college football’s all-time greatest coordinators. After the season, head coach Justin Fuente decided to overhaul things on his staff, particularly with coaches on defense, and part of that overhaul included naming Hamilton as the defensive coordinator. Hamilton, a former Tech player, will be working with four new coaches, though one of them—Darryl Tapp—was one of his teammates from 2002-05. Tech finished with respectable numbers on defense at the end of last season, ranking in the top 50 nationally in total defense, scoring defense and rushing defense. But inconsistency hurt at times, as the Hokies gave up at least 30 points in four of their five losses. In particular, the last two games stung because Tech led in both and yet couldn’t hold on to it. Unfortunately, the Hokies’ spring practice was suspended indefinitely because of complications from the coronavirus, and as of press time, there was no indication of when, or if, the Hokies would hit the field this spring. Hamilton had sat down and answered several questions in a wide-ranging interview before the scheduled start of spring practice. Hopefully, his answers provide Hokie Nation with an outlook as to what to expect from him, his staff, and his defense going forward. Continued on page 18