Fuente Kicks Off Recruiting Effort with Outreach to 2016/2017 Commits and Recruits

On Saturday, Justin Fuente coached his Memphis Tigers to 63-0 blowout over SMU. On Tuesday, he was out recruiting in the maroon and orange.

In a head-spinning turn for the new head Hokie, Fuente has begun to pound the pavement in earnest on the recruiting trail, as the new Tech staff attempts to shore up its 2016 class and lay the groundwork for 2017.

But Fuente hasn't been alone in those endeavors — not only have returning staff members Bud Foster, Torrian Gray and Charley Wiles started to pitch in, but the team is seeking permission for former Memphis assistants Holmon Wiggins and James Shibest to get in on the action as well.

According to team spokesman Pete Moris, the compliance staff has "asked the NCAA for relief," in order to allow the team to exceed its limit of nine assistant coaches, giving the new staffers the chance to start actively recruiting (under the arrangement, the incoming staff members could also observe practice, but not actually coach players).

In the meantime, Fuente and Foster have each hit the road, and begun reaching out to commits and recruits alike.

With the decommitments of several prominent 2016 commits, Fuente put a priority on building relationships with prospects already tied to Tech.

Among his first calls was 2016 OT Patrick Kearns of Rome, Ga.'s Darlington School. Kearns says he heard from Fuente Tuesday night, as he made it clear "they still wanted me there."

But he also had some news that was bit disappointing for Kearns — Fuente made it clear that his OL coach from Memphis, Vance Vice, would indeed be following him to Tech, in favor of fellow Georgian Stacy Searels.

"I was definitely sad to hear that, but I'm still going to be a Hokie for sure," Kearns said. "I'm excited to get to know Coach Vice when he comes to VT and play for him."

For whatever anxiety he harbors about the change to his future position coach, Kearns said he's fully on board with the chance to play in Fuente's vaunted spread offense.

"I know that he did really well at Memphis, I watched a few of their games this year, they had a great team and a great quarterback and he can develop quarterbacks," Kearns said. "The spread offense is something I'd want to play in, I think it works well."

Now he's searching for his chance to get back to Blacksburg and begin to connect with Vice, Fuente and the rest of the staff, though he hasn't set an exact date just yet.

"I'd like to go up there when they have the whole staff in place, so we may wait a little while and take a January official," Kearns said. "I'd like to see what kind of guy he is. I'm sure he's a really good guy, he seems like it and I want to talk with him, and have him learn about my personality and learn about his, that would be good, see if we click together and hopefully we do. I'm just excited about it, the future looks bright at Virginia Tech, definitely."

But more than anything, he admits to breathing a sigh of relief when the team made Frank Beamer's replacement official.

"I was definitely a little bit relieved because everybody was saying 'Well, it could be this guy or this guy' and I'm glad we hired somebody," Kearns said. "Now we'll just see what's gonna happen, and everything should be set in place pretty quickly. I'm excited."

DB Reggie Floyd of Manassas' Stonewall Jackson HS says he also got a phone call from Fuente Tuesday night as the new coach started to feel him out.

"We just talked, and he was just letting me know that he wanted to build a relationship and that he loved my film," Floyd said. "From the phone call, (it) sounded like he was a cool coach and from his past, he knows what he is doing with a program to bring it up."

Floyd said that they didn't talk about any further changes on the offensive staff, but he plans on visiting Tech in the near future to meet the new coaches.

Fuente also did his best to try and bring 2016 DB Myles Wolfolk of Upper Marlboro, Md.'s Wise HS back into the fold. After committing to Tech last December, Wolfolk flipped to North Carolina on Sunday, and he said Fuente gave him a ring Wednesday to introduce himself.

"(He) wanted to touch base with me from a new head coach standpoint of what he is planning to do with the program," Wolfolk said. "He is a very nice man and a great coach."

Wolfolk added that Fuente told him the defensive staff would stay intact, but that "he is bringing in his offensive guys." Even still, Wolfolk believes he "still feel(s) solid" about his new commitment.

"Overall, I just felt like it was the best fit for me, the perfect balance of not too close but not too far, academics, football, good coaching and networking, people I know there," Wolfolk said. "It just felt like the best place for me to be after I did all my research and looked over it all and sat down with my family and prayed about it, it just felt like where I needed to be."

Fuente's personal pleas aside, Wolfolk said his decision came down to his comfort with UNC defensive coordinator Gene Chizik and how he "brought North Carolina out of the drought," as well as his official visit to Chapel Hill in November, more than Tech's coaching change.

"Justin Fuente's a good coach, I did my research on him before I made the decision," Wolfolk said. "I guess the whole situation with Coach Beamer retiring made me open up my eyes a little bit more and re-open my recruiting, and when I saw other options, I guess I just felt like I saw a better opportunity at North Carolina."

2016 CB Troy Pride of Greer (S.C.) HS also decommitted in the wake of Beamer's retirement, and while he said "I feel like that's a solid hire" in regards to Fuente's ascension, he didn't respond to further requests for comment on the change.

2016 LB Tavante Beckett of Chesapeake's Indian River HS remains committed to Tech, but admitted that "(I don't know) right now how I feel" about Fuente's hiring.

Meanwhile, 2016 LB and VT commit Victor Greene of Spotsylvania's Courtland HS was thrilled to hear the news that Foster would be staying on — he said "that's a key piece to the organization, in my opinion," an unsurprising view given the coordinator's role as Greene's lead recruiter — but he's less sure about how to feel about Fuente.

"Mainly, I just hope he can continue the history of the program and keep the spirit at Tech," Greene said.

2016 WR Samuel Denmark of Hanahan (S.C.) HS had a much more positive response to the news.

"(I) can't wait to meet him and be a part of his offense," Denmark said.

That response was echoed by one of the few uncommitted prospects left on Tech's board for the 2016 class.

"I was so happy when Coach Fuente was hired," said 2016 DT Jarrod Hewitt of Venice (Fla.) HS. "Knowing the rest of the staff was staying was the best news I could have heard."

In particular, Hewitt was glad to learn that Wiles, his main recruiter, would be sticking around, and he's planning to talk to him soon. Furthermore, he says he remains on track to take an official visit to Blacksburg on Jan. 29 and meet the incoming staffers.

The retention of the defensive staff also has some key juniors still interested in the Hokies.

"Coach Foster and Wiles are staying and (those are) the only coaches I need," said 2017 DE Tyjuan Garbutt of Fredericksburg's Riverbend HS.

DE Jake Lawler of Charlotte's South Mecklenburg HS is also excited that his potential future position coach is staying in the fold, but is especially keen that Foster will remain at Tech.

"I think it's great," Lawler said. "He knows defense like the back of his hand and he's a really down to earth guy."

But both also have plenty of praise for Fuente. Lawler said his early research on Fuente was extremely positive, making him a "great successor" to Beamer that's left him "looking forward to see what he does with the program."

Garbutt holds much the same attitude.

"I think it's a great move, he's a great offensive mind that restructured a poor Memphis program into a great one," Garbutt said.

By contrast, 2017 CB Madison Cone of Kernersville, N.C.'s East Forsyth HS is withholding his judgement on Fuente for the moment.

"I don't know much about him, I have some research to do," Cone said.

"But his area recruiter, Wiles, gave him a call Thursday night to reassure him.

"He's excited about the new coach," Cone said. "He wants me to come up soon so I can meet all the new people."

But Cone's impressions of the program are still largely positive. He's fresh off a visit to Blacksburg for the Hokies' final home game against UNC, and he predicts he won't soon forget Beamer's final game in Lane Stadium.

"It's definitely one that I'll be able to say a year down the line when they talk about that game, I can say I was there and tell my kids I was there," Cone said. "It was a great experience. I was hoping at the end when they went to overtime they would pull it out, but sadly Carolina pulled away. But all in all, it was a great experience and a great time."

Cone adds that the sight of the players carrying Beamer off the field, even following the heartbreaking loss, made the afternoon particularly memorable.

"It was just one of those surreal moments, watching them carry him off the field, it was definitely high emotion," Cone said. "My coach that I went with that day, he's actually a second generation Hokie, so he was pretty emotional with it, and all the people who have been here for his 29 years. Watching the players carry him off the field, it was definitely a moment I'll never forget."

The junior is unsure of when he'll return to Tech, but does expect to have plenty more chances to does some in-person research on Fuente.

"They're still high on my list, and I look forward to visiting them more and more times as my process goes on," Cone said.