In a small group session with new Virginia Tech head football coach Brent Pry after his press conference, Hokies men's basketball coach Mike Young burst into the room. The two Virginia natives, both raised along the Commonwealth's I-81 corridor - one from Radford, the other from Lexington - shared a moment and conversed like two high school friends.
Pry fits the culture at Virginia Tech, and it's evident.
The former Penn State defensive coordinator got his first gig as a graduate assistant on Bud Foster's defensive staff in 1995. Overseeing the defensive line, he coached interim head coach J.C. Price and was with the Hokies for their thunderous '95 Sugar Bowl win over Texas in New Orleans. His introductory podium appearance referenced celebrating with Wes Worsham and Price on Bourbon Street.
Pry choked up when he named legendary Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer and Foster, both who were mentors to him. He hit on in-state recruiting and how crucial it is to pull the best players from the Commonwealth. On top of that, Pry emphasized creating relationships with the community in southwest Virginia.
"I’m honored and I’m humbled," Pry said on Thursday morning. "It’s very surreal for me."
"There were opportunities along the way, but this was the right time, the right place for me and for my family."
Pry's contract details were handed out to media, and he's set to make $4M in 2022. Note that these numbers are not formal or finalized. However, his budget for assistants and support staff is eye-catching.
A 57% increase from the $3.5M assistant budget under Justin Fuente, Pry will have $5.5M to work with to hire ten full-time coaches. That number ranks second in the ACC from 2020 numbers, just ahead of Florida State's $5.3M and behind Clemson's $7.6M.
With that, Pry will have the resources to get Virginia Tech football to the top of the conference.
"We’re going to hire the right people, we’re going to recruit the right people that want to be at Virginia Tech," Pry said. "We’re going to manage and develop our roster. ... We’re going to recruit our footprint. ... We’re going to connect to the community, to the fans and to the former players.
"I’m going to be approachable. The relationships are very important to me. That’s what this place is built on. We’re going to treat people right and we’re going to have an open-door policy. ... I seemed to have aligned myself in each stop with people that believe in that, that that’s where it starts, from Coach Beamer to James Franklin and everyone in between. That’s not going to change for me. That’s what’s right for Virginia Tech, and that’s who this place is."
One of the top three candidates for Virginia Tech Director of Athletics Whit Babcock, Pry stood out from the start.
"The way he spoke about it [Virginia Tech] impacted me," Babcock said of his first interaction with Pry. "All coaches certainly do their homework, but he was speaking from experience, not theory. It just resonated."
Babcock had three-to-five names on his list, but Pry set the bar high from the very beginning. A college football coach with 30 years of experience, he's been around the block. He had stops at Louisiana, Georgia Southern and Vanderbilt before staying at Penn State for eight years.
"But at the end of the day, he just really fit better," Babcock said.
"That defensive edge is our brand, and understanding it and appreciating this special place, this sense of place at Virginia Tech. He fit all of those. He also fit the ten traits or characteristics that we mentioned in our previous press conference. ... When you can find your guy and look down the list and it hits everything you’re looking for, you know that’s a pretty good thing."
Football runs in Pry's blood. His father, Jim, coached at numerous places, including at VMI when Pry was at then-Lexington High School, who Pry called a "journeyman coach" and said no one has influenced him more.
He's got the Commonwealth connections, especially after prying away some of Virginia's top recruits to Happy Valley for many years. With solid resources, the goal is to keep those players in the state and bring them to Blacksburg.
Pry has the pedigree, and though he lacks the coaching experience as the head man, he fits in the New River Valley. He knows what it takes to build a winning culture, and now he has a chance to prove it, right down the road at a program he idolized growing up.
"Going to high school in Lexington, this place was like a mecca for me," Pry said. "An opportunity to come to Virginia Tech was a dream come true back then. It’s a dream come true today."
To watch the full press conference, visit hokiesports.com.