A Labor of Love: The Cassell Guard Generals Persevere Through the Darkest Hours of Hokies Hoops

For the last eight years in Blacksburg, March has been a pretty quiet month.

The return of the Hokies football team to the practice field brings some excitement, but without a basketball team to cheer on in the NCAA tournament since 2007, most students tend to turn their attention to the gradually less oppressive weather instead of Tech athletics.

Yet through all the turmoil of the Seth Greenberg years and the despondency of James Johnson's brief tenure as head coach, some students spend each March counting the days until Cassell Coliseum opens its doors for another basketball game.

The leaders of Tech's student section inside Cassell's cramped confines, known as the "Cassell Guard Generals", are the rare Hokies that have devoted their time on campus to keeping the faith about Tech basketball amidst a student body that's only occasionally mirrored their enthusiasm.

"I think for a lot of the students, it is tough to get that motivation, especially when the team isn't Kentucky or something like that that's going to come out with nine McDonald's All-Americans," said Chris Jennings, the student director of the Generals and a senior planning to graduate this May with a degree in marketing management. "But for us in the Generals, we truly get excited for it. The hard time for me is the struggle to get to class the next morning, going to the game is the fun part."

For the last six years, successive groups of students have assumed the mantle of infusing the student body with energy during basketball games as Generals. It's a commitment that requires a whole-hearted devotion to both the sport and the team, even if that devotion isn't regularly rewarded.

But for the Hokies who've joined the group over the years, it hardly seems like a sacrifice at all. Instead, it's a labor of love.

"You're going to all these games and you want them to do well, but you're very aware when they're not doing well, but that's not why we're doing it," said Jared Hanzel, a second-year graduate student getting his masters degree in aerospace engineering this spring. "All of us are doing it because we love Tech, we want to love and support our school and love and support our teams. And we love the sport of basketball."

Hanzel has been a General for each of the five years he's been a Hokie, and even though he hasn't seen much winning basketball in his time at Tech, he never had a second thought about coming back each year.

"When I applied all those years ago, I said I'd gladly give up my football tickets if I was able to go and be a General and go to all the basketball games, and I still mean that now," Hanzel said. "I want to support our basketball team for our school."

Yet the Generals are more than just crazed fans cheering from the stands. As time has gone by, their bond with the players themselves has intensified.

"A lot of us are really good friends with these kids, so we're not just rooting for a team, we're rooting for some of our closest friends," Jennings said. "And you never want to see your friends go through struggles, so you're going to try to build them up as much as possible, so it's easy to go to these games and get fired up when they do something good, even when they are losing these close, heartbreaking games. I know that I've felt, coming out of Cassell, just as heartbroken as they were after some of these games."

It's a relationship that makes plenty of sense. After all, who goes to every single home game at Cassell besides the Generals, the players and the coaches? Even the biggest basketball fan might have to give one game a miss.

The Generals are a constant, one that likely provides some solace to the players even as they slog through seasons that haven't had many bright spots recently.

"It makes it so much easier to get motivated for a game knowing who they are," said Chris Rakes, a sophomore General majoring in psychology. "If we had a winning season and the guys on the team weren't super great people, I'd have a lot harder time cheering for them. But because I feel like they are great people, and I see that they're going to do so much good in whatever role they play in the school and post-graduation, we could go 0-and-everything, and I'd still cheer for them."

Burger King Beginnings

It was a similar kind of blind passion that inspired the first students to start cheering on the Hokies with such fervor.

The Generals weren't some creation of the athletic department; rather it was some good luck with season tickets that created the conditions that led to 2008 grad Jordan Holt and several of his AEPi fraternity brothers to take their fandom to the next level in the winter of 2007.

"We get our tickets and go to the first game and come to find out all eight seats are first row of the student section by luck of the draw," Holt said. "We couldn't let this opportunity go to waste, so we decided as a group to try to do something fun with it."

Holt and the rest of his brothers quickly set to work on finding a unique way to start attending the games.

"I came up with the name Cassell Guard, as well as the idea to dress up as knights and stand behind a fake castle outline and the other guys all bought in," Holt said. "We spent an afternoon at the fraternity house making knight uniforms by getting crowns from the Burger King on Turner Street, spray painting them and putting them on our heads upside down for helmets. We also made shields out of cardboard and bought styrofoam swords from Walmart."

Courtesy Jordan Holt

After a few games, the group quickly became fan favorites and started to try and emulate the best student sections in college basketball by blending their support for the team with some tongue-in-cheek humor.

"The uniforms were annoying as all hell to wear but the schtick had to live on," Holt said. "After a few games people started expecting us to be there and we didn't have to fight with security to get the swords and stuff in. We also started making signs from time to time, my favorite of which was 'Free Jeff Allen' after he was suspended for bumping the referee (in 2008)."

But when the group renewed their season tickets the next season, the front row was no longer an option, so the tradition seemed in danger of dying out after just the one season.

SGA Steps In

The group quickly caught the eye of some student government leaders that were looking for ways to energize students at basketball games.

Brandon Carroll, then a junior, was heading up the "Hokies on Fire" committee, a subset of the Student Government Association dedicated to marketing for the basketball program. Even as Greenberg's teams were succeeding, Carroll was constantly frustrated by the inconsistent enthusiasm inside Cassell.

"I think in the ACC, Virginia Tech has the best student section and one of the best home field advantages in Lane Stadium," Carroll said. "So I've always been like 'why do we have possibly the worst ACC student section in the country in basketball?'"

When he noticed Holt and his brothers taking the initiative to change that process, he was immediately interested in finding a way to harness their energy and expand it.

"One of our fraternity brothers knew Brandon and he approached us about possibly formalizing it," Holt said. "I was super on board and we worked with Brandon from the very beginning."

Yet Carroll quickly ran into a roadblock: the school needed some serious persuasion to allocate permanent seats for the group.

"Even though seats weren't taken, alumni may have bought them, but they don't go to the games," Carroll said. "So we had the issue where we wanted to have a big impact on the games, but the ticket allocation completely did not favor students."

Carroll made little progress through the 2008-2009 season, but when he became SGA president as a senior he put a renewed focus on the group.

He found plenty of support from Greenberg, who became an ally in the effort, even if the athletic department was slower to come around to the idea.

"Seth Greenberg was actually very into having students very involved," Carroll said. "He would say 'I want students to be a factor in the game,' and I would say 'I do too.'"

Carroll was joined in the fight by Abby Boggs (now Abby Reed), the sister of former Tech player Ben Boggs that succeeded him as "Hokies on Fire" director. She quickly took to the idea and started coordinating with Greenberg and the rest of the athletic department to secure season tickets for the Generals.

"Abby was obsessed with this idea and she kind of ran with it," Carroll said.

Reed and the rest of the "Hokies on Fire" took the suggestion to the marketing wing of the department. Brent DiGiacomo, the former marketing department head, says they quickly recognized the potential of the group and worked with the students to hammer out the details.

"We were able to help them brainstorm some ideas, generate the contract the Generals signed and secure the front seats for the Generals, which the SGA paid for," DiGiacomo said.

That contract was a simple one, but it laid out the demanding conditions that the Generals operate under to this day.

"They allocated 20 seats, but the conditions they had were that you had to come to every single game and every single women's game," Carroll said.

With the seats secured, Reed also wanted to tweak the theme unifying the group.

"We standardized them to have consistency and create a brand," Reed said. "The other (medieval) theme didn't stick too well, which is why we created the General theme."

Reed put the focus on the group being literal generals, dressing in camo and other military gear as a homage to the school's Corps of Cadets.

All that was left was for them to go out and find the group's new members.

"We had these people that tried out for spots," Carroll said. "They had to come in and give the craziest cheers, and they would be the Generals of the Cassell Guard."

Changing of the Guard

Even with the group successfully established and standardized, there was still some question over whether or not the SGA would continue to manage the Generals.

With Carroll graduating in the fall of 2010, it was unclear if the next set of SGA leadership would have the requisite interest in funding the group.

"Part of the issue with the changing of the guard, no pun intended, and the changing of the SGA president, there's not necessarily the same level of enthusiasm," Carroll said.

DiGiacomo saw the same problem looming, so as the 2010-11 season dawned, the athletics marketing department officially took over stewardship of the Generals.

"Athletics saw the great potential of having this group continue after year one due to its popularity and visibility," DiGiacomo said. "We also knew that having this group run by students exclusively provided some hurdles due to authority and discipline, SGA leadership turnover and students' busy schedules not really allowing them to fully utilize and run the program to its potential."

Students remained an integral part of the program, but the Generals now had the added benefit of the support of a full-time staff to coordinate its activities.

"SGA was still involved but this allowed us to meet with the group more regularly, make sure chant guides were completed for each game on time, enforce the attendance policies and plan and coordinate the use of the Generals as ambassadors on campus on behalf of the athletics department and basketball programs much better," DiGiacomo said.

The Next Era

With the official backing of the athletics department, the group was much more visible to the student body at large.

The Generals immediately caught the eye of Will Trent when he stepped on campus in 2010.

"I started going to games freshman year, and at that time, they did a little intro video and the Cassell Guard would come down through the steps, they would do this really cool intro for the Generals, so that was my first exposure to them," Trent said.

Trent, a self-described "basketball guy in a football town," eventually scored front row seats to watch the Hokies beat top-ranked Duke in 2011, and his interest in the Generals was sealed.

"I just specifically remember being in line for College GameDay and the Generals coming around and bringing everybody donuts at 7 a.m.," Trent said. "So I got to talk with some people and figure out more about them at that point. That sort of turned into me becoming a Cassell Guard General as a sophomore."

The tryout process was still in place, and Trent's initiation into the group was simple; he had to make a fool of himself in front of four of his peers.

"They made me dance to 'Baby Got Back' in front of them for about 15 seconds," Trent said. "It was extremely awkward, but the awkwardness, that's something that can happen when you're in the front row of the student section. So you need to be prepared. And they asked me to lead a chant or two, so it was a unique interview opportunity, because if you can do that in front of a panel, then you can definitely talk about yourself for a job interview."

Trent also joined the marketing department as an intern that year, giving him plenty of opportunities to work with DiGiacomo and the rest of his staff.

That meant that when DiGiacomo left for a similar position at UNC-Greensboro in 2012, Trent was uniquely positioned to lead the Generals through their next transition.

"When the new marketing coordinator (Jimmy Skiles) came in, they were more willing to delegate the responsibilities of coordinating the Generals over to a student, which ended up being me," Trent said. "It was kind of my baby, my project, to be the first student director of the Generals."

Yet Trent was immediately challenged by the changing conditions around the rest of the program. He was now tasked with generating enthusiasm for a squad coping with the jarring firing of Greenberg and adjusting to the leadership of a rookie head coach in James Johnson.

"As a fan you kind of learn about yourself in those situations like that, your love for your school is kind of tested by those times we went through in the James Johnson era," Trent said.

Johnson's abysmal 22-41 record in two seasons at the helm was certainly plenty challenging for Trent's Generals. After a few frustrating finishes under Greenberg, and two disastrous seasons under Johnson, it would've been easy for the malaise settling onto the program to sap the Generals of their enthusiasm.

Yet Trent says that was never the case with any of his Generals.

"We still had a lot of fun regardless of the scores," Trent said. "We are allowed to take moral victories as the Cassell Guard. Going 7-0 (to start the year) and that win over Oklahoma State, getting to go out and see Erick Green drop 25 points a night (in 2012), things like that."

That's not to say the constant grind of the game was always easy for Trent to deal with, but it was never so great as to break the Generals' spirit.

"You find that letdown after games and that game hangover every now and then, but for me, the start of a new day was always good for me being able to just go back to work in that Cassell, whether it was with the Cassell Guard or athletics," Trent said. "It was so refreshing for me to go to Cassell every day and get to work."

A New Buzz Around Basketball

Trent was set to graduate in 2014, and so he set about finding the next person to take the helm with the Generals.

"About halfway through my junior year, Chris Jennings was a high attending fan, he was at every game, and he asked if he could join the Generals, and he was honestly more passionate than some of the fans that we had, so I was more than happy to give him season tickets and let him hop on the team," Trent said. "He showed a lot of leadership, and he kind of did the same thing I did, became a sports marketing intern, and so my senior year, I kind of passed it down to him and showed him the ropes of how it goes and everything."

It was now up to Jennings to drum up interest in the Generals after years of shrinking interest in the program.

"We used to have to do tryouts, but we've had some unfortunate seasons so the support isn't there in numbers, but the people who are more supportive come to the forefront, which is really nice to see," Jennings said.

But just as Jennings got to work taking over the Generals, the program changed completely with the arrival of Buzz Williams.

Suddenly, students had a reason to start getting invested back in the program again, even if the team is still a long way from returning to the tournament.

"I feel like for a majority of the students, now we can see that it is coming," Jennings said.

Yet it's not a process that will happen overnight, and Jennings' Generals still had to persevere through another challenging year, even if the same sense of hopelessness that defined the Johnson years wasn't a challenge for the group.

"This year was different than last year where there were no real bright spots," Jenning said. "Our record was not indicative of how we played this year. This team is probably one of the most talented teams all around since I've been here."

The arrival of Whit Babcock at the top of the athletic department also provided the Generals with a new sense of freedom. For years, signs of any kind have been banned inside Cassell, but that policy seems to be shifting.

The department started allowing the Generals to bring in posterboard "fatheads" and distribute them to the rest of the student section in what's become a new favorite tradition for the group.

"Whit was all in favor of this happening and he approved it," Jennings said. "We got ones of most of the players, we have a couple arrows and spinny hypnosis things, there's one of Whit, there's one of President Sands, (Frank) Beamer with the sombrero, which is a crowd favorite, we have the Hokie Bird too now. And we're hoping to get more each season and spread it out. We plan to ask the students who they'd like to see."

Lauren Belisle, who took over as the head of the athletics marketing department in 2014, says it was an easy decision for them to allow in the fatheads based on Babcock's new mandate to increase fan-friendliness.

"There's been a renewed focus on the fan experience in Virginia Tech athletics. It was one of the things we thought we could add to enhance both the atmosphere and student engagement at games," Belisle said. "We've heard from some of the student-athletes and they love them."

The Generals share that sentiment.

"I love them. Sometimes we'll take photos with them like 'oh, we're hanging out with bae,'" Rakes said. "I'm really hoping that it creates the transition to getting signs into Cassell. It's louder than clapping if you bang them on the rails."

The Generals' Grind

The renewed enthusiasm for the Williams and Babcock era aside, the Generals still had to contend with yet another demoralizing sub-.500 season this year.

No matter how dedicated each member of the group was, some still admit that the grind of the season inevitably takes a toll.

"It definitely takes a little bit out of you with the schedule," Hanzel said. "You have all the work you need to do and you have four more home games in a week. It hurts your voice as well, you oftentimes found yourself without a voice after."

Rakes says she's no stranger to the challenge of balancing her time as a General with her studies.

"I've brought homework and study materials to games because I've had big tests the next day," Rakes said. "The Monday night games at like 9 p.m., those ones are a little rough because I have 8 a.m.'s the next day. I guess I just get by by knowing that I have to plan ahead for it. I have to try and get some work done during timeouts."

Rakes, who grew up in Blacksburg from seventh grade on, says her days cheering for players like Malcolm Delaney were "the reason I chose Virginia Tech as the college I was going to attend," so it's hardly a shock that she takes her duties as a General as seriously as she does her school work.

She puts a particular emphasis on preparing for the games, starting her process an hour and a half before tipoff.

"I'll start painting up, and that involves acrylic paint. Because I live in (dorm East Ambler Johnston) and can't get paint on the drywall, I have to paint up in the bathroom," Rakes said. "People I've lived with for two years still aren't used to it."

From there, she dons a costume that she painstakingly crafted herself.

"I put on my Tech colored camo pants and hat," Rakes said. "I made them. I bought a pair of military pants and a military hat, took a paintbrush and painted it Tech colors, the whole thing took about 48 hours to finish up."

Sometimes she'll be able to head directly to Cassell after suiting up. During the school week, that gets more challenging.

"I've had to show up to classes before ready to go to the game because my class ends 10 minutes before tipoff," Rakes said. "I actually went to my first chem recitation painted up, and now my TA calls me hoops girl."

Her final pre-game step requires a more personal touch.

"I'll usually text any of the guys on the team whose number I have, I'll say something like 'hey, good luck, can't wait to cheer for you in Cassell,'" Rakes said.

Rakes says she's close with several current Hokies, regularly receiving Snapchats from Malik Mueller and maintaining close ties with Greg Donlon, a junior that she hopes becomes "the Paul Debnam of this college generation" when he resumes his benchwarming duties next season after taking a redshirt year.

But no matter the player, Rakes insists that it's these personal ties that makes the grind all worth it.

"Me and a couple of the Generals stay after the games and we get to talk to their families and the players after the games, win or lose," Rakes said. "That interaction with the team is something that, even if we're losing a couple games in a row, it makes it so much easier to cheer for the guys because I know who they are outside of the game, and I root for them as individuals, not just as players and athletes."

Growing the Generals

While Rakes has plenty of time left to see the fruits of Williams' labor, this season marked the end of the line for Hanzel and Jennings.

"I'm gonna miss the camaraderie, I made a lot of good friends over the years," Hanzel said. "Just being there and the atmosphere, the games themselves. Basketball is such an intimate sport as a fan. They're right on top of you, they're yelling, they're screaming, they're so passionate."

Jennings seems equally sad to leave the Cassell Guard, and says he has yet to pick a successor for his role as director "partially because I'm not mentally ready to accept the fact that I'm leaving."

Yet even once these longtime fans depart, people around the group seem confident that the Generals will only get stronger.

"I would argue that this year was better than the previous year, and our plan moving forward is that next year is even better than this year," Belisle said. "We're constantly striving to improve."

Jennings also has no trouble believing that the group will grow in size next season, largely because of the team's strong finish and promising incoming recruiting class.

"We'll get there eventually, we'll get those numbers back," Jenning said. "We got a lot of new faces this year and people who will be here for a while and learn how to run it and see all the changes that are underway."

For the group's original creators like Holt and Carroll, they can scarcely believe the Generals are still going all these years later.

But based on the incredible passion exhibited by group after group of students, it's hardly a surprise that the Generals have survived, and thrived, through some of the darkest days of Hokies hoops.

"It's just been kind of a cool thing to look back on and feel like we made some sort of mark," Holt said. "I think the next and only logical step is to have Buzz knighted so he can officially become the true General."