Slept On It: Hokies' Comeback Makes It 12 Straight Against Virginia

Since announcing his retirement at season's end, we've seen a range of emotions from Frank Beamer. Many have been morose, some have involved tears, and very rarely have we seen even the slightest smile.

When Chuck Clark intercepted Matt Johns to seal a twelfth straight Commonwealth Cup victory for the Hokies, it was as though everyone's emotions came pouring out. Beamer, his son Shane and longtime companion Bud Foster embraced on the sidelines and jumped for joy like a couple of kids that had just won a pee wee championship. The kiss Bud planted on Frank's cheek thirty seconds later was so big and full of love I swear my heart skipped a beat.

Those were two moments I wish could last forever.

In a weird way, I wish that Saturday's win was Frank's swan song and there wasn't a bowl game for him to coach. That impromptu display of affection at Scott Stadium is how I want to remember him going out.

It will remind me of the countless images of Michael Brewer rolling around on the turf in pain, only to brush it off and grow stronger in the face of adversity.

It will remind me of the way his team battled back twice from 7 point deficits after a largely placid performance through three quarters. Or the way that they grinded out yardage late in the fourth quarter, using a 5-minute, 11-play, 56-yard drive that resulted in a go-ahead Joey Slye field goal with 1:38 to go.

It will remind me of the intensity the Hokie defense played with on the final Virginia drive, working their tails off to ensure Beamer left Charlottesville with a win.

But most of all, it will remind me of the character Beamer has instilled on this program. As he noted post-game, "That game showed everything we've tried to do at Virginia Tech. Relentless — I love that word. We got down and found a way to come back. Everything that we talk about — hanging in there, don't give in, play your best when it counts — that kind of came through today."

The past few weeks have allowed us all to take a step back from another frustrating season to reminisce and learn a little more about Frank Beamer the man and Frank Beamer the football coach.

I have grown to appreciate his impact on the lives of so many people, both on and off the field. I have been overwhelmed with pride and gratitude for how blessed we have all been to root for a team and university led by such a great human being. In a sport rife with academic scandals and bag men, Virginia Tech has been a standard bearer since the Beamers moved to Blacksburg.

Up until that celebratory embrace, the one element I had failed to reflect on was the relationship between Beamer and Foster.

Foster's impact on Virginia Tech is generally boiled down to his defense's performance on the field and his intensity roaming the sideline. No one has written a biography on him to give us a look behind the curtain. I only know that he is a devoted family man because my wife grew up with his children, and I likely would have found him eternally terrifying were it not for the images she shares with me of Foster hamming it up with his kids on social media.

As we sit here and say our farewells to Frank, we're quick to forget the sizeable impact Bud has had on Frank's entire tenure at Virginia Tech. Foster's promotion to co-Defensive Coordinator aligned perfectly with the rise of the Hokies, as the 1995 season served as the springboard for Tech's future success under Beamer.

In Bud's first season leading the defense (with Ron Sharpless), the Hokies ranked first in the nation in scoring defense, allowing virtually a full touchdown less per game than the previous year. It was a remarkable improvement, considering with the exception of the 1989 season it was the first year under Beamer that the Hokies defense allowed less than 20 points per game.

Including the 1995 season, Foster coached 11 top-10 scoring defenses, including two that finished No. 1 in the nation (via Sports-Reference). Eight of his units have finished the year in the top-10 in total defense since 1999, two were No. 1 (via NCAA). He was named the 2000 AFCA Defensive Coach of the year and won the Broyles Award, given to the nation's top assistant, in 2006.

If the statistics prove one thing, it is that Bud Foster has an absolutely brilliant coaching mind. The hidden trait — one Hokies fans know all too well — is his capacity to develop talent and maximize the abilities of his players.

Long before the Hokies were pulling in highly-rated recruits, Foster built Tech's defensive reputation building 5-star dishes out of what other coaches perceived as chicken sh--.

As great a head coach as Frank Beamer has been, it's unfair not to mention Bud Foster's immense contribution to his success.

I'm not trying to take away from Beamer's legacy. If anything, Frank's ability to recognize and foster (pun intended) Bud's talents — dating all the way back to their days at Murray State — is a testament to his brilliance.

For over 20 years, they have formed arguably the strongest coaching duo in the nation and it's a key contributor to the program's reputation as both extraordinarily stable and family-like.

During his 29 years at the helm, Beamer was able to build a staff and a team that took the field as a manifestation of the blue collar attitude he was looking for out of his players. Where Frank provided the identity, Bud and his units delivered the results.

That's BeamerBall.

When a statue of Frank is built outside of Lane Stadium, I hope that they save room for Bud on the plinth, providing just enough room for his statue to wrap his arms around Coach Beamer as an eternal symbol of their kinship.