Frank Beamer joining CFP Selection Committee

Beamer, Howard And Smith Named To College Football Playoff Selection Committee

IRVING, Texas – Bill Hancock, Executive Director of the College Football Playoff (CFP), today announced that Frank Beamer, Chris Howard and Eugene "Gene" Smith have been appointed to the selection committee by the CFP Management Committee. The new members will each begin a three-year term this spring.

Hancock also announced extensions for two current members who had served incomplete terms. The term for committee chair Kirby Hocutt will extend through February 2018, and the term for Bobby Johnson will extend through February 2019. Both Hocutt and Johnson's terms were originally set to expire in February 2017. Hocutt and Johnson had originally served incomplete two-year terms, having replaced Oliver Luck and Archie Manning respectively.

Additionally, Hancock announced that Hocutt would return as chair of the committee next fall.

"Frank, Chris and Gene will each bring a wealth of knowledge to the selection committee," Hancock said. "All three played college football. And they will continue the CFP tradition of committee members with high integrity and a passion for college football.

"We are also delighted that Kirby will return as chair," Hancock went on. "He did a tremendous job of leading and facilitating the committee's deliberations, and he was also an excellent representative with the media and public. Likewise, we are pleased that Bobby accepted our invitation to return. He is an excellent evaluator of teams and brings a valuable coach's perspective."

The new members will replace Barry Alvarez and Condoleezza Rice, whose three-year terms expired, and Lloyd Carr, who stepped down from the committee for health reasons.

Prior to his retirement in 2015, Frank Beamer was one of the longest tenured coaches in Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) history, having started his career at Virginia Tech in 1987. As the Hokies' head coach for 29 seasons, Beamer was the winningest active coach in FBS history at the time of his retirement, having tallied an impressive record of 238-121-2. Under Beamer, Virginia Tech football enjoyed unprecedented success with 23 consecutive bowl appearances, four Atlantic Coast Conference championships, five ACC Coastal Division crowns, three Big East Conference titles, six BCS appearances, two "major" bowl victories and a trip to the national championship game in 2000.

A three-time Big East Coach of the Year (1995, 1996, 1999), Beamer was named ACC Coach of the Year in 2004 and 2005. He was the consensus National Coach of the Year in 1999. From 1981 to 1986, Beamer served as the head football coach at Murray State University.

Prior to his coaching career, Beamer played cornerback at Virginia Tech from 1966-68 before graduating in 1969 with a bachelor's in distributive education. He received a master's in guidance from Radford University in 1972.

Since 2015, Beamer has served as special assistant to Whit Babcock, Director of Athletics at Virginia Tech, where he focuses on athletic development and advancement.