ESPN: Ranking college football's open Power 4 jobs

https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/46639347/college-footba...

The following Power 4 jobs rankings are based on the following five areas:

Recent/historical on-field performance

Access to CFP

Roster-building/access to talent

University leadership

Financial support

I tried to view these jobs as coaches do and ask: Which jobs offer the best path to success in the respective league? Which had the right mix of support and expectations? The SEC and Big Ten are the two most well-resourced leagues, but not every SEC or Big Ten job is better than every Big 12 or ACC job.

4. Virginia Tech Hokies

Opened: Sept. 14 with firing of Brent Pry

On-field performance: The program's heyday under Hall of Fame coach Frank Beamer has faded a bit but remains more visible than others on this list. From 1993 to 2011, Beamer's teams went 185-58, ranking second behind Florida in wins and fourth in winning percentage (.761). Virginia Tech had AP Top 25 finishes in all but three years during that span, while winning seven conference titles and playing for a national title in 1999. Beamer's successor Justin Fuente had some initial success -- winning 19 games in his first two seasons -- but Virginia Tech hasn't won more than seven games in a season since 2019. Virginia Tech has a large and loyal fan base that can provide a top home-field advantage, but the team needs to give those people a reason to care.

Access to CFP: Here's where the job could really pop, especially if the CFP field expands and there are more slots for the ACC to have multiple entries. Virginia Tech's best attribute is being a football-first school with a winning tradition that, if supported correctly with the right people in charge, could become a semiregular contender for league championships again. The ACC has more notable brands than the Big 12 does in Clemson, Florida State and Miami, but all have been vulnerable, even this season. And after those three, which program can match Virginia Tech's history and potential? "The climb to the top is not nearly as steep as the climb in those other leagues," a Virginia Tech source said. "If you're at Florida, Auburn or Arkansas, you're playing Ohio State every week. Here, you can play Wake, Georgia Tech and Boston College."

Roster-building: Virginia Tech might never dominate regional recruiting like it did under Beamer, but its ability to access pockets of talent certainly remains. There are good players within the state, certainly in the Washington D.C. area, and Virginia Tech can also easily recruit North Carolina and Tennessee from its location. The key will be retaining players, as Virginia Tech saw cornerback Mansoor Delane and other notables from the 2024 team transfer out, and being increasingly more competitive for top transfers.

University leadership: Whit Babcock has led Virginia Tech's athletic department since 2014 and hired both Fuente and Pry. But his true influence on the next coaching hire -- and the program at large -- is being debated. He has been visible in the campaign for additional athletics department funding, and last month the school's board added $229 million to the department's budget during the next four years. Coaches still should be asking pointed questions about how much longer Babcock remains in Blacksburg. University president Timothy Sands has also been in his role since 2014. He has a hands-on role in athletics and also serves as chair of the NCAA Division I Board of Directors.

Financial support: Virginia Tech has never had trouble drumming up interest in its football program. It has lacked the finances to maintain its place in college football's hierarchy. But the recent board decision and upcoming budget increase could be a game changer, both for the type of candidate Virginia Tech attracts -- or, potentially, in Shane Beamer's case, bring back -- and how the program operates going forward. "We know that Virginia Tech is not going to be status quo, but they've still got to show some deliverables on that," an industry source said. "If Virginia Tech wasn't making this new $229 million cash infusion, you wouldn't think about it."

Another industry source pointed out, "If you're Virginia Tech, you're never going to be resourced, like Miami, Clemson and Florida State."

Why the job ranks here: Virginia Tech is a football school in a winnable conference that can take a significant step with newfound financial backing and the right coaching hire.