When Virginia Tech fired Brent Pry after a 45-26 Week 3 loss to Old Dominion in September, it didn't come as a surprise. A move needed to be made for the good of the future of the program in Blacksburg. One thing was for sure: this was a hire that the school needed to get right.
Virginia Tech formed a search committee to find the next coach, but little did anyone know what was about to happen. When Penn State fired James Franklin in mid-October, he quickly became the top candidate at Virginia Tech. That seemed rather unrealistic at the time, but a week before Thanksgiving, Franklin was hired as the next head coach in Blacksburg.
It took some time for Franklin to put together a staff and roster, but in early December, word started to filter that Franklin was looking to bring Pry back as his defensive coordinator. As hard as it was to believe, it ended up happening. It is not easy for someone to walk back into a building in a lesser role a couple of months after getting fired. Not for Brent Pry.
James Franklin explains hiring Brent Pry as his defensive coordinator at Virginia Tech
Franklin and some of his assistant coaches met with the media on Wednesday. One question to Franklin was about what went into hiring Pry at Virginia Tech as his DC. It went a little differently than Franklin thought it was going to go.
Pry and Franklin had conversations about reuniting at Franklin's next stop. However, when it became clear that the next stop was going to be Virginia Tech, well, Franklin didn't think bringing Pry back was an option. Pry said it was.
"Me and Brent had been talking in general about a number of jobs,'' said Franklin. "I was talking to him as if Virginia Tech would not be an option to him. He stopped me and said it would be."
Pry mentioned that his family was going to be in the area for at least another year, for his kids and their Blacksburg schools. After learning it was an option, Franklin had to clear some obstacles with the school, but those were cleared. Pry is thrilled to be able to be back.
"It is good to be back. It is good to be back,'' said Pry. "I feel refreshed. Excited. Great group of young men to work with. Great staff. Working with Coach [Franklin] again, it took not even a full day to be right back. The expectations - we work very well together - a lot of similarities in what we believe and how we want to do things. A lot of comfort and a lot of familiar faces. Players, staff, coaches, people in the department, on campus. It's been good."
Look, were the results what Pry and his staff wanted on the field during his tenure? For the most part, no. However, Pry is a very likable person, and you never want to see anyone lose their jobs, but for Pry to get the opportunity to come back and do it the way it has happened says a lot about him. What is even more telling is the standing ovation he got, according to Franklin, when he was announced as the DC. Relationships are everything.