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Former Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer elected to College Football Hall of Fame

Posted at 3:58 PM, Jan 08, 2018
and last updated 2018-01-08 16:04:44-05

Head coach Frank Beamer celebrates a win. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

ATLANTA, Ga. (HokieSports.com) – The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame announced Monday that longtime Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer has been selected to the College Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2018. Beamer was in his initial year of eligibility on the Hall of Fame ballot. He will participate in the coin toss at tonight’s College Football Playoff National Championship Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

The 2018 class officially will be inducted during the 61st NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 4, 2018, at the New York Hilton Midtown. The inductees will be permanently enshrined at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta later that December and honored on the field during the 14th Annual National Hall of Fame Salute during the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. They also will be honored at their respective schools at an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute, presented by Fidelity Investments, during the 2018 season.

“I’d like to thank our administration and former Virginia Tech players, coaches and support staff,” Beamer said. “Without them, we wouldn’t have enjoyed the success we did as a football program.”

Former head coach Frank Beamer. (Photo: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

A coach becomes eligible three full seasons after retirement or immediately following retirement provided he is at least 70 years of age. Beamer more than met the criteria of having been a head coach for a minimum of 10 years and coached at least 100 games with a .600 winning percentage.

The winningest coach in Virginia Tech history, Beamer’s 280 victories rank sixth overall in FBS history and are the 13th most by a college football coach at any NCAA division. He led the Hokies to their first ever national title game appearance as part of an impressive streak of 23 consecutive bowl berths in his final 23 seasons.

Under Beamer, the Hokies posted five top-10 finishes and became one of only six programs in college football history to go to a bowl game in at least 20-straight seasons. After just one win in six bowl games prior to his arrival, Beamer would win 11 of his 23 appearances, including marquee wins in the 1995 Sugar Bowl, the 2009 Orange Bowl and the 2009 Chick-fil-A Bowl. His Hokies are also one of just four teams in Division I history to produce 10 wins in eight or more consecutive seasons (2004-11), and his 23-straight seasons of seven or more wins are a school record.

Frank Beamer is carried off the field. (Photo: by Michael Shroyer/Getty Images)

Prior to his retirement in 2015, Beamer was the winningest active coach in FBS history at the time of his retirement, having tallied an impressive career record of 238-121-2 at Virginia Tech. Under Beamer, Virginia Tech football enjoyed unprecedented success, with 23 consecutive bowl appearances, a mark that the Hokies extended to 25 straight under head coach Justin Fuente in 2017.

A member of the College Football Playoff Selection Committee, Beamer continues to serve Virginia Tech as an ambassador for athletics and the spokesperson for the Drive for 25 campaign that seeks to increase membership in the Virginia Tech Athletic Fund (aka the “Hokie Club”) to 25,000 members.

“I know firsthand from both my experience as a player and from coaching just how important scholarships are to young people here at Virginia Tech,” Beamer said. “Scholarships change lives, and that’s why Cheryl [his wife] and I have always been willing to give to help these student-athletes not just to play sports, but also to be a part of such a special place and get a degree. Many of my former players wouldn’t have received that opportunity otherwise.”

A member of the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame, Beamer will also be inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in April.

“The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame congratulates Frank Beamer on his selection to the College Football Hall of Fame,” the Virginia Hall said in a statement. “He will be the 215th coach inducted into that august body, and in our view, none is more deserving. Frank Beamer was not only instrumental in Virginia Tech winning 238 games and seven conference titles during his 29 years at the helm of the football program, but he consistently conducted himself and his program with integrity and dedication to both athletics and academics.”

Beamer will be inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame April 7th during a ceremony at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts in Virginia Beach.