2007.04.19
Tech assistant Billy Hite talks about shootings
Virginia Tech associate head coach and running backs coach Billy Hite took head coach Frank Beamer's usual place Thursday on the ACC coaches spring football teleconference. Beamer was visiting injured shooting victims in hospitals Thursday morning. He later came on the call, and Randy King will have a story later on what Beamer had to say. Also, Doug Doughty posted his report this afternoon on what other ACC coaches had to say. Click here for his story.
Hite's opening comments
Obviously, with the tragedy that happened on Monday we've canceled the rest of spring practice and the spring game scheduled for Saturday. It's a very tough time in Blacksburg, Va., right now, but I think we made the right call. We had accomplished 11 practices up to that point and Coach Beamer and our staff felt we were far enough along that we could honestly cancel the rest of it and let our kids grieve and get ready for next season.
Q: Are you all concerned as a staff that this may have a lingering effect on the program whatsoever?
Hite: Well, it possibly could but we're hoping that it doesn't have an effect. ...
Q: To a lot of people before Monday, Frank Beamer was really the face of Virginia Tech. What role do you think Frank will end up playing in this whole healing process for university? Do you think he's going to try to be out front and do everything he can do and whatever President Steger asks him?
Hite: I know he will. I know he visited with some of the families [Wednesday] evening of the deceased students here. He's been available the whole time. Before the convocation [Tuesday], I was hoping that he would have an opportunity to speak, but he said he wasn't asked to. But when you think of Virginia Tech you think of Frank Beamer, no question about it. I think he will do everything possible that he can to help with this situation.
Q: Got to believe there were really a lot of tough moments for you and the staff on Monday?
Hite: It really was. The thing we tried to do immediately was contact each one of them. And the communication was tough because the circuits were busy, you couldn't get calls out. Jim Weaver, the athletic director, ended up coming down and telling everybody they wanted to evacuate our building, and we had to be out of here at 1:30. So they took us out of the building. And at the time I hadn't reached all my players. I had 14 guys at my two positions. And when I did get through to one of them, I asked 'Have you talked to anybody else?' And they kept telling me they had talked to so and so and so and so. But when I went to bed that night I still didn't feel comfortable because I hadn't talked to all of them. I finally did reach all of them [Tuesday] and thank God they were all safe.
Each position coach called each one of their guys and everybody had the same problem; you didn't reach all of them. I ended up getting 7-8 of them and talked to all 14 next day. Everybody was having trouble because of the lines being down. Even the text - I don't text [message] but the rest of the [assistants] text - and they were having trouble with that also.
Q: You've been at Tech for close to 30 years. How surreal was the experience Monday?
Hite: It's just been absolutely unbelievable. I never dreamed that anything like this could ever happen in Blacksburg, Va., number one. And even after what's happened, I still feel it's the safest place in the world. I'm like everybody else. You're still totally in shock. I don't know that anything could have been done to prevent this.
I think President Steger and Chief Flinchum have done a great job in handling the situation from the facts that they had to do what they did. I have a daughter [Kirsten] on campus who is a junior and I'm completely satisfied the way they handled everything. Again, it's just one of those situations that I just think can happen anywhere and anytime in the country, and I don't know that it can be prevented.
Q: How quickly were you able to get ahold of Kirsten on Monday to make sure that she was OK?
Hite: That was the first call I made. I reached her immediately. She was on her way on campus and I told her to go back home at that point. I was very much relieved once I got ahold of her. My brother's daughter is a freshman here and she was at my house at 11 o'clock. She's been staying with us all week and she doesn't want to go back on campus right now.
Q: What the response been from former players this week? Have you heard from a lot of them?
Hite: It's been unbelievable. With me being here this many years I'm amazed at it, I really am. And it hasn't only been former players. Coach [Bill] Dooley [ex-Tech head coach] has called twice ... I talked to his wife this morning.
And Bruce Smith [ex-Tech star defensive end] wants to do something. I don't know what to tell him. Bruce Smith has called me four times and left me a number if he can do anything.
The amount of college coaches from around the country who have called ... it's been wonderful, it really has. I'm talking about ACC coaches, too, people that you're competing against. The phone has just rung off the hook.
Q: Have you heard from parents of current players or even prospects? And if so what have you said to them?
Hite: We have. The prospects have called in. They have been very supportive of this situation. Most of them have been here at some point in time. I think they're like us ... they're in disbelief that this has really happened at Virginia Tech and they've all said that their thoughts and prayers are with us and the Virginia Tech family. Some of our parents wanted their children home right away and that's what we did. We still didn't know what was going on late Monday night and I had talked to a couple of my players and I told them just go ahead and go home. Their parents wanted them there and I felt that's what they needed to do, and Coach Beamer felt that way. He ended up saying that anybody that needs to go home, tell them to go home. So, sure, parents were concerned. Again, me having a daughter on this campus I was concerned, no question. Again, I think people grieve differently. Some people take longer. And that's the thing, you have to give these players and student body a chance to grieve and get over this.
Q: How much do you think football can help salve some of the wounds when fans pack Lane on Sept. 1 for season opener against East Carolina?
Hite: Well, I think it really will. And I think that's the one thing about the Hokie Nation ... football was probably the first thing that's gotten this group together and respond the way they do. I think that was the thing about not playing the spring game. That would have been one time where we would have brought everybody together, but at the same time I'm sure some of those students are going to be buried this Saturday also and I think we made the right decision from that standpoint.
The vigil they had [Tuesday] night I bet there was close to ... somebody said 30,000 but I think it was more like 50,000 people there. And you couldn't even get into the Cassell when they had the other service. And we probably had 25,000 in the stands at that time. I think this will even make the Hokie Nation stronger if that's possible.
Q: Did Frank think at all about kind of resuming next week and having spring game on the 28th?
Hite: It was discussed briefly in our staff meeting. We would have to get an appeal I'm sure from the NCAA [because rules stated Apr. 21 is deadline for all schools to finish spring football practice]. He honestly felt at this point, as bad as this situation is, we're better off right now just ending spring practice and not even trying to play a spring game a week later. I think we made the right decision on that.
VIRGINIA COACH AL GROH
Frank and I have spoken. We've been able to convey our feelings to them about the whole situation.
Q: What did you think about situation that unfolded Monday?
Groh: Obviously, a very tragic thing. Actually, I just got finished speaking with my wife and she said she picked up the paper and on the front page was a picture of the perpertrator. She said she didn't even bring the paper in, she threw it in the trash can. I think she's kinda correct. There should be a lot more written about the positive things that the unfortunate victims had done in their lives and not so much attention ... it's probably the same type of attention that reinforces people who have some of these sick ideas, just reinforces them to do it.
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