It is a new era for the Virginia Tech football program. The dawn of the fresh start kicked off when Virginia Tech hired James Franklin as their head coach. A few weeks removed from being fired by Penn State, Franklin jumped at the opportunity to take the vacant Hokies' job. The expectation was for Franklin to bring in his own staff and surround himself with coaches of his liking. However, Franklin's most notable addition has been the rehiring of former Hokies' head coach Brent Pry, who was fired after an 0-3 start, as the team's defensive coordinator in early December.
As the college football regular season winds down, Franklin continues to mold his staff, which includes retaining two more current Hokies' coaches,
Virginia Tech is keeping offensive line coach Matt Moore and wide receiver coach Fontel Mines, according to Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports.
Moore, whom Pry hired, has 20 years of collegiate coaching experience. Starting as Troy's offensive line coach, Moore then spent the next five seasons splitting time between Texas Tech and Middle Tennessee. After short stints at Louisiana Tech and West Virginia, Moore joined the Virginia Tech staff in 2025. In his lone season, Moore's unit has allowed 15 sacks and 111 pressures, according to Pro Football Focus.
Unlike Moore, Mines has been a part of the Virginia Tech staff since 2022. He is largely credited for helping Washington Commanders fourth-round pick Jaylin Lane's emergence in 2024 — the team's highest draft pick since Eddie Royal was selected in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft.
