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BEAMER BALL LIVES HERE!
Virginia Tech retired Frank Beamer’s No. 25 in 2002, but with Beamer’s
blessing in 2016 head coach Justin Fuente and his staff paid homage
to Tech’s legacy of excellence on special teams by selecting a different
special teamer each week to the honorary Beamer 25 jersey. The
response by the team and some of the subsequent performances by
players wearing that symbolic number quickly ensured that another
Virginia Tech tradition had taken root.
“Thanks to Coach Beamer, his assistants and many talented student-
athletes, Virginia Tech has become synonymous with special teams
success,” Fuente said.
“I’m really honored that a member of the special teams will get to wear
my old number every week,” Beamer observed. “Of course, it’s not just
a recognition of me, it’s about all those coaches and kids who made
special teams part of our identity at Virginia Tech.”
It was only fitting that the first player to score a touchdown
wearing the 25 was CB Greg Stroman, who returned a
punt for an 87-yard TD vs. East Carolina. Stroman also
registered a punt return score in Beamer’s final game as
head coach in the 2015 Independence Bowl. Of course,
he gestured to the 25 on his chest as he entered the end
zone in a 54-17 win against ECU.
Tech was facing Notre Dame for the first time in school
history admist snow, cold and blustery conditions. Despite
trailing by 17-point deficits twice in the game, C.J. Carroll’s
62-yard catch and run to the six-yard line set up a Steven
Peoples’ TD run that cut the Irish lead to 24-21 en route to
a 34-31 comeback win.
Arguably the largest human ever to wear No. 25, Settle
donned the jersey for a 49-0 shutout of Boston College.
“You stand out when you wear No. 25,” he said. “Everyone
knows what it means -- that you’re a big part of the team
when you wear No. 25.”
The pride of Mechanicsville, Virginia authored one of the
best Senior Day performances in recent memory. Rogers
ran for a career-high 105 yards and scored two TDs as the
Hokies registered a 13th consecutive victory over Virginia. If
a 52-10 win, raising the Commonwealth Cup and the ACC
Coastal Division trophy weren’t enough, Rogers proposed
to his longtime girlfriend on the field after the game, and of
course she said “yes!”
In a game played amidst the driving rain and wind of
Hurricane Matthew, the Hokies seemed oblivious to
the conditions, dominating at North Carolina in all three
phases of the game. WR Cam Phillips, who blocked a
punt the previous week vs. East Carolina broke through to
tackle punter Tom Sheldon for an 18-yard sack in a 34-3
Tech victory.
Playing in the Hokies’ second consecutive Thursday night
game before a national TV audience on ESPN, freshman
WR Divine Deablo forced a fumble on a kickoff return that
was recovered by Tech. Special teams were the star at-
traction at Heinz Field that evening as K Joey Slye tied an
ACC record with six made field goals in a 39-36 victory
for the Hokies.
CB GREG STROMAN
WR C.J. CARROLL
WR CAM PHILLIPS
DT TIM SETTLE
WR DIVINE DEABLO
RB SAM ROGERS
2016
25
JERSEY HONOREES
Date Player
Opponent
9/3
RB Steven Peoples Liberty
9/10 LB Sean Huelskamp Tennessee
9/17 DT Tim Settle
Boston College
9/24 CB Greg Stroman
East Carolina
10/8 WR Cam Phillips
at North Carolina
10/15 K Joey Slye
at Syracuse
10/20 LB Anthony Shegog Miami
10/27 WR Divine Deablo
at Pitt
11/5 S Chuck Clark
at Duke
11/12 CB Adonis Alexander Georgia Tech
11/19 WR C.J. Carroll
at Notre Dame
11/26 RB Sam Rogers
Virginia
12/3 DT Woody Baron
Clemson
12/29 ROV Terrell Edmunds Arkansas