Frank Beamer Frank Beamer ( born October 18 , 1946 ) is an American football coach and former player . He is currently the head coach at Virginia Tech , a position he has held since 1987 . From 1981 to 1986 , Beamer served as the head coach at Murray State University . He is currently the winningest active coach and longest tenured coach in Division I FBS . Early life and playing career . Beamer was born in Mount Airy , North Carolina , grew up in Fancy Gap , Virginia , went to high school in Hillsville , Virginia , and earned 11 varsity letters in high school as a three - sport athlete in football , basketball , and baseball . He then attended Virginia Tech and was a starting cornerback for three years on the football team , playing in the 1966 and 1968 Liberty Bowl s . He graduated in 1969 and attended Radford University for graduate school while serving as an assistant football coach at Radford High School . Coaching career . Beamer ' s college coaching experience began in 1972 , when he became a graduate assistant for the University of Maryland , College Park . After one season , he became an assistant coach at The Citadel under Bobby Ross . He spent seven seasons at The Citadel , the last two as the defensive coordinator . He moved on to become the defensive coordinator at Murray State University in 1979 under Mike Gottfried . After two seasons , he was promoted to head coach and compiled a record of 42 – 23 – 2 ( . 642 ) in six years . On December 22 , 1986 , Beamer was hired as the head coach at Virginia Tech . Beamer was to replace Bill Dooley , whose nine - year tenure was the most successful in terms of total wins and winning percentage in school history . Beamer signed a four - year contract worth $ 80 , 000 annually . Virginia Tech ' s new athletic director , Dale Baughman , who was hired to replace Dooley in that capacity , received criticism for hiring Beamer . " Some people have questioned this decision because he is not a big name , " Baughman said at the time . " But it ' s a sound decision , and I ' m standing by it . " Beamer took over a Virginia Tech football program that was largely unsuccessful in its first century , having reached only six bowl game s to that point . Beamer has since built the Hokies into a perennially ranked team . One of his biggest successes was a winning record against the sec ( 40 - 27 ) . In 25 years at the helm of VT , his overall record is 209 – 98 – 2 ( . 680 ) , making him far and away the winningest coach in school history . His teams have made 19 consecutive bowl appearances , and Beamer has gone 8 – 11 in those 19 bowls , including 1 – 5 in BCS bowls and 1 – 1 in BCS - precursor Bowl Alliance bowls . During the bowl streak , Beamer has amassed a record of 185 – 58 ( . 761 ) . Head coach Beamer ' s total compensation before bonuses for the 2012 season will be $ 2 , 288 , 204 , this includes his salary , privileges & car , a retention incentive , and additional income from sponsors including Nike & other marketing rights . During Beamer ' s tenure at Virginia Tech , the program has evolved from independent status to a member of the Big East Conference to a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference . His teams have won three Big East championships and four ACC titles . Beamer has been named the Big East Coach of the Year three times , in 1995 , 1996 , and 1999 . In 1999 , he won a number of national coach of the year honors when he led Virginia Tech to an undefeated regular season and an appearance in the Sugar Bowl , where they lost a bid for the national championship to Florida State . Beamer was named the ACC Coach of the Year in 2004 , his first year competing in the conference . He repeated as ACC Coach of the Year in 2005 while leading his team to the ACC Coastal Division title and an appearance in the inaugural ACC Championship Game . His team was also given the Fall Sportsmanship Award in its inaugural season in the ACC . Frank Beamer is currently the winningest active coach in Division I FBS . Beamerball . During Beamer ' s tenure at Virginia Tech , putting points on the scoreboard has become a full team effort with the offensive , defensive and special teams units . Often when the team scores one or more non - offensive touchdowns , the style of play is described as " Beamerball " . Since Beamer ' s first season in 1987 , a player at every position on the defensive unit has scored at least one touchdown , and 35 different players have scored touchdowns on Virginia Tech ' s special teams . Personal life . Beamer is married to the former Cheryl Oakley and has two children , Shane and Casey . Shane played football at Virginia Tech and was a member of the 1999 team that advanced to Sugar Bowl to play for the national championship . He is currently the associate head coach and running backs coach alongside his father at Virginia Tech . In July 2006 , Beamer and his wife , Cheryl joined with Virginia publishers Mascot Books to publish their first children ' s book " Yea , It ' s Hokie Game Day ! " In 1954 , when Beamer was seven years old , he used a push broom to help keep a pile of burning trash in place . When the job was done he returned the broom to the garage , not knowing that its bristles were still smoldering . A spark ignited a nearby can of gasoline , that exploded in front of him . His 11 - year old brother , Barnett , saved him by rolling him around on the ground , but Frank was left with burns on the right side of his neck , chest and his shoulders . Over the next few years dozens of skin graft s left him with permanent scarring . Beamer is also a direct descendant of Floyd Allen and the notorious Allen clan , the fierce mountain men who shot up the Carroll County , Va . courthouse in a spasm of violence in 1912 that left five people dead , including the judge , prosecutor and county sheriff . This bit of Beamer ' s family history helps explain why he was such a powerful voice in Blacksburg after the Virginia Tech massacre , after which he said the important thing was not to allow the act of violence to define the university . “ We can ’ t let one person destroy what goes on here every day , the caring , the thoughtfulness . We can ’ t let one person destroy that . ” ( " Tempered Steel : How Frank Beamer Got That Way " ) Head coaching record . < small > ‡ The Big East did not begin full round – robin play until 1993