Brent Pry explains balance of adding players to Virginia Tech via transfer portal
Virginia Tech head coach Brent Pry knows the transfer portal is important in today’s college football environment. But with that comes a tricky balance with guys coming in and out.
Not only that, Pry and his staff have to recruit like normal when it comes to high school players and building relationships.
“Well, the first piece goes back to who and what we’re about and that’s relationships and our culture,” Pry said on Sirius XM’s ACC Radio. “We have to have a culture that can withstand the movement that we’ve had, you know, the additions that we’ve had. You bring an old guy into the room, you got to have some trust with your current team and that you’re doing the right thing, that you’re bringing in like minded people. And then there’s got to be the evidence.
“And we brought in five guys last year from the transfer portal that were really quality guys, great teammates, workers, really blended with our team. I think right now I’d say we’re fortunate again, the seven guys we brought this offseason. That’s who they are.”
Pry also mentioned that his team must embrace competition. Whether players come to Virginia Tech or leave via the transfer portal, they must be ready to battle.
“But so the culture and the foundation are so important to be able to navigate that to for players to accept that embrace that to understand ‘Hey, Coach, you just trying to make our team better,’” Pry said. “We all have a goal to win a championship, go the playoffs, and that’s what he’s trying to do. There’s nothing personal about it. We don’t want guys on this roster that are afraid of competition. If they are, they need to go somewhere else.
“We want am ultra competitive environment. But at the same time, the relationships and the trust and the transparency that has to be there to withstand just what you’re talking about.”
In addition to the portal, Pry mentioned Virginia Tech’s recruiting process with high school recruits is vastly different. It’s a tricky balance.
“But then the second piece is one of the most challenging things about the transfer portal is you can spend two, three years recruiting a high school player in his family,” Pry said. “You can spend two, three days, maybe a week, sometimes recruiting a transfer and have to make a decision. You bring him in for a day or two. And you talk to him a bunch of times on the phone over a week or so and they’re making a decision.
“We’re calling high school coaches. We’re calling people in the community, we’re calling the previous college where, you know, we’re digging deep to make sure these guys are right for us.”