Philip Montgomery reacts to new athletics budget approved by Virginia Tech

Nearly three weeks after Virginia Tech football departed ways with head coach Brent Pry, the board of visitors approved a plan on Tuesday to add $229 million to the Hokie athletics budget over the next four years. This now moves them towards the top of the ACC in spending just months before they embark on a national coaching search.

In the meantime, former offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery has taken over as the interim coach and has led the Hokies to a 38-6 win over Wofford and a 23-21 win over NC State last Saturday. Montgomery has been coaching since 1994, when he began as a special assistant at Tarleton State. He worked his way up to becoming the head coach at Tulsa in 2015, a role he held for eight seasons before he was fired.

The Eastland, Tex., native led the Golden Hurricane to a 43-53 (28-24) record with wins in the 2016 Miami Beach Bowl and the 2021 Miami Beach Bowl. He made his return to head coaching with Virginia Tech for the remainder of the 2025 season and is 2-0 in two games in charge.

Montgomery and VT President touch on new athletics budget

Montgomery touched on the new athletics budget approved by the University during Tuesday’s media opportunity.

“Well I think more importantly the vision that the Board of Visitors has for the future of Virginia Tech Athletics and football and all that encompasses that is just a tremendous growth potential of what can happen,” Montgomery said. “It can open a lot of doors for the athletics department and we thank them for that. Obviously I’m gonna let Whit (Babcock) and them handle all the big questions and that part of it, but I think it shows the vision and passion and it allows Virginia Tech to continue to keep building and being at the top of this conference where it belongs.”

The Hokies currently sit at 2-3 and have seven games remaining in their season. Four of these seven games are however against ranked opponents.

“We have the opportunity to reset the organization to align with the new realities at the conference and national levels,” said Virginia Tech President Tim Sands. “It’s never been clearer that the future of Hokie athletics will depend on the institutional commitments to compete in partnership with our alumni and supporters. Today, we are stepping up to compete, and we ask our loyal fans and generous donors to step forward with us.”