As someone who has grown up in VA and knows kids on the ream, this does not surprise me one bit. They just want fans to show up to the game, I don't have much of a problem with it. They are so afraid to fall back into mediocrity like they were in 1970's and such. They were hideous. My dad, who played football at SU, still laughs to this day in how bad they were. They've come a long way from then and now are a consistent power to win 10 games and they will do anything in their abilities to keep their reputation of being a football power. Hell, most of the fans are pissed they haven't been to a national championship in a while. That said, I was extremely close to enrolling at VT. To the post above, UVA thinks they are above every single school in the entire south, them calling VT a trade school is not the least bit surprising lol. UVA fans are very bitter at how VT exploded onto the scene and how they had a slow decline after years of being a solid team. And like you said, VT goes into Hampton, VA and Norfolk, VA which was pretty much an untapped market, VT has it almost locked up with the occasional kids going elsewhere.
I do hate Beemer with a passion though. He always benefited from Bud Foster IMO who would have made a tremendous head coach anywhere. VT also gets away with the typical shady kids that miraculously qualify. I know for a fact Vick showed up twice for a class my cousin was in. I know Tyrod Taylor thought he was entitled to free food wherever he wanted to go. Most programs star athletes get away with this but Tech is certainly no exception.
I will say all the visits between UVA and VT, that the kids more down to Earth were definitely Techs. You had to pretty much know someone to get in anywhere at UVA. A good friend of mine from Syracuse moved to VA years back and he was visiting UVA and they didn't let him in anywhere, the next weekend he showed up with Cantor's son and could have gotten away with murder lol.
