The seamless transition between Frank Beamer and Justin Fuente belongs in a textbook for future athletic directors and coaches to study. In recent years, nobody has done it better.
There is a reason for that. Parting ways with a long-time coach is a gut-wrenching process, often turning into a tug-of-war between the program builder and the program itself. Messy exits have followed, from Joe Paterno to Bobby Bowden to Mack Brown, each for their own separate and very distinctive reasons.
Beamer observed each one, and vowed he would be different. While questions circled around his fate in his last several years as coach, Virginia Tech allowed Beamer the time to make the call on his own retirement.