Hokie ClubBy Jimmy Robertson
CONCORD, N.C. – The Virginia Tech football program's preparations for the Belk Bowl took a pit stop of sorts Saturday, as the players and coaches went a side trip to Charlotte Motor Speedway for a spin – NASCAR style, of course.
Actually, players and staff members from both schools took part in a driving experience in an event that has become commonplace for each participating school in the Belk Bowl. Each member gets a three-lap ride as a passenger in a car similar to the ones used in NASCAR race. The cars reach speeds of approximately 150 miles per hour.
Several Hokies participated in this same event in 2016 when Tech played – and beat – Arkansas in the Belk Bowl. This experience, though, never gets old.
"I find it amazing how many times since 2016 in conversation that it's come up, and I've said, 'I did that,'" Tech head coach Justin Fuente said. "It's a unique experience."
Some people frown on the bowl set-up in which a team travels to a city and spends a week in that city preparing to play a football game. But the bowl experience is more than just the game, and bowl officials at most bowls do a great job of providing opportunities that most players and staff members would never get to experience.
With its driving experience, the Belk Bowl staff provides one of the more unique of experiences.
"It's an incredibly unique opportunity for our kids, which is ultimately what this should be about – and is about," Fuente said. "People in Charlotte have been great, and the Belk Bowl in particular, for our kids, and this is a totally unique experience for them."
A special visitor greeted Tech's team when arrived Saturday morning – Jeb Burton, a professional stock car racer who ran in two Monster Energy NASCAR Cup races and seven races in the NASCAR Xfinity Series this past season. In his seven Xfinity races, Jeb Burton, the son of longtime NASCAR driver Ward Burton, finished in the top 10 on six occasions.
Jeb Burton has been a Virginia Tech fan since his mom bought him to Blacksburg in 2007 for the Tech-Boston College Thursday night game.
"It was the atmosphere," Burton said. "It was cold and windy and rainy, and everybody was there like it didn't matter. I was like, 'Man, this is awesome.' Ever since then, I've been a big Tech fan."
Burton has visited Blacksburg on numerous occasions, even coming up for a practice. On Saturday, he gave the Hokies a sampling of his world.
"This is a great opportunity," Burton said. "To hang out with Bud [Foster] is really cool. I've been a big fan of his, and he's been a big fan of my dad's. Actually, he's turned into a fan of mine. I've sent him some diecasts and some t-shirts a few weeks ago when I found out he was retiring, and he really liked that. I'm just excited to be here and to be able to hang out with the guys and the team."
Burton gave both Fuente and Foster a spin around the track. The car that they were using – certainly not one of Burton's normal JR Motorsports cars – wasn't quite running right during Fuente's three circuits around the track, and after one lap with Foster, Burton parked it. He and Foster hopped into a different car.
"He said something about it sputtering a little bit, which didn't make me feel real good," Fuente smiled. "I didn't know what that met, but then Bud got in it and Bud officially broke the car."
"We were running hard," Foster laughed. "Jeb had that thing going. I don't know what it was. There was a fuel intake, or something. I act like I know what I'm talking about, right? So we put that thing down, and it was pretty cool to ride with him – a guy that loves the Hokies and wanted to be here."
Fuente echoed similar sentiments.
"He's been great for our program," Fuente said of Burton. "Just incredibly supportive. Just humble and down to earth. The guy's getting married in a couple of weeks and he's here driving us around. He's always a pleasure to be around."
The day, though, wasn't all fun and games. The Hokies kept their focus on the Belk Bowl and put in two hours' worth of work after the driving experience, heading straight to a local high school for a two-hour practice.
The staff has discussed at length the importance of balancing enjoying the moment while keeping focused on bowl preparations. Saturday certainly challenged that.
"I'm hoping that's where some maturity comes in with our team and some of our leaders and that will come to head a little bit," Foster said. "It's really got to come from within, and that's what I challenged our kids about as we move forward. It's our Wednesday [normal Wednesday practice], and we can't wait till Friday to build an edge. We need to start doing that these next couple of days."
Gallery: (12/28/2019) 2019 BELK BOWL SPEEDWAY EXPERIENCE