Hokie ClubBLACKSBURG – With the 2025 schedule unveiled and staff additions rolling in, Virginia Tech football is ready to turn its sights to offseason preparation. Head coach Brent Pry met with the media on Tuesday to discuss the hiring of his new defensive coordinator, Sam Siefkes. Siefkes joins the Hokies after serving as the linebackers coach for the Arizona Cardinals the last two seasons. Read and watch below to see what Pry had to say about Siefkes during the search process:
Head Coach Brent Pry
On the support received during the search process:
"Tons of follow-up. You're going to follow up with the candidates to learn more. You're going to make phone calls to learn more. You're going to receive phone calls, which I got no more phone calls on anybody than I got on Sam. From Kevin O'Connell, Jonathan Gannon, Dave Aranda, it goes on and on with how well thought of Sam is in the industry. These searches take on a life of their own. And we took a genuine and honest approach to it."
On Sam Siefkes' coaching resume:
"Sam was very aggressive in wanting to be at Virginia Tech. He's got noteworthy experiences that resonate with me. From his time at Wisconsin as a GA with the number one defense in the country. I respect that. I understand that. I know how that impacted him as a young coach. In Platteville, small college ball, heck of a defense, both years. Statistically, one of the better ones at that level. His time at Wofford, which I respect the Southern Conference. I coached in it. There's a variety of offenses. There's good skill sets. [They were] the number one defense in the league back-to-back years. And [they had] the number one rushing defense back-to-back years. Year one, with a 3-4 scheme, because that's what personnel allowed. Year two, 4-3 scheme, because that was what the personnel mandated. A very impressive accomplishment.
On Bud Foster joining the staff as a defensive advisor:
"Yeah, obviously Sam's excited about Bud being involved. I'm excited about it. That's one of the other things we'll work through. What is that really going to look like? What does Bud want it to be? What do we need it to be? But I'm excited about that. And for Sam, the opportunity to spend time with Bud, that was attractive as well."
On the impact of Siefkes' NFL pedigree:
"More and more of the college players, they want that NFL touch. They want that in their development. They want NFL film. They want NFL techniques. And certainly, Sam's going to bring that to us."