TAMPA – Virginia Tech’s Justin Fuente and USC’s Clay Helton were named the top first-year FBS head coaches in the nation by the Football Writers Association of America.
Fuente guided the Hokies to a 10-4 record, a victory in the Belk Bowl and a berth in the Dr Pepper ACC Championship Game – their first appearance in the league title game since 2011. He was previously named the 2016 ACC Coach of the Year by The Associated Press, the conference’s coaches and media, as well as Athlon Sports. His 10 victories were the most ever by a first-year Virginia Tech head coach.