Virginia Tech has extended head coach Justin Fuente for another season, the Hokies announced Tuesday. He now remains under contract through 2024.
“We are very committed to Coach Fuente and his staff on a long-term basis,” AD Whit Babcock said in a statement. “He has been very loyal and is a tremendous fit at Virginia Tech. We believe in further solidifying the upward trajectory of our football program by investing in him, as well as the wonderful coaches and staff surrounding him. We are pleased to provide additional support staff and resources to our football program.”
According to Andy Bitter of the Roanoke Times, Fuente’s extension will come with a bump in salary from $3.25 million in 2017 to $4 million in ’18. That figure will rise to $5 million if he stays through the life of the contract. But he’ll never see the end of this current deal, because if Fuente is still in Blacksburg in 2024 he’ll have one (or two, or three) new contracts before that.
The school also announced in an increased commitment to Fuente through an increased salary pool for his assistants and support staff. His assistants will be paid an extra $435,000 in 2018, which includes a $175,000 salary for 10th assistant coach Adam Lechtenburg, who was promoted from the support staff.
“Jenny and our three daughters are very fortunate to call Blacksburg and Virginia Tech our home,” Fuente said. “Ensuring that we were able to retain and reward our very talented and dedicated assistant coaching staff was very important to me. The loyalty and dedication of our assistant coaches and support team is unwavering. I’m very appreciative of the additions and enhancements we are making to our facilities and support staff. I’m very proud to be a Hokie!”
Fuente is one of six FBS head coaches to win at least nine games in each of the past four seasons, joining Nick Saban, Dabo Swinney, Urban Meyer, Mark Richt and Bryan Harsin. Fuente is 38-14 since 2014 and 19-8 in two seasons at Virginia Tech.