Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, July 13, 1995 TAG: 9507130027
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: M.J. DOUGHERTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: HAMPTON LENGTH: Medium
``This week is really important to me,'' said Beamer, a receiver from Blacksburg. ``I came down here and hoped to do well. It gives me a chance to gain some confidence before I start at [Virginia] Tech. And it will give me a chance to judge myself against the competition here.''
When fall football practice starts at Virginia Tech on Aug.7, Beamer will be there as a freshman walk-on. He already knows a lot about the program. After all, his father Frank not only was a defensive back for the Hokies in the late 1960s but is also the head coach at Tech.
So many weekends during the past football season, the younger Beamer had double duty. On Friday nights, he would be catching passes for Blacksburg. Then on Saturday, he usually would be on the sidelines holding the headset wires for his father.
``Knowing the program works both ways,'' said Beamer. ``A few people will have something to say about things no matter what I do. But I've got good relationships with a lot of people there.''
Beamer isn't looking for any special favors. He just wants to play football. And he realizes his days as a receiver will be over after the all-star contest.
``I want to be like William Ferrell,'' said Beamer, ``and play on the return teams, the kickoff teams, go out and make some tackles.''
Ferrell, a former Blacksburg quarterback and the son of long-time Tech head trainer Eddie Ferrell, walked on at Tech in the early 1990s. He started as a holder and worked his way into a more prominent role on special teams.
Beamer already has a preferred special teams position picked out:. It's long snapper, a job he did at Blacksburg. To that end, he has added 10 pounds to his 6-foot frame, now weighing 175, and looks to add another 10.
The statistics Beamer put up during in his senior year in his receiver position - 56 catches for 660 yards and four touchdowns -attracted attention from other schools. He had a scholarship offer from Division I-AA Charleston Southern and could have been a walk-on at I-AA James Madison. In the end, it became a choice between Tech and Bridgewater, a Division III school. Proximity to family and friends made that decision an easy one.
``Brian Crist [a Tech assistant] told me to pick a school where I would be happy if I wasn't playing football,'' Beamer explained. ``If I didn't live here [Blacksburg], I would be coming to Tech anyway.''
Among the friends and family in Blacksburg are Tech linebacker and cousin Brandon Semones.
``There was a lot of pressure on him because he was recruited,'' said Beamer. ``There will be pressure on me but it won't be as much since I'm a walk-on.''
When Beamer wasn't running routes in practice for the all-star game, he could be seen on one knee, apparently sizing up his teammates.
``I'm going down to one knee to get my breath, so a lot of things are going through my mind,'' admitted Beamer, whose schedule this week has included trips to Busch Gardens, Water Country, the Virginia Air and Space Museum and other all-star games. ``But when you're on the field, you do watch things. And even when you are running your routes, you can gauge what is happening.''
by CNB