NORFOLK — Ricky Rahne took no joy in ultimately running his old friend out of town.
Any satisfaction the Old Dominion coach took from Saturday’s 45-26 win at Virginia Tech was found in how his team performed, and not how the result affected what happened across the field.
Hokies coach Brent Pry, who served with Rahne on the staffs at Vanderbilt and Penn State, was fired Sunday after an 0-3 start to his fourth season at the school.
Rahne, who has shared family time, poker games and divergent musical interests with Pry, was empathetic. In an inherently transient profession, Rahne said he understands how the firing will alter Pry’s life.
“He’s got to move his family,” Rahne said. “His daughters have friends that they may not finish high school with now. You have to pick up, and everything changes.”
Pry, 55, had previous coaching stops at Western Carolina, Louisiana-Lafayette, Memphis and Georgia Southern. Rahne, 45, has coached at Holy Cross, Cornell and Kansas State.
Signed through 2027, Pry is owed a buyout of more than $6 million, rendering any potential crowd-funding efforts on his behalf wholly unnecessary.
The Monarchs (2-1), who have a bye this week, bolted to a 31-0 lead by early in the third quarter, sending many among the Tech faithful back to the tailgates.
ODU turns in sizzling first half to dominate Virginia Tech, send Hokies to 0-3
ODU put up 526 total yards to the Hokies’ 433, most of which came after all doubt had been removed.
Pry, by then, was a sitting duck. His 16-24 record at the school in his first head coaching job was more than athletic director Whit Babcock and Tech’s administration could overlook.
The results, school president Tim Sands said, were “not acceptable.”
Rahne, a veteran of many a sudden life change, acknowledged Pry’s lucrative buyout. But he pointed out that it comes at a seldom discussed price.
“To quote ‘Mad Men,’ that’s what the money’s for,” Rahne said. “I get that, and I understand that.
“But there are real-life human consequences to these actions. And I know everyone’s very quick to say, ‘Well, he needs to be fired. This person needs to be fired. This person needs to be fired.’ But those same people, I’d love it if they had the same accountability on their jobs.”
David Hall, david.hall@pilotonline.com.
