Blacksburg football is entering a transitional period, after the departure of their former coach Zack Leonard.
The Bruins have tapped a familiar face to the program as their next head coach.
Blacksburg has called upon their former strength and conditioning coach Phillip Reese as the newest head coach of Bruins football. Reese was introduced via press conference Wednesday morning.
Bruins football is in position to make a big turn around. After five seasons under the .500 mark, Blacksburg finally returned to their winning ways in the 2025 campaign, securing a playoff spot. Reese’s philosophy for getting back on top - get to the finish line.
“I think it’s about fighting adversity, overcoming challenges,” said Reese. “Football will never be easy. The progression is never linear. You’re going to have ups and downs. So, teaching the kids to be able to go through four quarters of football, playing our brand, playing at a high intensity and then finishing at the end. That is something I look to bring here. We lost a lot of close games last year. So the goal will be to finish those games and kind of flip those outcomes.”
The Bruins will have a chance to begin the Phillip Reese era off on the right note when they take on James River on September 4th.