Written by Brice Hall
Legendary Virginia Tech football coach Frank Beamer visited RC Wednesday for an annual leadership speaker series event hosted by the Pi Lambda Phi Fraternity in conjunction with RC’s Center for Leadership and Entrepreneurial Innovation.
The Cregger Center arena was packed with students, faculty and members of the campus community. Several of the attendees that arrived early had the opportunity to meet with the coach, and Beamer greeted fans after the talk as well. We discussed his downtown Roanoke restaurant, Beamers, and his trip up here. He had a good trip and we both liked his restaurant. Once the event got started Logan Bane, the Rex (President) of Pi Lambda Phi welcomed the audience and got the process started. Soon the coach approached the podium and discussed success.
Beamer stressed the importance of maintaining one’s integrity as key to having a sense of true, meaningful success. He then told a golf anecdote in which the moral was “If you cheat in golf, you’ll cheat in life.”
He spoke about how there was no free ride in life and that one should never steal, cheat or lie. The coach then went on to mention the critical nature of effective communication. Beamer said that those who work together should always look each other in the eye, never hide from issues that could hinder the team, and should be ready and willing to quickly address problems. He then humorously related his dogma to the Tim McGraw album Humble and Kind this earned a good laugh from the listeners.
The man concluded his speech soon afterwards. Rex Bane of Pi Lambda Phi had this to say about the mythic Beamer “I was truly impressed with the man. To see someone of his caliber with all that he’s achieved remain so humble throughout his lifetime is rare and should be respected. He was on campus yesterday to visit with several of RC’s athletic teams.
