On Friday, Mike Young and Hokies men’s basketball announced staff changes after their 13-19 campaign.
Assistant coach Christian Webster, who spent nine seasons with the Virginia Tech program and was originally hired by Buzz Williams in 2016, was let go. Recruiting coordinator Blake Wetherington, who Young added last offseason from Arkansas, also departs.
“We are grateful for Christian and Blake’s dedication and hard work during their time in Blacksburg,” Young said in Tech’s release. “Christian has been a valuable part of our program for nearly a decade, and Blake made an impact in his time with us. Both have bright futures ahead, and we wish them nothing but the best.
“As we move forward, we are evaluating every aspect of our program to position Virginia Tech men’s basketball for long-term success. These changes reflect our commitment to that vision and present new opportunities for us to evolve with the current landscape of college athletics.”
Webster started his coaching career at Harvard, his alma mater, where he’s the winningest player in school history with 90 victories — including three straight Ivy League titles and back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. He was on Tommy Amaker’s staff for two seasons, where he mentored seven all-conference picks, including 2014 Ivy League Player of the Year Wesley Saunders.
After spending a year at UCF, the Washington, D.C., native was hired in Blacksburg in July 2016 as the third assistant on the Hokies’ staff ahead of Year 3 under Williams. Tech returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in a decade in 2017 and made it the following two years, culminating in a trip to the Sweet 16 in 2019. Webster helped the program go 69-32 over that three-year span.
When Young took over in 2019 after Williams’ departure, he retained Webster — one of two holdovers along with Ryan Nadeau, who is now an assistant coach at Old Dominion. As Young’s coaching staff has evolved over time, from two NCAA Tournament bids to an ACC Tournament title in Brooklyn, Webster was the lone constant. In all, the Hokies were 174-117 during his nine-year stretch as an assistant.
It’s a crossroads of sorts for Young and Virginia Tech, which, at 13-19 (8-12 ACC), experienced its worst season since it was 11-22 (2-16) in Williams’ first year. NIL is the focal point of everything now, and sources confirmed to Tech Sideline in February that the Hokies will have better financial support for this upcoming season. However, this shakeup is an opportunity for Young to improve his staff and position the Hokies to be as competitive as possible in the current environment — particularly transfer portal-oriented.
A list of Virginia Tech men’s basketball assistant coaches under Mike Young:
Chester Frazier: 2019-2021
Antwon Jackson: 2019-20
Christian Webster: 2019-25
Kevin Giltner: 2020-Present
Mike Jones: 2021-23
J.D. Byers: 2023-Present
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