J.C. Price, the interim head coach at Virginia Tech, will lead the Hokies into Yankee Stadium on Dec. 29 when they face Maryland in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl.
Price also played at Virginia Tech from 1991-95 and understands the history of the school better than most, so he said it will mean a lot for his team to be in The Bronx for the bowl game, given the association between the school and the Yankees.
After the shooting on the Blacksburg, Va., campus on April 16, 2007, the Yankees donated more than $1 million to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund.
That May, the Yankees invited the Virginia Tech Police and Rescue Squad to the Stadium and Charles Steger, then Virginia Tech’s president, threw out the first pitch for a game against the Red Sox.
The following March, the Yankees left Tampa during spring training to play a seven-inning exhibition against the Hokies at English Field on the Virginia Tech campus. The game was intended to honor the victims and aid in the healing process.
“The way the Yankee organization stepped up and embraced the Virginia Tech community after the tragic events of ’07, we have a special place in our heart for the Yankees,” Price said during a Zoom call on Tuesday. “And it’s going to be really exciting to be up there this time of year.’’
Yankees president Randy Levine recalled that trip to Blacksburg, which featured Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Jason Giambi, among others, in an 11-0 Yankees win.
“We spoke, meaning us and all the players, and our staff with students, and it was beautiful, and then it was a ballgame,” Levine said. “Everybody just enjoyed the ballgame. … Our players loved it. They felt good about it. They hated why they were there because it was a horrible tragedy, but they just felt that they could provide some comfort to all the hurting folks at Virginia Tech.”
Virginia Tech (6-6) will represent the ACC, while Maryland (6-6) will represent the Big 10 in the Pinstripe Bowl.