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Unless you've had your head lodged under Lane Stadium for the past week or so, then you're aware that Tech's defensive coordinator Bud Foster appears to be the top choice to take the same position at the University of Florida. Unofficial reports (i.e. message board rumors) say that Bud will be interviewing at Florida this coming weekend.

If Bud does wind up getting an offer from Steve Spurrier and company, then he has a difficult decision to make. I would think that it's rare for a coaching offer to have so many pluses and minuses to it. What it boils down to is that Bud would be offered more money and would have a better chance to advance to a head coaching position, but he would be leaving a school and a head coach that have been loyal to him, plus a defense that he architected, coaches, and is proud of.

Let's break it down to the factors Bud has to consider:

Salary. Foster currently makes about $106,000 working for Virginia Tech, and I think he received one or two months' bonus salary this year for going to and winning a bowl. So he may have made close to $125,000 this year.

He would be offered a package at Florida that would be valued anywhere from $135,000 to $175,000, including extras and incentives. When you factor in the cost of living increase in Gainesville, it might be pretty much a wash, but money-wise, I would have to think that the Florida job would be an improvement.

Advantage: Florida.

Loyalty. We're talking about two kinds of loyalty here. Number one, the loyalty that the school and the head coach will have towards Bud, and number two, the loyalty Bud will show towards his head coach.

No contest here. Bud, who is in his mid/late 30's, has played for or coached for Frank Beamer since he was 18 years old (Bud, not Frank!), back in the 70's. If Bud was to go to Florida, loyalty would not be an issue, because it wouldn't exist in either direction between Bud and Spurrier.

Here at Tech, not only are the Hokies loyal to Bud, but I would think that Bud is very loyal to Frank Beamer. Beamer gave Bud every opportunity he has ever had, and as the old saying goes, everything Bud is today, he owes to Beamer. Granted, loyalty has its limits, and ultimately, if he wants to be a head coach, Bud will have to set loyalty aside and move on. I doubt that time is just yet, though.

Advantage: Tech.

Opportunity for Advancement. Tech is no slouch, but we have to be honest that the Florida job is a much higher profile position and offers better opportunity for advancement. Heck, the only reason UF is looking for a coordinator is that their old one left to take a head coaching position.

Emails and message board posts tell me that Bud wants to be a head coach some day, and UF offers a better chance of that happening than Tech does. But I have also been told that Bud himself may feel that he needs a few more seasons under his belt before he'll be ready to take a head coaching position. The question is, will he get those seasons at Florida or Virginia Tech?

The possible silver lining for Tech here is that no one knows how much longer Frank Beamer will coach. If he wants to coach until he's 75, then Bud won't see the head coaching job at Tech any time soon. But what if Frank only wants to coach another five years? At the end of those five years, Bud might be the man to replace him.

Advantage: Florida, but if Tech can dangle a future head coaching job in front of Bud, UF's edge shrinks, and may even disappear.

Working Environment. The environment at Florida would be better in some ways, and worse in others. First of all, Florida has better facilities and a larger fan base. They play in the mighty SEC, and in any given year, every year, they have a chance to compete for the national championship. And they've got some great players.

At Tech, the non-stadium facilities are pretty good, too, but probably not as nice as Florida's. The fan base is smaller, but it's a fan base that already knows, appreciates, and likes Bud, and never criticizes him. When this year's offense struggled, Rickey Bustle was roundly criticized, but when last year's (1997) defense struggled, the players took the heat, not Bud.

Tech plays in the Big East, which isn't the SEC, but it's not too shabby. And Tech's got some great players on defense, just like Florida.

Where this battle is won is when you consider the relationship between Bud and his head coach, be it Frank Beamer or Steve Spurrier. Spurrier can be hard to work with and for, as evidenced when he snapped at and glared at an assistant on national TV during the Orange Bowl. Steve wants to win first, and everything else is secondary. Beamer, on the other hand, considers his assistant coaches to be his friends, and there's always the loyalty issue that was discussed above.

Advantage: Tech, but only by a slight margin.

Family and Living Environment. Again, this is a contest that Tech wins easily. Not to criticize Gainesville, mind you, but Bud and his family have been in Blacksburg for a while now, and I've got to think that moving the brood down to Gainesville, and taking them away from the friends and the environment they've come to know, would be very disruptive and upsetting.

It's a rare opportunity for a coach to get to spend a long time in one place, and at Tech, Bud has that opportunity. Perhaps he wants to relish it for a few more years before moving on.

Advantage: Tech. No father wants to pick up his family and move them, particularly not from a small town to a big city.

Intangibles. I give Tech the edge here as well, because Bud is comfortable here, is well-liked, and humans are resistant to change. All else being equal, we would rather just keep things the way they are and avoid the stress.

When it comes to player personnel, Florida has a ton of great players, year in and year out, but Tech is doing just fine in that department, as well. Bud has everything he needs to run his defense properly right here in Blacksburg. Bud has implemented and fine-tuned this defense to the point where he is its "proud papa," and every papa wants to see their child grow and flourish.

As for competing for the Mythical National Championship (MNC), they certainly have the opportunity to do that, on almost a yearly basis. Virginia Tech can't match that.

But the buzz around Hokie circles is that the coaches feel that in the next few years, Tech can compete for the MNC. They feel that with coaching continuity and the current stable of recruits, including future QB Michael Vick, that the Hokies have the talent to make a move for the national championship. All it will take is a little luck, and some generous poll rankings, and Tech could be right there in the hunt.

So, while we're not regular MNC contenders like Florida, the Hokies are on the verge of having that capability, especially when you consider that we operate out of the Big East, a conference we can win without having to knock off, say, Florida State (ACC), Ohio State (Big Ten), or any number of powerful SEC teams.

So, the intangibles are close, but I think you have to give the slight edge to Tech here.

Advantage: Tech.

The Conclusion: Foster Will Stay ... Probably

If you were keeping track, then you know that the score would up 4-2 in favor of Tech. So if Bud sees things the way I do, and scores things the way I do, he'll stay at Tech for at least a few more years.

More important than what I think, though, are the reports and opinions of insiders and those who purport to either know Bud, or to have spoken to him about the matter.

Inside sources indicate that Bud will not leave. Not one person has emailed me or posted on the message board something to the effect of, "Bud is really hot for the Florida job and can't wait to interview." Instead, the emails and board posts all tend towards emphatic proclamations like, "Bud is staying." Even the Bud Foster quotes that have appeared in the paper almost make is sound like a done deal that he's not going anywhere.

When Frank Beamer was flirting with Clemson and South Carolina, I wrote an article that said, "Possible, but not likely." And where Bud Foster is concerned, I reiterate that opinion. It's possible he'll leave, but I don't see it happening.

If Bud Foster leaves Tech for Florida, I'll be shocked and a little panicky. I'll also be looking for reports of a $200k+ salary, because if Bud leaves for less than that, I'm not so sure it's a good move.

There are just too many good reasons for Bud to stay at Tech, so I think he'll do just that - stay.