Joey Racer has played just 38 minutes in his career, yet he is one of the team's fan-favorites
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Joey Racer walks into the room, expecting to interview with a stranger.
Instead of a stranger — upon entering the sports information office — he meets eyes with someone he’s met before, to which he smiles and extends his hand.
He is a walk-on for the Hokies basketball team, but frequently hears his name chanted by the Cassell Guard at the end of blowouts.
There’s a meeting going on in the Bowman Room, where players normally do these types of interviews. But Cassell Coliseum is empty.
Joey and I then make our way down a back hallway, toward an empty arena. We make small talk. “What have you been up to?” “How’s your semester going?” The type of things you say to a friend of a friend you only know on a casual basis.
When we sit down, right in the middle of where the student section resides, I tell Joey, “The students love you, but no one seems to know exactly why.”
—
Joey Racer came to Virginia Tech in the fall of 2008. He hails from Berryville; a small town in Northern Virginia, on the West Virginia border. He played for a small high school, one that competed in the single-A athletic division, and never imagined at that time that he’d end up playing varsity basketball in Blacksburg.
“Being from a single-A school, it’s really, really tough to get recruited,” he said. “And I think I realized that that wasn’t going to happen, so I just focused on playing, having fun and going to a good school.”
While he was busy having fun, Racer helped lead his Clarke County High School team to a state championship in 2007, averaging 16 points and four rebounds a game.
“He was a quality player that could shoot the ball, finish the ball,” said Brent Emmart, who’s still the coach at Clarke County. “He was a good defender, very smart. He was very team-oriented. He was never really an individualized person.
“He really helped out (in 2007) along the way by doing everything. Stat sheet stuff, grabbed rebounds, got steals. Kind of did it all, he took charges. He was a blue-collar player.”
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A version of this article appeared in the Mar 1 issue of the Collegiate Times.
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Thank you for writing such a heart warming article about Joey.
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Amazing story about an amazing young man! and family
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This is by far one of the best articles I have seen in a very long time.
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This is an awesome article. I never knew the family personally, but I'm so glad I got to see them play when I was a middle schooler at Johnson-Williams Middle School. AND I was at the game where Joey first dunked it! That was awesome!
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This article is excellent! I am lucky enough to know the family and call joey a great friend despite only speaking when I can make it to games or seeing him in Berryville over break and its always a great time getting to catch up. Once again what a great article!!!
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AWESOME READ.GREAT PERSON,STUDENT.AND ATHLETE.I GREW UP ON THE SAME STREET AS HIS DAD AN I KNOW HE'S WATCHING WITH A BIG SMILE ON HIS FACE.
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Articles like these are the ones that made me want to become a writer. Amazing, respectful and moving article, Zach.
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Best story I've seen in the CT in years.
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So great to read about a wonderful athlete and know his story is 100% true. Joey and his family are an inspiration to all who know them. I know Jimmy is smiling and nodding!
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Fantastic article. One of the best I've ever seen in the CT. Great job, Zach.
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Used to play against him when i went to tech. Very energetic guy who people gravitated toward. Don't know him personally, but very cool that he got this opportunity.
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Great Article!!! Good Luck Joey!!
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I had the pleasure to coach Joey when he played youth league football. It was a blessing for me to have the opportunity to get to know them. From the first day the family treated me and my family with the upmost respect. They are some of the best people you will ever meet. I told Joey when he was ten years old as he corrected me in the huddle as I tried to call plays, "son your special, your going to be a great leader one day" we'll Joey I was right you are a great leader and great young man. The Green family loves you and will continue to watch you grow to be a successful .
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Zach, You captured the very essence of Joey, his family, love and loss, and you did it with great style, dignity and talent. I hope you have the opportunity to succeed in jouralism as you have a special skill that can capture emotion with words!
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Sounds like Joey is a very special young man! This is a great article Zach and I am very proud of you! I know your dad would be so very proud too! Love ya!
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