Reading this article shed some light on those dynamics at Va Tech and how the landscape in the ACC and that geography evolved over his career in Blacksburg. His assistant coaches & recruiting budgets were near AAC level (not ACC), and those peer schools in the geographic area (UNC, NC State, Virginia) really stepped up their game from an investment standpoint; whereas Virginia Tech did not. I'm not suggesting this was the root cause of the downturn, but it had to be a factor. Additionally, the VT class is currently ranked 4th in ACC and 22nd in the country at the time of JF firing.
Net of it all, recruiting in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana should offer prime real estate to bring studs to Denton!