Gordon gas man relates special teams to pit duty

At first glance, a football field goal wouldn't seem to have much in common with a NASCAR pit stop. But Caleb Hurd, gas man for Jeff Gordon's No. 24 Chevrolet, would beg to differ.

A former placeholder and special teams player at Pulaski County (Va.) High School and Virginia Tech, Hurd said the teamwork and preparation are very much the same.

• Complete Coverage, click here

"You rely on each other," Hurd said. "If one guy is off, it affects everybody else. It's very much like the special teams aspect, where we're essentially sitting on the sideline for the majority of the three or four hours we're out here.

"But when it's time for us to go, we have to do our jobs well or it's going to affect the whole outcome of the race."

Going out for the high-school football team was an easy decision, Hurd said.

"I grew up in Pulaski, right next to Virginia Tech," he said. "That area of the state is just football die-hard and that's what you do. It's like a little Texas."

It didn't hurt that Hurd held the ball for Parade All-American placekicker Shayne Graham at Pulaski County. When it came time to select a college, Hurd decided on Virginia Tech, for its engineering program.

It turned out that Graham was recruited by Tech -- and football coach Frank Beamer and his staff decided to ask Hurd if he'd consider continuing to hold field goals and extra points.

"I've always been a Hokies football guy growing up," Hurd said. "I went there to be a mechanical engineer and they asked me to walk on, since I was already at Tech.

"Of course, when I got to the team, they tried to put some weight on me and put me around other positions. I did some special teams. I got to play all four years, so it was a lot of fun."

One of Hurd's biggest moments at Tech came in 1999, when Graham connected on a last-play field goal to beat West Virginia and keep the Hokies in the title chase.

Hurd said his focus was never on the action around him, but on the task at hand. (Continued)