Discuss and share any recruiting topics for January 2022 that don't warrant their own threads. Commits and Decommits warrant their own threads.
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[1] New commitments, decommitments, portal entries, etc... deserve their own thread. Please read the brief best-practice tips at the top of the recruiting forum
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Okay, so we completely missed this last month. Johnny Dickson throwing a TD:
The Johnny Dixon TD Throw pic.twitter.com/m4SDO2LuZ0โ Trevor Bullard (@TrevorBullard2) January 4, 2022
Mods please add the usual mumbo jumbo
[done, feel free to also just add it yourself from the previous month's thread lol - ggc]
Comments
CBP Crootin time!
I haven't heard much smoke on any specific highly desired new croots for the Feb window, but there is still a lot of time between now and Feb 2nd.
At the moment, it appears our primary focus will be making sure we get Daequan Wright and Xavier Chaplin, who decided to wait until the Feb NSD, to sign with the Hokies. Both have set up their official visits this month. Chaplin has set up a few OV's (including VT of course), and as far as I know, Daequan Wright's only schedule OV is for VT at the moment.
Looks like we are Trending for Grant Wells
https://247sports.com/college/virginia-tech/Article/Virginia-Tech-trendi...
I'd be all on board with grant wells. He's this kind of player:
A basketball player? But we need a QB.
Worked for FSU 30 years ago.
Good grief I feel old...
INT numbers are a bit concerning, but anything is better than Blumrick while Bullock or Farrell get to the point of being ready
Looking at the game logs, the interceptions don't worry me as much.
I'm just excited to (potentially) have a QB who can execute a real passing offense. I can live with some picks if it means I have any level of hope when we are forced to utilize a drop back passing game.
Oh, no doubt. Watching some highlights it'd be great to have a QB whose throws don't make me hold my breath to see if they'll even reach their target.
https://www.espn.com/college-football/player/stats/_/id/4244769/devonni-...
Keep a eye on Tay'Shawn Trent. WR from Michigan. Is a composite top 500 recruit
Any thoughts on who we land as our WR coach? Is the Cincy WR coach in play for us? Thanks
I'm 75% sure its gonna be Mike Brown.
Well take it down to 0% now
Whattttttt Damb
Pain.
https://247sports.com/player/tayshawn-trent-46101781/
All crystal balls for him are months old, some close to a year. He's class of 2022 so would sign in a few weeks
Recent article, sounds like Stu Holt is leading the charge:
JGW showing off the new recruiting philosophy on Twitter. I really just like the graphic and message.
Be still my heart. We have a recruiting plan that makes perfect sense.
So "Talent > VT" is the plan?
VA Talent > VT***
Are there any decent players in Vermont?
Asking for silly reasons only (VT->VT)
When I win this HGTV dream home in Vermont I'll let the staff use it as a homebase for recruiting the obviously talent rich deep northeast.
I'll never forget when Gouv had that Pick 6 in the 2010 ACC title game against EJ Manuel. That was an awesome night in Charlotte.
DB Eric Csala from IMG commits to VT as a PWO. Unranked on 247 composite
https://twitter.com/eric_csala/status/1479904127329181700?t=Sgsk-8Ws9vBw...
https://247sports.com/player/eric-csala-46129381/
I hope he can contribute, but taking people from IMG is good for recruiting, especially if it does not cost a scholarship. Nothing on the 247 link to say if he has potential or not.
PWO?
I don't even see a 247 page for him, so I would guess so.
247 Profile
Hudl Profile
You're a better sleuth than I.
Not much on the 247, but Hudl had some nice clips. Not sure what level competition, but he scores a lot of TDs. Pretty much run deep and we'll lob it up, but he does a nice job of going up and getting it. Outran the defense, adjusted well to the ball in the air. Looks like he also played defense from the pick 6 on the highlights. 6'2", bench over 300 in HS, fastest guy on the field. Be interesting to see what he can do at the D1 level.
I have to imagine the first thing the coaches do is beat that goofy spin move out of him he does in the first two clips of his hudl highlights.
It's not just the first 2 clips ๐คฃ
The other receivers do it, too, which makes me believe they were coached to do that.
Damn, boys. CBP definitely doing some crootin' on a whole different level. /s
what is the guy's name?
It's just "the guy"
Who? The new guy?
Some call him "the dude".
I would expect us to go after Alabama TE Jahleel Billingsley in the portal, already has a relationship with Bowen:
https://247sports.com/Player/Jahleel-Billingsley-46047691/high-school-20...
In terms of other Bama players in the portal, 5* OLB Drew Sanders (HS Class of 2020) is probably worth a look.
UGA CB Ameer Speed is in the portal as well, took an official at VT when he was in HS and was recruited to go Duke by Cheetah.
Speed was a signing day decision for UGA if i recall, down to us and them
Drew Sanders is more than worth a look. He would start for us immediately at Will or Sam probably. He was more of a true SAM in Bama's system, while their usage of OLB's now is more double Jack LB's than using a true SAM.
Drew took over the starting role for Bama this year opposite Will Anderson after starter Chris Allen went down. Sanders was good in coverage and solid against the run, but wasn't the true edge rusher that they prefer at the position, at least not yet. True freshman 3rd stringer Dallas Turner took over after Sanders suffered a hand injury and was pretty damn elite as a pass rusher, finishing with 10 TFL's and 8.5 sacks while only starting the last half-ish of the season. Drew Sanders is in the portal because Dallas Turner is unlikely to give that job back. He might be a better fit in a defense like ours, but I would guess without inside info that he might give a long look at OU and playing for a Venables defense if he wanted to change up styles. He was originally committed to OU before flipping to Bama.
Ameer Speed is definitely an interesting one. He clearly liked VT because we made it to the final stretch for him in his recruitment out of HS. It's good news to read he also has a relationship with Cheetah.
Billingsley would be an awesome weapon for us if we can get him to play with the right kind of effort and consistency. Had reported maturity and effort issues at Bama. He had a lot of half-assed routes/blocks and was pretty bad in the national championship game Monday night. Bama fans aren't sad to see him go from what I've seen, because what was supposed to be a huge year for him and trip to the NFL, turned into a very disappointing season riddled with being in the doghouse and failure to make plays consistently on the field.
lmao ~95% of the players that go into the portal from bama are worth a look for us
95%
That low? Lol.
With the state of the roster/talent pool, if I were Pry, I'm at least putting out feelers to find out what I can on everyone coming out of Bama and UGA.
I played golf with one of the local head football coaches for a high school in Central Virginia recently and asked him if there was any good up and coming talent in the region. He told me Amaje Parker could be the real deal, especially if he continues to grow. He said the kid has a great head on his shoulders and it doesn't hurt that he can flick the ball 60 yards. He is only a Sophomore but maybe one to keep an eye on.
https://www.hudl.com/profile/14235921/Amaje-Parker
His release is pretty quick and has nice arm/touch for a Soph. We had a pretty good left handed QB from VA, be nice to have another.
Yea, that quick, flick-of-the-wrist, left-handed throw has some familiarity to it. Decent running ability too for scrambling or occasional designed run but passing looks to be his main strength.
Coached against him this year and he's a gifted athlete with a P5 skillset, very much a great kid. Not looking forward to having to see him two more years. Also plays basketball. The size will be the determining factor of whether or not he gets those big boys offers or ends up in the CAA. He's got a teammate that is pretty good in the same class, played WR/RB/S. Noah Grevious '24 ATH
Louisa County (Brandon Smith, Kerry Wynn) has a legit DT in the '23 class that is on the radar of VT, UVA, UNC, UMD, ECU and offered by ODU and Buffalo. Qwenton Spellmen '23
oh man, I hope we get a player with the name Grevious so I can do some bad photoshop mashup of him catching 8 footballs with General Grevious arms.
Hello there
I will add that there's staff members who have relationships in Texas including Cheetah and now X. I don't think it's completely over by any stretch, but it's no longer a priority.
Our footprint is now a priority, and I'm so grateful for it.
Looks like the new staff is making a full court press to keep Daequan Wright in the fold.
I love seeing all that maroon on those coaches.
We dont know what we dont know yet, but the effort is there......
Bowen is massive!
Reminds me an awful lot of someone from Home Improvement.
Why couldn't it be Heidi?
Nah bro. Pamela.
Let's just say you couldn't go wrong, either way.
#teamheidi
They've had some seriously good recruiting images up today.
Couple more
At this point, it definitely comes across as an intentional dig at Fuente
I doubt it is intended to be a direct dig at Fuente but rather an intentional message of change of focus. Happens to be a dig at Fuente, just not expressly for that purpose.
At this point, any competent action by the new regime can be seen as a dig at Fuente
The graphic is nice and all but the forearms on Coach Mines?
Must be for the downfield blocking. And for pulling in the contested balls.
I saw Derek Jones touched down in the 757 last night on his twitter!
All the "VA2VT" graphics has the feel of the holdover recruiting staff (guys like Lino) flipping the double bird to Fuente.
Even if it is just good (and the right) messaging, it has an air of pettiness and I AM HERE FOR IT.
The "This is Home" tag-line is a little stale, no? IDK, seems like a hold over from the last regime. I prefer to start with a new message, a new approach for the croots to hear. Might just be me.
Its a holdover, but the graphic within the state outline and the VT on Blacksburg, that is new, and kind of repurposes it as a not so subtle dig at the more national recruiting efforts we undertook with Fuente
This is home is VT as a whole, not just football. It started before Fu also didn't it? I don't know, my memory is bad.
I thought CJF started it all, or his regime did. I could be wrong though.
I haven't seen any sort of direct announcement or anything but it feels like "This Is Home" became the replacement to "Invent The Future" . Broader that just football/athletics. ๐คทโโ๏ธ
If I'm wrong and it's a broader message, then I stand corrected.
Shots Fired from Lino:
I think this just might be one of the team's sayings. I remember last year seeing some players tweet this sentence. Might just be a rallying cry.
Agreed, I think I've seen pretty much the same phrasing used before.
Not TKP'ing hard enough
I stand corrected, maybe the aches and pains of the last 5 seasons under CJF caused me to check out more than I realized.
Not sure I'm getting the shots fired at Fuente feel - I mean, what good does that do anyone, and why would the new coaches, who, other than Price, weren't even here when Fuente was, feel they need to take Petty shots at Fuente? I think that's in our minds, and they may just be using previous language and hashtags (VA2VT), not as a dig, but to show local kids we want them and Tech isn't going to ignore them to go find kids in NC or TX.
Regardless of WHY they're doing it, I am absolutely loving seeing this come from all the coaches' Twitter feeds! Even Villagrana is jumping in. Clearly the new staff gets the importance of social Media.
I tend to agree with you. It's just business. The #TX2VT was pretty well known and so this is just a smart decision to show the course correct by using #VA2VT.
Elijah Klock - 247 Profile. Looks to be a PWO
6'1, 300 lbs, that's a big boy...also he's from Cali...did we launch a dart past the Mississippi? Has coach Pry already lost control?
Unless there is a missing /s - in the presser, he said unless there was another connection to Tech, and not sure if Klock was originally from VA, but says he grew up watching Tech football, so would guess so. That's the type of exception Pry was talking about, so no, don't think he's losing control.
I thought the /s was very easily seen there....
Fair enough. I'm tired, so sarcasm gets more easily lost in the mix. Considering some people still seem to have criticisms, wasn't sure if this was that.
Yep, just sarcastic.
Gotcha - clearly I need more sleep ๐
Parents are both Hokies.
Edit: here is the video....
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://m.youtube.c...
Tagged Rudolph, probably gonna be OL right
Seriously how tall is Bowen?
edited to remove a tweet that was already embedded
1) Drink
2) His recruiting profile said 6'7.
3) Also since he was already called out more than once, someone get PP some extra tall shoes and some lifts so he doesn't have to tip toe
But how big are his hands? ;^)
That man won't need to sit in the booth to see the whole field, that's for sure.
Welcome to Hokie Nation
Not sure that it's worth embedding, but Coach Cheetah tweeted out pics of a couple places in the 757 that he was in.
https://twitter.com/CoachdjCheetah/status/1482103877822472197 - Kecoughtan HS
https://twitter.com/CoachdjCheetah/status/1482100473733828608 - Phoebus HS
https://twitter.com/CoachBlunt10/status/1482102793674661889 - "Thank you Coach Derek Jones, it truly was a pleasure to have V. Tech back in the building....it has been too long. Thank you again for stopping by!!!" - Coach Blunt at Phoebus
https://twitter.com/CoachdjCheetah/status/1482118847692001286 - Coach Cheetah following the get to know everybody philosophy, with the principal of Kecoughtan .
The best part is that he's thanking the HS coaches for their time and hospitality - that's building relationships right!!! So glad to have him on the recruiting trail for us!
Such great stuff from him!
Ouch. But at least our guys are out there again. Looks like they're doing great.
I found the floor color in that picture more alarming than the caption
That's where I went to school. There's a lot of green everywhere. The Dominos I run is 5 minutes from there. Would have loved to make him a pie.
Cheetah is on the prowl! Love it. I think he and Mines could do some damage in the 757 and 804.
Literally day 1 of an entire upcoming week recruiting in VA, coach Mines hasn't even been able to hit the road yet, and some coaches complaining. You just can't make up the drama that is the 757 sometimes. At least JC Coleman replied and went to bat for us.
I'm glad I'm not the only one to see this and just roll my eyes. But the 757 ego on coaches is next level and isn't getting any better despite the drop in number of top tier talent that area has been putting out it's just gotten worse with social media and ego stroking by some programs to offer kids that didn't deserve and offer.
The latest TSL podcast is a great listen regarding these recruiting issues. I'm sure we will certainly recruit the 757 and schools that are really interested, but Pry and Franklin didn't really recruit much down there at PSU. They cleaned house in the DMV and 804. Interesting to see how the dynamic plays out here.
While it's pretty apparent that the overall level of talent in the 757 has dropped, we absolutely have to maintain relationships. We can't let UNC come in and get more Tony Grimes level prospects.
The talk from the coaching staff that they want to visit every program in the state isn't just talk either - the schools Coach Jones visited (that he posted on Twitter at least) are Kecoughtan and Phoebus. Neither one of those schools has produced many FBS players in recent years, so it's not clear we're not star hunting right now. If anything, I feel like 757 coaches will appreciate that approach in the long run.
The craziest thing is the talent in the peninsula that has dropped off. You think about all the Hokie greats that have come from there over the years, including the Vicks, Bryan Randall, Tyrod, etc. I definitely think we should and will work to rebuild relationships down there for sure. Eventually I think what our staff is building will pay dividends, and there's already trouble in paradise with UNC. Eventually people will catch on that they've been sold a bill of goods and aren't getting developed down there. Not much legit coaching going on down there, but a lot of ego stroking.
UNC coming in isn't new. Much of that area is actually closer drive time to UNC and they have taken alot of talent out of there over the last 3 decades.
Someone familiar with the 757 explain to me what happened to Phoebus, please. They used to be a contender and talent producer didn't they?
The main problem was when Phoebus got designated as a 3A school. There isn't any glamour in winning at the 3A level. Woodside (6A) and Hampton (4A) became a more attractive option to kids....
And yet Phoebus whips up on both of those programs on a regular basis! Since Coach Blunt became the head coach at Phoebus in 2013 they have lost 2 to Hampton and 1 to Woodside. 97-18 overall record in that time!
I agree that Phoebus is still the class of the peninsula. There isn't a great team on the peninsula but Phoebus is the best.... I thought Bethel may take over but they fell off a cliff.
You are right! Not sure what caused the downfall of some of those former high profile programs!
Bethel is always 3rd fiddle to both Phoebus and Hampton, not just in their district but in their city.
It was painful when I was in school having to play against both Tahj Boyd and Tyrod Taylor on a yearly basis...
I truly don't envy the coaches that have to recruit Oscar Smith and some of these 757 schools. As far as I'm concerned, in-state recruiting relationships are a two way street. We have a coach in the 757 for ONE day, and we have this assistant coach, their head coach, and several others joining in this same type of sentiment acting like VT owes them something. Not to mention, Oscar Smith isn't even Coach Jones responsibility and is instead the new receivers coach that just started this week. Nothing but drama
I mean seriously, im glad this coach thinks so highly of his school but given the lack of talent that's come out of there lately makes this statement of dedicating the entire staff to recruiting Oscar Smith insane.
This guy isn't new is he? He knows college coaches have recruiting windows? If he's not new, he must think they should have been the number 1 spot that ALL our coaches should have shown up to?
Ugh, I absolutely hate having to stroke egos. I don't envy our coaches with this one.
Looked like coach cheetah gave him some good professional responses on Twitter. A little diplomatic cool your jets. Definitely an ego involved, so Mines will have his hands full with that one, but his experience in VA means he probably knows already
This is a perfect example of giving someone a little power and authority and having it go to their head.
Isn't this the same Coach Scott whose son was a long snapper here?
I agree with everyone else here -- the fact that the Oscar Smith coaches think they're such hot stuff that VT has to send the entire staff over is actually very disrespectful to the rest of the high school programs in the state.
The only way this is acceptable is if Oscar Smith was a factory churning out like 5-10 P5 players per year and have an established pipeline to VT.
Using a sales analogy -- it'd be like maintaining your biggest account. Otherwise, keep tabs and continue to pursue other leads.
Yeaaahh OS football coaches have always been loud. They have talent we all know but they act like they're the only school in 757 that has players.
I read through more of the OS coaches tweets and from that alone I wouldn't give them the time of day. Props to the shit our coaches have to deal with its fucking 24hrs into the period.
One of the OS coaches posted about the first coach coming through was Hugh Freeze... blech.
I saw a post on there about one of the kids getting an offer from Liberty, so figured they'd already been there. I guess getting smoke blown up your ass will make you feel good about yourself. But having the smoke coming from Liberty is kinda like being told you're super sexy, but it's the elephant woman whispering it in your ear.
One of those loud guys is Eli Harold -- former blue chip recruit, UVA star, and NFL player.
If Coach Mines can turn that guy around, that would be amazing!
Yeah he was a great player that never beat VT. These Wahoo players hate VT.
Honestly I wouldn't be able to do it. His Twitter feed is trash and I hope our guys can work around the arrogance.
You and me both. I think Oscar Smith exists to sit on VT. They probably ask thoughts on VT in their interviews.
I am sure Cheetah will be there once Mines identifies a DB to recruit. But every coach can't go every where
And people wonder why college recruiting is often labeled as a toxic mess. It's people like this coach that gives the entire process the reputation it has.
It's day 1 with a coach who was just hired and hadn't left campus yet and this guy is publicly shaming everyone involved because his own ass hasn't been kissed and his own ego hasn't been stroked. What an asshole.
High school position coaches with Twitter accounts is a dangerous combination.
At the very least, Coach Scott (who's the head coach) at least had a decent back and forth with Coach Jones. And thank goodness for JC Coleman standing up for the good guys, he's a real one.
But has since been retweeting all the bullshit his assistant coaches have been tweeting. It's always hard to tell through text what someone's tone was but seeing his feed tells me that even the "can't wait to meet him" comment was sarcastic
LOVE LOVE LOVE JC Coleman. Thank you for setting them straight. Ridiculous that this has to be explained to these coaches.
FWIW, the tweet is now deleted. I guess he realized he was being a bit of a primadonna after all of the replies?
Or someone up the food chain told him this is not how you get more kickbacks.
Maybe my age is showing, but what does this mean? I don't understand the P emoji.
Right there with you.
Honestly, I was more confused by the "aka Craft land" part...
I am assuming he's not referring to microbreweries...
Recruiting really is a difficult world, trying to restore some relationships only to have some semi-decipherable Twitter Drama thrown your way...
I'm 28 and had to look it up. If it is P is its good if it isn't P it's bad. Something a musician very recently made up
I'm assuming Master P
Lol no
It appears in this case it means "respectful" or something very similar. There are several "urban dictionary" definitions, but this one appears to be it.
This staff has said they plan on repairing in state relationships and taking the state back recruiting wise. Not going to be easy as there are "damaged" relationships. I don't know this coach and have no idea his intentions of this tweet. Maybe he really wants VT back in the room and his feelings were hurt by the previous staff. Maybe he's just not a VT fan. But I would think he wants what's best for his players, and another D1 Power 5 school recruiting his kids definitely benefits his players. Here's to hoping this staff doesn't give up at the first sign of adversity like the last staff did.
Oscar Smith has always been a hassle, even Beamer had issues there.
Smith is worth the hassle imo. They are one of the most talent-rich programs in the 757 as I understand it.
I was looking at 247 and they really don't have a lot. This year they had a VA top 10 that went to Clemson, last year #18 that went to Indiana, both safeties.
2020 no one in top 30
2019 Cam Kelly sort of committed to VT kinda.
2018 was Artis, so our bad relation didn't hurt
2017 no P5 signees or top 30 VA players
2016 no P5 signees or top 30 VA players
It's hard to say that missing on 3 safeties in 7 years and only had two 3-star and two 4-star players is a huge talent rich school.
Green Run, Landstown, and Ocean Lakes have been producing to that level of the same time.
I think the big worry would be for coaches to get jobs at schools that have more talent than losing out on less than a handful of players.
No doubt we need to be sure to have good relationships with lots of schools in the 757, because you also never know when a school who hasn't produced a ton of talent recently suddenly has a game-changer type dude, or multiple guys you want in a future class. I didn't mean it in terms of we should only focus on Oscar Smith at the expense of other programs.
oh no, I didn't think you meant that, it was more of an Oscar Smith isn't what it once was, it really showed looking at 247 how bad the 757 is with talent compared to 10 years ago, not just Oscar Smith.. Back when Beamer had his issues with them it was a lot more impact full to the program than now.
My main point is they are a talent factor, I'm not going to lose sleep over their feelings towards VT as long as other 757 schools are happy.
Looks like 'The Set' is eating a little crow today
Like I said, I expected this situation to play itself out and be fine. The drama will rear its head hear and there, but I trust Mines and Cheetah to handle these situations much better than in recent years.
Coach Pry looks tiny next to those dudes
For real. Couple of 6'4-6'5 type dudes flanking him lol.
This is the Eli Harold who played at UVA?
Yea and he's only 27, so it's not like he's been out of hooville very long either.
And I hope it left a mark to see Mines walk in wearing a VT.
Do we have a junior day list anywhere looks like we are grouping kids into an Elite and prospect based on the invites?
Not sure about an official list
Brayden Walker and Kahari Finley will also be on campus
I'm not surprised, but I can't say I had "757 drama on the first day the dead period lifts" on my VT recruiting bingo card....
I think it'll all work itself out. Coach Jones is off to a great start recruiting there, and once Mines is ready to rock I think those two will do a great job in the area. Got some wounds to fix, but this is a new era for VT.
It's going to be tough but I'm hoping we can mend some bridges. The problem certain schools down there view the 757 as just a different breed or something. Even though if you look at VA recruiting the last decade or so, and although there are still some highly ranked prospects coming from there, the numbers are dwindling and the ones who actually become successful P5 players are decreasing as well. I just think it's crazy to act like there's something in the water down there. There is talent all over in VA, and including the 757. But the DMV and 804 have really been putting out a ton more talent lately. Some egos in the 757 are the problem.
One thing is for sure, seeing this play out on day 1 makes it very clear on why we have the recruiting issues in the Commonwealth that we do. If Fuente didn't have the patience to care about his relationship with fans or alumni, there's no way he was going to deal with coaches like those from OS. No wonder we started throwing darts all over the country.
Good point. For all the good, bad and ugly we know about Fuente, I can very clearly see the scenario where Fuente just decided to ignore coaches/HSs with this type of attitude (fits with what we publicly know about his personality, imo). He probably thought he had a better chance at success with the #TX2VT movement that at one point had tremendous momentum.
Here's to the new staff repairing those relationships and regaining our ground in VA!
Totally agree. Our new staff is not going to make or break our recruiting agenda in the first day or week. Whatever's happened with CJF and in the past, we just need to be steady and consistent in building strong, trusting relationships with the HS coaches and programs going forward. As CBP indicated, this is the start of a new day where we get to work building and mending relationships and winning back the state. VA2VT
Offered 2023 WR Marcell Baylor from Radford. Also got a CB from Evan on him
Go Hokies!
Why does posting from 247 not work anymore?
We stopped doing embeds from there a long time ago. Was bogging down the thread.
Not just bogging down the thread, but the "enable ads" popup you see on many websites was still happening with the embed and messing up so it just wouldn't load at all but would hang forever or something.
Links are encouraged though!
Loving it
4 star, 6"3" 190Lb Life Christian Academy class of 2023 DB/WR
How awesome would it be for recruiting to have Parsons come visit? Instant NFL cred.
Got to think this relationship would bode well with recruits. Such a breath of fresh air.
A head coach comfortably interacting with people on social media platforms? What the heck is this daggum sorcery?
What's next? Allowing fans to attend a Spring Game? Streaming it for folks like me that live 2000 miles away? Allowing reporters and donors to attend practices?
Just crazy.... Crazy I tell ya. /s
and GUMBO on top of that ๐คค
My wife would say "as long as it's not from a box". Personally, I don't care just gimme that salty goodness
Camobells Chunky Gumbo was my winter go-to in college. Never failed me.
Campbells Chicken corn chowder was/is the bomb.
I think Ramen was my go-to college food; they were $.15 a pack in 1997. Really helped with beer money.
Not to mention if you bought really, really cheap beer you could use the Ramen spice packet to actually make it taste slightly less like cow piss...
Well, Natty Light was the main staple back then, along with Hurricane 40's. ๐คข
Yeah, I didn't realize until I saw this picture that I was drinking the good stuff when I had Natty Lite.
Thought that was an oil filter at first glance.
Oil filter'd probably taste better than the shit I drank at undergrad parties.
We used to buy that generic "BEER" at the shopping center were the fancy Kroger is now. They were in the political correct "bulk food" section.. My cans lacked the color stripes of your picture. There were a mix of can types within the six pack. Some aluminum pop top keys while some steel cans needing a church key to open. We had a hoot walking around asking each other, "whatcha drinkin?" Then holding up the can yelling, "BEER!" Ah, simple pleasures of an ill spent youth.
Costco beer looks like this...
https://untappd.com/b/kirkland-signature-light/1130226
48 pack of beach going / yard working deliciousness. I was sad to see it go.
How did it compare to "The Beast"? Actual conversation from the late 1980s. As close to verbatim as I can remember it (and I also used this on the Dad Jokes thread a while back):
VT student #1: If this is Milwaukee's Best, what's Milwaukee's worst?
VT student #2: Milwaukee's Best Light
... let me introduce you to Beast Ice...
Ever try - I am not making these up, links below - Kool Mule strawberry flavored malt liquor or Cool Colt mint flavored malt liquor? Collected beer cans for a long time, guess I still do, but don't have them set up for display in the new house. So would pick up bizarre stuff.
Cool Colt was like drinking Scope mouthwash.
Not exactly sure how to describe Kool Mule other than to say that it was just vile.
https://untappd.com/b/pabst-brewing-company-cool-colt/483197
https://www.canmuseum.com/Detail.aspx?CanID=23197
I haven't had those. I have had a lot of vile things over the years though. Sadly, most of them have cost more than the beast ice. Beast ice, beast ice, and beast light we're all just popular for parties in school that didn't have kegs. 30 pack for cheap. Easy to dispense.
Your comment about vile drinks reminded me of this website: Bum Wines Reviewed
Relevant Monty Python: Australian Table Wines
Somewhat related, the best amber ale I've ever had was in Milwaukee. MKE brewing in the old Pabst Brewing District. We went there for Game 6 of the Finals. Took my first sip and knew immediately I'd never have any Amber better. I've worked a craft beer bar for 3+ years, so I've had my share of ambers.
What about old milyuckie also known as red label Heineken
Must have gotten cheaper. You could get 10 for $1 at Kroger in the early 2000s.
Picture a spring game with Parsons there, some Alumni players, a ton of recruits and a hell of a time.
Oh hell yeah. Maybe even see if we could get that lefty QB from back in the day to join the fun. #7 I think it was.
The righty also... I believe his name began with a T and he wore #5.......
To be fair Tyrod was on the sideline and Vick was supposed to be there. The spring game always had a ton of former players no matter how poorly they communicated with them the rest of the year.
Another defensive player we need to stay close to and keep bringing back is a DE that wore #78. Used to hang out at the Solar House when I lived there, very early '80's, before he hit the big time. I think he went on to play for the Bills.
Hmm maybe even bring Back the other half of the 911 duo from about a couple years back. Hince Vall I think was what his name was. Heard he is quite revered among the VT faithful
Man just picture a spring game. Clear mountain air on a warm Blacksburg spring day... Excitement and football. Laughter, tailgating, football, and just Hokies being Hokies.
Then go go downtown and hit pks, hokie house, sharkeys, Champs, and/or whichever local haunt fills your soul (and cup). Hopefully not just a dream but soon to be reality!
Credit to Dr. Hook.
Joel Starlings just decommitted from Michigan.
4 โญโญโญโญ DT from Benedictine
ยกDios Mio! Let's get the Cheetah and Mines on this.
That would be a big time flip if Pry and co. could pull that off.
Penn State and VT were in his final 12 the last go around before he committed to Michigan, sooooo...
We need him!
Mr. Starlings, pls!
Maybe Harbaugh is outta there?
Wishful thinking it seems. The DL coach that recruited him left to join Lincoln Riley at USC, which was his reasoning for decommitting in his statement.
From 247 Article on his decommitment.... So you're saying there's a chance....
Interesting that he said he wanted to be close enough to his family last spring, then put this Top 12 together and subsequently chose Michigan.
Of that group, only South Carolina, West Virginia, Penn State & VT are within a 6 hour drive of Richmond. High school recruits say a lot of things and then do the opposite, but maybe the DL coach leaving was eye opening. If your primary connection to a school up & leaves and you're far from home, it's not easy. This is why I think Pry's philosophy of recruiting largely within a 6-hour radius of Blacksburg is a smart strategy.
You'd think that if Penn State recruited him too, that he's familiar with Pry and is seen as a fit for the defense Pry wants to run.
List of Junior Day attendees - not comprehensive, but just what I can find via Twitter:
Antonio Cotman (CB, Life Christian Academy)
https://247sports.com/Player/Antonio-Cotman-Jr-46113906/
Paul Billups (WR, Western Branch HS)
https://247sports.com/player/paul-billups-46117610/
Josiah Trotter (LB, St. Joseph's Prep School)
https://247sports.com/Player/Josiah-Trotter-46100767/
Marcell Baylor (WR, Radford HS)
https://247sports.com/Player/Marcell-Baylor-46129560/
Caleb Woodson (S, Battlefield HS)
https://247sports.com/player/caleb-woodson-46129561/
Cole Surber (OL, Patriot HS)
https://247sports.com/Player/Cole-Surber-46116247/
Jeremiah Coney (RB/ATH, Hermitage HS)
https://247sports.com/player/jeremiah-coney-46115301/
Kahari Finley (OL, St. Frances Academy)
https://247sports.com/player/kahari-finley-46113201/
Takye Heath (WR, Highland Springs HS)
https://247sports.com/Player/Takye-Heath-46117911/
Kenneth "BJ" Lowery (DB, Life Christian Academy)
no 247 profile found
Coney is a game changer. Would love for him to come home, but it will be an uphill battle.
It certainly helps that Coach Mines went to Hermitage, so we'll see!
Duane Brown, Alonzo Tweedy, and JuJu Clayton are all Hermitsge grads who played at VT so maybe Coney is next up...
Who do you think is in the driver's seat? Looks like his recruiting might be about to take off.
He's about to blow up, so he'll have some time to think it through. I would imagine a 4โญ or high 3โญ once the camp circuit runs.
I want him as a RB like Blackshear, where we can use him in the slot as well. But some sites are listing him as a LB.
I can see why folks might be interested in him as a LB... most of his RB highlights are him just trucking little guys LOL. He's certainly a physical football player.
I'm not good at evaluating film, but I'm not sure I see him as a RB at the next level level. His film features a lot of relatively straight line running through big gaps, and I don't personally see a lot of shiftiness. He's also pretty big for a running back, so he might be better suited at another position in college.
I really like the bit of defensive film on his Hudl page, and he is a willing blocker that just lays into dudes. That level of physicality at the high school level jumps out for sure.
Josiah Trotter, son of Eagles great Jeremiah Trotter
Could be tough sledding for him as his brother is currently a LB at Clemson......unless we totally pull a Gosnell scenario! Let's Go CBP!!!!
#AllTheTrotters
Would be an awesome snag. As mentioned, his brother just finished his freshman season at Clemson. Perhaps he wants to blaze his own path elsewhere.
That would be great, but thankfully, Kendall Fuller stayed true. Choosing Clemson seemed to be a real possibility.
Maybe he picks the good guys and his brother follows him, like the Gosnell's.
I would love to land all these guys, but the one that has been sticking out to me a lot is Cotman. That would be a MAJOR in-state pull given how much attention he is getting from out of state schools. I would love to see Cotman be a banner type player for VA2VT.
A lot of skill positions on that list - is the RB room big enough for all of them?
[ducks]
Our RB room is sort of like cloud computing resources. It will easily expand to accommodate (sometimes without you even knowing about it), but holy cow do you pay the price for it down the road.
LMAO!
Have a leg -- this is a great high effort post that benefits the community. Thanks for putting it together!
Saw this in the Twitters.
Big kid out of North Carolina, already has offers from big dogs like Clemson and Michigan. His highlight tape is full of clips where he's just mashing dudes. He'll probably end up being one of the top lineman in the 2023 class.
Would love to steal him out of NC!
"I grew up a State fan but my dream offer is Clemson." - Direct Quote from Pendleton. The good news is UNC isn't in it.
Lame that Clemson is his dream offer. If there is one area that Clemson has not produced well during their best ever decade of football it's OL.
Sometimes dreams change as well. If his real dream is the NFL, playing for Rudolph might help that dream out, which would be a better dream than Clemson. Maybe?
There is zero question that Rudolph's track record at producing NFL OL is better than Clemson's. Clemson is also replacing their OL coach, which many think is a necessary change.
Clemson did move Robbie Caldwell into an administrative position. Thomas Austin is taking over. He is a Clemson insider.
Who knows why Clemson hasn't produced or recruited well OL wise. It's definitely puzzling. I think their OL play cost them at lease on national championship if not two.
Which is interesting because I know a couple of NC State players from back in the day who can't say enough great things about Coach Caldwell. I also went to his football camps as a kid in HS and his teaching technique and personality made me really appreciate his coaching abilities.
And Bama injury bugs probably got them two championships so it probably evens out in that regard.
Know Sam's parents. Comes from a great family. Father played OL at W&M back in the day; mountain of a man and is farm/country boy strong. I know where he's leaning, but don't wanna give anything away as it's his time to do what he wants. Would be a big get, in my opinion. Huge kid with a huge brain.
Samuel L always earns a leg.
Visiting VT on Sunday
VT has done what it can do, probably Clemson though
There's a lot of time left and a lot of things could change
Clemson? Klempsun?! Pssh, do they even have coordinators?
I'm not going scorched earth on the staff over losing croots to Clemson, but this is a winnable battle. Not only is Rudolph a significantly more accomplished OL coach than what Clemson has had, and now will have in a new coach, but he made it up to Blacksburg to see Rudolph in person after his Clemson visit.
The fact that Dabo is leading this recruitment means that's who you're competing against. If he doesn't commit to Clemson in the next three weeks then NC State / VT has made up some ground.
Yeah, I'm really hoping Rudolph can get us in this one. As good as Clemson has been the last several years, the OL hasn't really stood out as a strength. Someone with Rudolph's resume would be hard not to at least give a fair chance.
Apparently Cotman had good things to say about this weekend. This stood out from the article on 247 (free):
1, I love the confidence. 2, Roc is his mentor? I'm hoping that's a big relationship in VT's favor.
Roc mentors multiple DBs, sends em where they want to go. Relationship is good with VT, so we will see how things shake out.
Looks like Ike Daniels (4* RB, Mountain View HS) was at the Junior Day this weekend. Considered by most recruiting services to be the #1 RB in VA for 2023.
Is that kid in the orange shirt on the field? It kinda looks like the player behind him is about to light him up.
I've been staring at this picture for several minutes. I can't figure out what the heck is going on.
So the guy with the ball (presumably Daniels) and the guy chasing him are both in focus. The kid is blurry. My guess is the kid is a picture of Daniels as a kid running with the ball and the picture is like showing how far he's come or something like that.
The kid does not look he grew up to be the young man in the offer photo?
Yeah, I would just assume kid on the sideline is the ball boy and the guy behind him is running down the sideline as well to see if his teammate will score
I was also looking at the field and based on what I THINK I'm seeing with sidelines, kid definitely looks like he's on the field, and not just barely. That and the fact he looks blurry (which can definitely be because he's further away) is why I was thinking photoshopped in. I mean his right foot looks like it's right near the other two players' feet.
Regardless, I'm officially done analyzing the picture lol
I wasn't looking at that. Good point. Not sure what it is then.
Hell, offer the kid. Apparently he's got D-1 speed at age 8.
He doesn't even look like he's trying that hard.
Go to 0:48 in the HUDL Highlight on the kickoff return for touchdown.
Both the kid in orange and the Mountain View player are off on the sidelines.
This is some damn fine work right here. Leg.
That VT letterman jacket is one fine piece of clothing.
@hokiewatch on Instagram shared that Utah QB transfer Peter Costelli, 4โญ 2021 QB, is in talks with Bowen and Brad Glenn. It's on Instagram, so I can't share the post here. That's 3 transfer QBs, potentially.
Makes me think Bullock is switching positions or transferring.
Let's try this link POST
What, more darts across the Mississippi? /s
Entered the portal 11/23 long time ago but that portal is chock full of QBs, and well everything else.....
Parents are PSU alums
Is there any more smoke behind this? Cause that would seem to be a really solid pick up for us if it came to fruition.
My coworker --whose son has officially been contacted by the new staff, giggity, just finishing HS freshman year-- confirmed they are talking.
There's a couple of other transfer QBs being talked to as well. With more than 3 years of eligibility, I'm guessing the new staff doesn't like what is in the QB room right now.
Hype train builds each day!
weird that the first player in that clip is from FRANCE. Fortunately the next, Fuga is a Va guy............
I mean true... but I'm just here for the content. It's like night and day regarding the engagement levels (to no surprise, just refreshing)
And if he starts pulling 5*'s, no telling what will get saturated next....
I'll need new underwear.
Is Kendall Fuller our last 5โญ?
Yup, 8 years ago, and one of only four all time, per 247.
Well, Macho was a 5* by Rivals and at one point Vinston Painter also held a 5* ranking by one of the services but was quickly downgraded.
Givens was highly ranked and plummeted. Was a five star for four or five months.
I know it may sound funny, but he is even using his Virginia Accent well.
Certainly better than Brian Kelly's new accent.
4* DE from Sumpter
Rhames 247 profile
That is a 5 star name
Top 6 for Ethan Crisp out of TN, if you watch his HUDL, you'll notice his speed bc he plays safety, too
If you're gonna reference his hudl pls at least copy/paste the link for the rest of us lol
Try it now
Was I a ding dong and didn't realize you had already linked it?
I like his film a lot. Good nose for the ball, moves through traffic well, good speed. Needs to clean up his takedowns a bit, lot of him falling and dragging the other guy down, but he also lowers his shoulder and drops the hammer. Would be a good looking linebacker with some weight.
I'm a fan of Costeli, hope we have a legitimate shot at him
https://247sports.com/Player/LaNorris-Sellers-46115998/
Sounds like he wasn't sold on the new UVA regime
Interesting that Georgia State is listed as one of his offers.
According to that 247 UVA has 12 QBS on the roster?
Loading up to see who can throw the best backwards pass to a lineman
Wait a minute ... are you saying it is bad to have double digit players on your roster for a position where typically only one is on the field at a time?
It's lolUva, so I'll allow it.
Ummm...
Make sense if the report of their new QB coach is right. Not sure you could convince me to play for Lamb who's 27, has one single year of coaching experience at Gardener Webb. Seems like a ridiculously risky hire for a position that UVA has been solid at recently.
I'm glad our coaching hires are a lot easier to wrap my head around than theirs, some puzzling hires over there.
gotta hire someone
Should we be a buyer on this guy?
Looks like another pwo, this time from the 757
Here's hoping he brings some ballance to the LB corps...I'll see myself out
His dad played for Beamer and his brother played baseball at VT.
https://www.ultimaterecruit.com/george-ballance-first-offer/
If 22 was about the trenches, 23 will be about the skill positions
These are highlight links to our recent '23 offers and some of my favorite '23 sleepers and '24 and '25 elite prospects from home. Some really good looking players, hopefully we can land our fair share. I like all of them!
2023 Offered
Marcell Baylor (6'2 185 ATH) Radford
Krystian Williams (6'2 175 WR) Richmond-Collegiate
Caleb Woodson (6'3 200 S) Battlefield
Jordan Bass (6'2 195 DB) Phoebus
Sleepers
Amare Campbell (6'1 205 LB) Unity Reed Not really sleeper, 5 P5 offers but not us...yet. STUD!
Armel Mukam (6'4 245 EDGE) Woodberry Forest
Rodney Lora (6'4 270 DL) Woodberry Forest
Zach Jones (6'5 270 OL) North Stafford
Jahiel Mitchell (6'1 185 DB) Salem-VB
Carlos Moore (6'6 320 OL) Trinity Episcopal
2024 - Offered
Kris Jones (6'2 215 LB) Mountain View gamechanger IMO
Mekhai White (6'2 175 WR) King George visiting next week
Fletcher Westphal (6'8 325 OL) Tuscarora visiting next week
Zahir Rainer (5'11 175 ATH) Trinity Episcopal
Keylen Adams (6'2 185 WR) Green Run
Tasean Young-Stieff (5'11 155 WR) Green Run
On radar
Kameron Courtney (6'0 180 ATH) Freedom-Woodbridge
LJ Booker (6'2 170 WR) Richmond Collegiate
Josh Clayton (6'3 250 DL) Highland Springs
Emile Beaulieu (6'4 300 OL) Woodberry Forest
Khristian Martin (6'3 200 QB) Highland Springs
2025 Studs
Ari Watford (6'5 215 EDGE) Salem-VB VT among 8 offers
Gideon Davidson (5'11 185 RB) Liberty Christian VT among 6 offers
Bryce Yates (6'0 175 WR/S) Matoaca 0 offers for now
Dwight Vick has been personally vouching for Campbell on Twitter.
I'm glad. If he was 6'3 instead of 6'0ish he'd have offers from everyone and 5* ranking. Kid is explosive as it gets. Fills an open window expeditiously with bad intentions. This alone will make some more P5 schools offer him. Same HS as RMFW, Settle, Stro and a couple of 4/5*s we've lost to big dogs. Offer this man. We've had really productive 5'11/6' LBs (Vince Hall, Moto, Ashby most recently) but we'll find out this week, when staff hits Stafford/Prince William in person, if he's big enough to get that offer from Pry/Marve.
I'm interested to see if we can sway Jordan Bass to the Good Guys. I was talking to an Administrator from Phoebus yesterday who said we offered one of their kids. I didn't hear the players name but I'm guessing it was Jordan. He said he was a tall DB. Made it seem like we weren't even on his radar.
I like his film a lot. Smooth athlete, not afraid to stick his nose in there and hit.
I think my favorite thing about the coaches hitting the road and making offers and re-offers is current players and signees also joining in the hype on Twitter. Saw Rashaud Pernell and Jabari Parker (both from 804 area) chime in on this offer
We could really use this kids talents at UoVT.
He replied in a tweet correcting it
Loren's 2nd son. Going to be a stud once his body develops, instincts off the charts
'25 Brennan Johnson (6'0 180 LB) Springers
So what happens to offers that Fuente and company made? Does new staff rescind them if we don't want them for some reason? How does that work.
Also noticed there are a bunch of offers out there outside the 6 hour recruiting footprint - like AL, WA, CA, etc. Is there a way to tell if those were made by Fuente, or if some of those had a connection to Tech. I noticed that it doesn't show a recruiter for everyone on 247.
They are all voided. The new staff isn't required to honor anything from the old regime.
At this point in the recruiting cycle (for '23) they weren't commitable offers. So it's not like anything changed, the players could still talk the to staff and try to continue the recruitment, but its not like they could sign and NLI.
So that's why we're hearing about re-offers then I'm assuming - the new staff is giving some of the previously offered kids an offer.
Yup and even if those recruits were obviously still takes from one staff the the next, it's good recruiting to make "re-offering" an event with some significance behind it. You emphasize that recruit's importance to the new staff, begin building a new relationship, get a nice tweet out to a newly reenergized fanbase, etc
How come so many of these '23 recruits don't have rankings yet? Don't they usually have them by now?
Pretty much none of the sub-4 star (initial) players get stars before the traditional signing day.
10-4. So we will start seeing stuff for most recruits come through after February 2 for Class of 23 guys
I noticed one guy was rated as like .97 but still had him as a 4 star, so think they make all sorts of adjustments then also.
That's a big boy list right there
His brother plays for Clemson and his dad is former Philadelphia Eagle Jeremiah Trotter. Far from an Eagles fan but Trotter's signature lumberjack chop celebration was iconic.
With that list:
Go sell might be a solution for punt return. If he is, then anything he does at WR is gravy
Son of Hokie Chris Baucia? Was a punter in the early 90s. Keep those legacies coming.
Anybody know if this is something we'd be interested in?
Doesn't appear to have gotten much traction at PSU. His stats for the prior year at Florida state are ok, but don't jump out.
Are we making video edits for 23 recruits and providing them or is this from someone else?
Tony Rojas could be a huge deal. He could help rejuvenate Fairfax County HS football and engage a lot of our Latino community in the Hokies.