Dorian Strong (88) and Antwuan Powell-Ryland (63) were the only two Hokies named to the top 100.
Ayden Greene was named as a potential Breakout Player not included on the Top 100 list.
Only surprises for me was with all the preseason hype on Drones/Tuten that neither broke the top 100.
https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/40683565/college-footba...
Forums:
DISCLAIMER: Forum topics may not have been written or edited by The Key Play staff.
Comments
Damn, Dorian Strong was one of the best corners in CFB last year. 88 seems like a snub.
That lines up with top 8 in the country (22 positions on a team, 2 cb's/team, 4 teams deep [88]). Mighty solid nonetheless. I know not all positions are represented equally, but top 100 is a strong showing when considering all players.
He's arguably not the best corner on the team (though the metrics had him as our best corner last year, of course).
We also didn't face many dangerous passing attacks last season. I love Dorian Strong and Mansoor Delane, and I think both will be drafted, but our passing D numbers have been discussed before and I know I am not the only one who thinks that may have been heavily influenced by the teams we played and their lack of elite QB's and passing attacks.
The one top end passing attack/QB we faced was Jordan Travis and FSU. Travis had an efficient but unspectacular performance (18-24, 170yds, 2 TD's)... but they also didn't need him to because they ran for 282 and 7.8 yards a pop.
All that to say... I don't think it's a snub at all. I think Dorian Strong making a Top 100 players in CFB list (a sport with 130 teams with ~100 kids on each roster) is a massive compliment and achievement.
Dane Brugler from The Athletic agrees with you. He has Delane as the fifth best CB eligible for the draft, and he has Strong as the fourth best senior CB. Link here for The Athletic subscribers, but I'll quote the writeup for Delane.
These are the other Hokies mentioned so far from his other position previews:
(He lists top 5 or so draft eligible, and then a varying number of top seniors, then top draft-eligible underclassmen. There's not a combined list for each position group.)
Kyron Drones, #6 draft-eligible underclassman QB
Bayshul Tuten, #14 senior RB
Jaylin Lane, #5 senior WR
Da'Quan Felton, #14 senior WR
Xavier Chapman, #10 draft-eligible underclassman OT
Kaden Moore, #20 senior IOL
Sam Brumfield, #23 senior LB
Keli Lawson, #7 draft-eligible underclassman LB
Dorian Strong, #4 senior CB
Mansoor Delane, #5 overall and #4 draft-eligible underclassman CB
Jalen Stroman, #7 senior S
Safeties have not been articled yet.It's been a while since we had this much draft potential talent on the roster.
Edit: Added S Jalen Stroman to the list.
Plus.... why bother passing against us when you can run it down our throats all day long
Last year he was #80. So he comparatively regressed? I do not think so.
Statistically speaking, Drones and Tuten would have to be in the top 5 at their positions to be top 100. They're both really good, but they're not that.
Top 100 is basically honorable mention All-American.
The top 100 is very QB/RB heavy. 18 QBs and 11 RB. Only other position as heavy are CB/S.
Oh wow, I didn't know that.
I think Drones at least in the conversation as among the top 18 QBs in the country, and same with Tuten among the top 11.
I prefer them not be listed so they have something to prove this season.
Didn't get named to the top 100? Make a statement during the season and finish top 100!
I think the only way this happens is if we have a major WR injury again this year. I love the future of our WR room, but it's hard for me to see any of the young guys having a true "breakout" season behind Jennings, Felton, and Lane. Though Greene or Brodie would be the smart money picks if we do see some injuries.
I'm hearing that Brodie is having a really good camp.
I believe Brodie is the real deal, and I think he is a nailed on starter next season for sure. IF we have some injuries I could see him forcing the issue this season.
Luckily for us, we have probably the best collection of skill players we have had since 2016.
Yeah, it's crazy to think about what that room looked like just 3 years ago. It just goes to show you that when you focus on something, that thing can change quickly. #fontelminesforpresident