Last weekend's matchup against Boston College was supposed to be a huge recruiting opportunity for the Hokies. Yet, much like the team's chances against the Eagles on the field, things fizzled out a bit.
While some highly rated recruits did manage to make the trip down to Blacksburg, several other prominent targets had to cancel their trips.
2015 3-star WR Lawrence Cager, one of the fastest risers on the 247Sports Composite ranking? He says a concussion kept him from making the trip.
The same goes for 4-star DE Darrell Taylor, according to his coach, Hopewell, Va. High School's Ricky Irby. Taylor, a Tennessee commit, was planning on making the trip his official visit to VT.
Highly coveted 4-star OLB/DE Ricky DeBerry also missed the visit because of an injury the night before. His dad, Rick Sr., says a hurt shoulder scrapped his plans.
4-star running back Nyheim Hines was chased away by "bad weather," according to his coach, Garner, N.C. High School's Thurman Leach.
Even Alex Gourley, an unranked center prospect for 2016 that Tech has yet to offer, found his plans change suddenly.
"Mo Collins, a former Oakland Raider, he was really close to me, and his funeral was this weekend," Gourley said. "So I told the coaches I couldn't make it."
Mourning the six-year NFL veteran and former first round pick understandably came first for Gourley, but that doesn't mean his absence stung any less for the Hokies.
Each of these recruits confirmed that they're currently trying to reschedule with the coaching staff, but not one has made any firm plans just yet.
All this isn't to say that the weekend was a total bust, however.
3-star DE Houshun Gaines was still able to make the trip, and despite the gloomy weather and gloomier on-field results, he still seems to have enjoyed himself.
"I always have a good time there, it was great. A lot of fans showed me love," Gaines said. "And they just treated me like I was on the team already."
Gaines, who notably initially committed to Florida in a bit of mix-up, would be a major pickup for the Hokies even after some early confusion. Luckily, even Lane Stadium's diminished crowd encouraged Gaines.
"They were just being all around fans," Gaines said. "It wasn't a full house, but everybody got loud."
Gaines also got a chance to spend time with current Hokies players, including one he's already familiar with.
"I spent time with Kendall (Fuller) and Bucky (Hodges). Even Wyatt (Teller), and I met him at Junior Day, so it was good to see him again," Gaines said.
The staff also spent plenty of time showing Gaines around.
"I met with Coach Foster and Coach Beamer, but I spent the most time with Coaches Wiles, he's my guy," Gaines said. "I love talking with him."
Beyond current Hokies, Gaines also got to hang out with other prospective Tech athletes.
"(4-star DE) Jalen Dalton and (4-star OT Emanuel) McGirt sat right in front of me, so we were talking the whole game," Gaines said. "Plus I got to talk to Mook (Reynolds, a 3-star Hokies CB commit) before and after the game."
McGirt seemed to similarly appreciate the experience, and landing him would be an even more meaningful pickup for the Hokies' struggling offensive line.
"The visit was really nice, it went better than I thought it would, honestly," McGirt said. "It was good to meet the coaches and hang out with all the guys."
McGirt, who stated Virginia Tech along with Georgia and N.C. State are his main contenders, also got to hang out with some of the team's younger players, like freshmen Melvin Keihn, Greg Stroman, Travon McMillian and even kicker Joey Slye.
The sight of the 6'6" McGirt standing next to the 5'10" Slye must've been downright comical.
"He's real short, no doubt," McGirt said with a chuckle.
While the visit was the first for the coveted offensive lineman, the Hokies also brought in prospects like 2016 athlete Simeon Gatling for another look at the program.
"It was my fourth time going up, I had a really good time," Gatling said.
Like Gaines, Gatling is a North Carolina product, and that means he too got the hard sell on Tech from Reynolds.
"I went down with Mook and his dad," Gatling said. "We definitely talked, he showed me around."
Gatling has yet to be offered by the Hokies, but it would seem he's formed quite the impression of them already.
"The fanbase was so united," Gatling said. "It was cold, but the game was still intense out there."
Even still, this won't be Gatling's last visit. If anything, he plans to ramp things up to attract more attention.
"I'll be visiting Auburn, Clemson, Tennessee, going back to Duke," Gatling. "I'm just trying to get my first offer."
As for Gaines, he'll be making other visits, but he's already got another stop with the Hokies penciled in.
"I'm definitely going to take a UVA visit, maybe a Miami official as well," Gaines said. "Then I'll take my official to Tech on December 5."
Maybe he can convince some of the recruits that missed out this time around to tag along.
Comments
And before anyone asks, no we don't have an update on Jalen Dalton. He's a very tough kid to get ahold of.
Dalton should be announcing sometime in November right? My guess is that there probably won't be much from him (aside from announcing the date) until then. Really hope he picks the Hokies
Didn't someone say he would announce in a press conference at his school within the next two weeks? I may be misrememembering. :-)
Dalton to announce Thursday, November 13 per 247.
Thanks for that, I am not as dumb as my wife says I am. :-)
5* Jalen Dalton is supposed to announce in 2 weeks
Good news on several fronts, especially McGirt. Go Hokies!
I just...can't... put my finger on why...
but I have a strong feeling McGirt is a Hokie.
We must get this McGirt kid. If for no other reason so I can drunkenly yell Ol' Dirty Bastard lyrics at games.
I like the cut of your jib.
Good to see Gaines moving on from being catfished. Hopefully he saw another sight of Blacksburg and the fans. Knowing its an important decision for the young man, Hokie fans wont try to catfish Gaines.
Such comment.
Much happiness.
Wow!
Yeah if he's not a fan of bad weather then he's in for a surprise given Blacksburg's typical weather...
I'm sorry but that is a weak excuse.
Look, if the kid doesn't want to play at VT, then that's okay. I wish him nothing but the best in his collegiate career. But be upfront about it. Man up.
I understand he is just a kid who still has some growing-up to do. I just hope he learns to be professional and honest about what he wants, instead of using such a lame excuse.
Back off the kid. It's a vague comment, but I know friends that were traveling that day, and many felt the roads in some areas, especially in the mountains, were in poor shape for driving safely. Maybe he was concerned about simply getting there; that's legitimate.
I guess we will just have to agree to disagree with each other on this topic.
That's fine, but I think it is inappropriate to question a kid's integrity, maturity, and professionalism, and accuse him of a "lame excuse" when we have a couple words from a coach. For all we know, his parents said, "heck no we're not driving up in this mess today."
Fair enough about the kid. But I still find that excuse a bit lame.
It's not at all a lame excuse.
These visits are an important part of the decision process that impacts not only these kids' football future, but their future in life. If it were me, I'd actually prefer to visit under good conditions and see the best of what a school and a program have to offer.
And frankly, if I'm VT, I wouldn't mind being able to put on my best face as well...
If I recall, some areas of NC in the mountains got over a foot of snow. So yeah, you're wrong, it's not a lame excuse.
Much of western NC got huge snow. I don't know what the Triangle got, but the point remains that visiting Blacksburg for his only official visit on a weekend when the temps were in the 30's/40's, high wind & rain sounds like the worst possible time to visit. Why someone would be eager to come for that only remains viable in the minds of internet strongboys. Easy for them to expect lots from young guys now, but it's not at all rational.
and why exactly does he have to be upfront about it? economically, that's just stupid. A football player only has a few times where they control their own destiny and hold the power. If you are good it's a seller's market. If he's smart he should keep his cards close to his chest and let schools woo him as much as he pleases. As long as he isn't making commitments to schools and backing out of them, or flat out lying to schools, then weather, family, girlfriend, cat got ran over, i'm going to watch insterstellar are all valid reasons to choose not to make the trip.
besides why does he owe you or any of us fans any explanation why he is doing anything?
I just disagree about the comment concerning the weather. Also, if someone tells you that they are showing-up and then backs-down with the excuse that the weather prevented them from traveling, isn't that a form of breaking a commitment? Not legally of course, but it certainly is socially. Especially when the weather was not that bad. I just found it a bit disappointing, especially since some 50,000 people apparently didn't think the weather was bad enough to warrant not making the trip. Or better yet, other recruits made it to the school despite the "bad weather".
Concerning the economic model of college football, yes you are exactly right. But I would state that saying "bad weather" in quotes like that implies that the author doesn't believe in the words he was told by the person being quoted. To me, it is the literary version of using air quotes.
BTW, I was not asserting that the kid is a bad kid for not choosing to play for VT. Choosing the school to play for in college is an important decision that requires a lot of thought and I applaud the kid for looking around. I certainly would. But at the same time, I think it is fair to call an excuse an excuse. Especially when I find it hollow and I found the "bad weather" excuse, for lack of a better word, "lame".
yeah, I get you and here's a leg to even you out. But really, they are young kids dude. Do you mean to say you never gave a bad excuse for anything when you were in high school? I don't know you, but I seriously doubt that's the case. What if his excuse was he had a hemorrhoids breakout and didn't want to sit in the car and then the stands that whole time and was too embarrassed to say that and just said "bad weather"? who knows and frankly who cares.
Kid didn't come. It's a shame but really no big deal, right?
+1 for the hemorrhoids mention. Of course you are right, but maybe my point is not getting across. I just found the "bad weather" comment, well, not very believable.
Well here is a phrase I never thought I would have heard/read
The bad weather reasoning was completely believable as well as completely understandable, to all but a few who choose to bait recruits. Lack of perspective is easy when demanding things from others. There's no reason to keep trying to jab at a recruit who is yet to make his mind up, since you're basically insulting him each time by questioning his dedication when he is only considering us as a potential site. The guy had a legitimate reason for not coming to a game on his official visit in crappy weather.
Concerning the younger version of myself, yeah I made a lot of mistakes. But my friends and family always made me aware of when I made them.
What exactly about the comment is there to disagree with?? I was about 30 minutes from I-77 in VA Saturday and it was snowing where I was at, there was 3-4 inches on the ground Saturday morning, and even though it warmed up enough to melt that off, there was another 3-4 inches that fell Saturday evening. Keep in mind that mapquest directions from Garner NC to VT takes you right up the I-77 corridor.. I wouldn't want my 17-18 year old traveling in that if it could be helped. Especially since I lived in NC for 15 years and I know for a fact that there are several people there that simply don't go anywhere when it snows, and many that do go out in it have no idea how to drive in it
So its obvious that you and I disagree over what constitutes "bad weather". That much is clear. That being said, I just don't think you are going to change my mind. I'm sorry, but there it is. I respect that you believe differently and I am certainly am not trying to change your mind. In the end, there it is. We just are not going to change each other's mind nor see eye to eye on this subject.
First, at no point did I say what I thought was bad weather, so how it's obvious to you what I think bad weather is really is puzzling.
Not trying to change your mind, was offering insight to the mindset of many people living in NC, as they don't have the same weather in the triangle as we do in SWVA. Their view on bad weather is different than ours, so I think it best to give the benefit of the doubt in this case to the teenager and his family for trying to be better safe than sorry
Dude just because the weather isn't as bad as forecasted (it looked like it would be, go talk to the national weather service or read their forecast discussions) in Blacksburg does not mean it wasn't bad in say the mountains of north Carolina. There were places in the Appalachians that got a few inches, hell I know my mom would never have let an 18 year old kid drive through snow to go to something we can reschedule.
Do we have room in this class for another RB? He and McClease are very similar in size & style and RB recruiting has been very quiet for us this year once McCease committed. I think this is a similar situation to RB Bryce Love - some mutual interest but not really a position of need for VT and scholarships are getting tight outside of the OL/DL groups. Making a positive impression on these guys helps us with future NC recruiting though, so hopefully Hines can reschedule.
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Did not realize this is what constitutes a down vote at this site. Wow.
Making insulting remarks about a potential future Hokie based on absolutely no evidence of any wrongdoing? Yes, that generally does merit disapproval. Not saying people should pile on the DVs at all, but you certainly shouldn't be surprised.
I'll take "Terrible Assumptions about Underage Recruits" for 500, Alex.
I didn't downvote you, but probably not a good idea anywhere let alone this site. As you say, be mature and let the kid make his decision without calling him lame.
That is a fair criticism and I am certainly not perfect.
I won't Downvote it but i will have to disagree. I believed it snow south and west of blacksburg a bit. Now we know how some of our kind neighbors to the south respond to the white stuff accumulating:
So, in this instance:
I can attest to there being snow west of Blacksburg.. and if he was having to travel up I-77 his parents or him may have not wanted to travel during questionable road conditions
Yea thanks, I remember a few hokies taking to the fb/twittersphere with pics of the commute. A couple were on the way from the Carolinas IIRC. 77 is no fun during certain conditions, so i can understand someone not being comfortable in that scenario.
..... Yeah that pic was taken about 2 miles from my house last year....
10 miles from mine. Those of us in the Triangle really cannot handle the wintry weather very well...
lol yeah, I mean if anything perfectly encapsulates just how well NC handles snow....
Try living in Atlanta...
Moisture falls from they sky and cars flip upside down.
I used to drive up that hill every day! So glad I left work early that day.
Cool.. BTW what were the snowfall totals down there? I know we got a bunch in the burg during that event.
Depends where you're wondering, I have all of the data around here somewhere
He had to come up from NC, likely through Mt. Airy up I-77. Areas near there were forecast for a lot of snow last Friday night. Beech Mountain, NC near Boone got 16 inches that night. Doesn't sound like good conditions to be driving in if you ask me.
That's not a lame excuse at all. I find it regrettable that some adults are so eager to assign blame to a potential student for not deciding to make his only official visit to our campus one that is blanketed with rain, cold weather & high winds. What 'fun' is that? Why wouldn't he wait until later?
Back off the guy, let him wait until a nice weekend, when he can enjoy the campus without having to duck between buildings because of weather.
I don't want to pile on here, but lots of recruits have mentioned the dangerous roads around Blacksburg - the 18 wheelers, the steep hills.... A lot of times, the kids are coming with Mom's - for all we know SHE nixed the trip, and he wasn't really going to say "momma wouldn't let me come", was he?
Lastly, I think we need to remember Marques Hampton here - he immediately came to mind for me. Anyone too young to know, should google his story.
The roads around VT just aren't comfy for everyone, so if a recruit says he didn't want to chance the trip due to the weather, we need to take that at face value and just leave it alone, IMO.
Wow. Just looked it up, and it's heartbreaking 15 years after the fact. I'm glad that there was a memorial scholarship set up in his honor though, but still, it's a lesson not to take anything for granted in life.
Thanks for sharing, I'd never heard that particular story.
That popped out to me as well, sounds like he is going to want to play for a team in a dome. 40's was a bit cool, but not frigid, it didn't rain or snow. It was great fall football weather.
Hines isn't someone I think the Hokies have a chance with. It'll come down to Duke and NC State. He is friends with McGirt which is why he was probably going to tag along. He has however consistently visited those two schools and both have offered his sister in track. VT should be focusing on Bryce Love, he's more of a RB in the mold VT likes and is the most likely of the NC RBs (Hines & Frasier) to go out of state for school.
Can we please photoshop some bodies into the stand? The picture with this article is down right depressing (by no fault of Mark).
And yet our "bad" attendance is still 10k higher than the average attendance at Scott Stadium for any game...
Do we really want UVA to be used as the measuring stick?
I mean, it makes me sad to admit it, but in a season like this, when they're ahead of us in the division (that won't last long, but still), I'll take what I can get. There's always some way that we're better than UVA.
Didn't you call me out for highlighting LOLUVA's 12-man penalty like 10 days ago?
I'd hardly say I called you out for anything, I was just noting the irony of making fun of UVA fans for melting down while our forums were melting down at the same time. I actually thought it was rather funny. I also said on that same thread that I was still taking joy in UVA's loss.
Its still 12:34 to game time so there are gonna be some empty seats. I usually don't get there until about 5:00 before the game (enough time to hear the National Anthem and Enter Sandman).
ok:
Always a leg for this picture.
I'm glad to here the sparse crowd didn't damper their experience. When I arrived and saw how empty Lane was I turned to my buddy(whom is a bonafide 100% NFL/Steelers fan and watches college but has no team allegiance but did me and the Hokie Nation proud by cheering every defensive play and shaking his keys every 3rd down) and said "this is bad for so many big recruit visits today" but then was I pleasantly surprised how loud we got especially during the 4th quarter surge even though we only had something like 58,000 in attendance .
The terrible part for me is I can see my empty seats in the photo. I wasn't going to drive 4 hours and sit in the rain with my prego wife. Some things have to come first. I did however enjoy the game in my living room and still was horse on Sunday.
Agreed. When I first graduated, I would be down there for every weekend.
2 kids later, its down to 2 games a year.
That's a lame excuse! Man up, you just didn't want to come! /sarcasm
(Context: read a few posts up from yours)
I don't care if he ever sees the field, I'm getting a Mook jersey. That kid should get a job as VT's hype man and be put on the payroll immedietly after his NCAA eligibility is up. I don't think there are coaches on the staff that have the love for VT that he does.
Enough with the sad winter pictures. I'll add My winter hotspot !!! Grayton beach baby, getting this timeshare was a great decision!!!
Sounds like a bunch of excuses to not come to Blacksburg because they know this program is terrible.
After all that discussion up-thread? Here's hoping you forgot the sarcastica...
Well aren't you just a ray of sunshine?
wow just wow..
Tell Austin Clark that.
this gif always ges an upvote from me.
Unfortunately, it's very difficult for me to see him as anything but the amazing Captain Hammer:
".....ness problem that plagues our city" finishes that quote out for ya
"Hokie5284 has joined the conversation"
-24?!? shouldn't this be faded out? I need to review the updates...
It depends on your system. Comments don't gray out on my work computer (IE v? with corporate IT policies), but works fine on my phone and my home PC (Chrome). Oddly enough, the greening of comments does work on my work PC. Maybe try clearing your cache?
Must be the work comp. all greening and graying working as usual on iPad.