Jamie Oakes of 247Sports is reporting Eli Harold and Max Valles will declare for the draft as early as today. These are two of Virginia's most talented defenders and are both underclassmen.
http://virginia.247sports.com/Bolt/Expect-two-UVa-underclassmen-to-decla...
Update: The original report may only be half correct.
Max Valles:
I don't know where everyone is hearing it from but I did not declare for the NFL draft. I'm staying at UVA— Max Valles (@big_black5) December 10, 2014
Eli Harold:
To all UVA Fans, my family, and my close friends and teammates it's been a great ride. I have decided to enter the NFL Draft.— Lion Of Fallujah (@Eli_UVA7) December 10, 2014
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Comments
If I was them, I would be sick of losing as well. They are probably ready to start learning how to play the position.
Good for them. Best of luck to them! No sarcasm.
Surprised to see Harold making the leap but good on them if they can get paid.
Two more guys that will join the long list of former uva football players who will spend the rest of their lives never knowing what it feels like to beat the Hokies.
Well yeah- I don't think any of lol's highly rated recruits (like Harold or Blanding) intend on sticking around any longer than necessary . Probably part Lomdon's pitch- play early (cause we suk) then head to The League.
I would love to be a fly on the wall and hear that recruiting pitch.
works better than ours, apparently...
How so? Look at their recruiting class.
I think he was referring to their ability to pull in 5* recruits.
..referring to their one-and-done ability to pull in two 5* from the Va Thoroughbreds, one of whom was massively overrated.
Don't call him over rated as if VT wouldn't want him. This board would have been going crazy to get 2 5* in state
truth
Sure we wanted him, but Andrew Brown is still going to end up being hugely overrated.. Have to wonder what may have happened if Bud had him.
This is what I was thinking as well. This was "the deal", right. Early playing time, path to the NFL. The problem is, with the poor coaching and lack of great tape is it really just a path to the 6th round and a practice squad?
Interesting.
They could both use another year, IMHO-learn a bit more and develop their bodies.
But, Harold is ranked as potentially the #9 DE prospect, or OLB in 3-4, so he should be ok.
That will hurt uva though. (sniff)
I see Harold as a 3-4 OLB but I may be wrong.
"Mike, you just lost two huge components to your D, what are you going to do?"
He just tried to call a timeout to ice them while they're making their decisions.
And this is why the boom or bust UVa recruiting cannot sustain a team long term (or even the short term in their case)
If one of their guys leaves early, they're toast. Their recruits are either 5* (1 or 2 of them a class) or 2* to low 3* players. They have absolutely no depth and I fully expect the loss of both these players to hurt them immensely next year and in the years to come.
Still disappointed Eli didn't pick the good guys. Wish we could have had him for a couple of years. I wish him well at the next level but will always enjoy the fact that he couldn't hold the cup!
I wish quin blanding would transfer, he looks to be the last good player on that team.
No point. He will be there two more seasons tops.
I think they've got two good QB's. And a few WR's that are pretty solid players. And David Dean, but he looks like a guy who will play well when surrounded by guys like Harold and Valles.
But, yeah, this hurts them big time.
not as disappointed as Eli was
There hasn't been many Hoos that I've looked at on the field over the years and thought to myself, 'Damn I wish he was wearing maroon.' Eli Harold is one of those Hoos.
Eli Harold is good, but I'd go Quin Blanding. In our secondary? Yup
I wish them the best.
They were good contributors. I still think if they stuck in college another year, they'd have hope for getting off our Northern scout team and breaking into our two-deep. But I can't blame them for wanting to move on with their lives.
Then there's this...
Good call, Jaime Oakes.
Vaya con dios! Glad to see one or more go, best wishes. Rats always jump a sinking ship.
Max Valles just declared for the draft
bahahahahahahaha
And we thought the lack of depth here was bad. LOLUVA has 3 ends left on the roster after this.
I thought Valles was technically an OLB?
His decision making skills are as good as he's head coaches!
I don't know, leaving UVA if you're a football player seems like a pretty damn good decision to me.
laughingsohardimcrying.smileyface
"Mike, you've just lost 2 key players on your D to the NFL. How do you compensate on Saturdays?"
Brilliant, McGuirk.
Is this the place to discuss the TJ Thorpe (UNC WR) transfer to UVA?
Seems.....odd. Transfer to your rival? Why would UNC allow that? Thorpe is a solid receiver and return man, he'd certainly get reps if he came here.
It would be interesting to know what, if any, conference transfer rules may apply (I guess none, if it has happened), but Thorpe graduated and can enroll anywhere if the new school offers the graduate degree that the previous school does not.
So I guess LOLUVa has started offering a masters in afro-american studies specifically for UNC transfers?
Actually, an undergrad degree in afro-american studies from UNC is a natural pre-req for the masters of Anthropology at UVA...
Yeah I thought the same. UNC is also sinking with Larry Fedora but transfering to a rival school? I mean imagine if one of our players transfered to Miami or Georgia Tech.
That actually has happened.
Mario Edwards transferred from VT to GT after the 2007 season.
Am I missing something? Who tweets as "Lion of Fallujah?"
There was a real "Lion of Fallujah" who was a marine then CIA operative named Douglas Zembiec. Check out this story from the Washington Post, its actually an awesome read: http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/iconic-marine-maj-...
As for why Harold tweets as it...I got nothin.
Thanks for the Zembiec link.
Related: Jameis Winston will leave FSU for the NFL. Apparently he got a first-round grade.
http://espn.go.com/nfl/draft2015/story/_/id/12131473/jameis-winston-flor...
Bet he would've been really crabby if he didn't.
His draft prospects are skrong.
How is he going to elude NFL defenders if he couldn't get past Paul Blart?
I actually think he can make a good pro QB. He'll undoubtedly do some stupid shit and it'll be hilarious but seems like FSU has a pretty sophisticated passing offense. I think it's possible he'll transition well.
It seems to me he should transition well assuming he stops doing dumb things. (Which may be a big if)
Looking at the draft this year, I think Winston should be the #1 QB prospect for every team not named the Philadelphia Eagles. He does some boneheaded things, but if you really watch the games he does a lot of things that pro passers are asked to do, or shows the potential I should say to do them very well.
Jimbo Fisher's last 3 qbs - E.J. Manuel, Christian Ponder, JaMarcus Russel
He's really good at masking qbs weaknesses and making 'meh' guys look pro-ready. Winston has 'bust' written all over him
I hope he busts! and busts hard!! I don't think he's mature enough for the NFL yet...I'd give him a chance if he stayed for another year and could make it through an entire off-season without making any (negative) headlines but I think it's foolish of him to jump ship now.
http://youtu.be/4sJRkj9DP9Y
ELL-OH-ELL, YOU-VEE -AYE.
Guys, can we please talk for just a minute about the quoted DYNASTY that this fucking team was trying to build? Until they make another hire, this team is bound for mediocrity....which is a step above bad...so, congrats to Mike London. Smoke, Brown, and Quin ain't gonna cut it.
The 2 of them leave a big hole in UVA's front 7 next year. UVA's D had a chance to be solid again next year but now I'm not so sure. Combined with their typically weak O and I'm thinking at most a 4 win season for them next year
David Watford is leaving for Hampton.
Taking some online classes?
Now they lost Rasool Clemons, their most promising DE prospect.
Wait.....a Defensive End. I know a school who needs some of those.
Sounds like he may not make it into any ACC school...
And a shitty situation just keeps getting shittier for the Cavs...
Their top recruit, 4* DE, Rasool Clemons out of S. Car just decommitted.
This leaves their class without a single solitary 4* recruit according to 247. They do have 1 guy with a 4* composite in ILB Jahvoni Simmons.
Its beginning to look like the bottom is completely falling out from under that program. I mean really, outside of Blanding, I don't see anyone on that entire roster that really scares you, and they don't have anyone coming in that will help that cause. Ouch.
To quote Famous Jameis, let's be real. London's retention is 100% about finances and LOLUVA not being able to afford his buyout. London will probably go 2-10 this year. And, in true Hoo football fashion, they have shot themselves in the damn foot. Had they ponied up and brought in a legit, talented coach and let him use London's recruited talent they might have made a quick turnaround. By allowing the bottom to fall out in avoiding a buyout, they also ensure London's successor will arrive just in time to find the cupboards bare.
Well done, Hoos. Well done indeed.
And the best part is that it'll take them for friggen ever for them to restock those cupboards, and we're in the middle of a resurgence in recruiting that is seeing us string together some of the best classes we've ever had. We're getting richer while they're bottoming out, and this is happening while they're on a current 11 game losing streak to us.
Unless they pull off some overly dramatic recruiting wins over the next few years, (and I mean getting the next coming of Michael Vick levels of drastic) I don't see how the roster we are putting together loses to these guys while they're on campus. Normally, UVa has a few guys here and there that makes you think 'yeah, if the ball bounces right, things could break for them' but they just don't have the horses. By the time the 2 teams meet in 2016, our backups would likely be their starters in most spots.
I would argue that is already the case. Outside of Blanding and maybe a couple of o-lineman, I'm not sure who on their squad I would take over ours. Even the backups, at least in terms of potential.
Very true.
Right now I would say their situation is comparable to what we were in basketball last year. An absolute talent wasteland just hoping to scrape together enough competency to win a game or 2 in conference play. Blanding is their Erick Green. Once he goes, they're screwed. The main difference is that its relatively easy to turn around a bottomed out basketball team because of how small the roster size is. In football, its a long, multi-year process.
I thought their talent was significantly better this year than in years past, but a lot of that is gone now. The few good classes London did have have already graduated or their best players left early.
I think that talent is still better than it was two or three years ago, but it's not in the same position as ours. Dean is a good DT, we'd still like to have Brown, their OL will be much better next year. I personally like Lambert, but I know he has some faults so no reason to argue for thy enemy. Anyway, I think most would agree that he's better than they have been at QB for about a decade.
I wouldn't be shocked if Blanding transferred. He could use his redshirt year and go anywhere in the country.
They still also have Jamil Kamara, I'm not sure how good he will be, considering that he may have redshirted despite being a very high 4 star talent. But who knows? Their QB and O-line play appeared to be decent this past season. But yeah, they do have serious depth issues now; a situation that Mike London or whoever will be the coach at the end of next season will have their hands full with.
Kamara ended up being their #8 WR and did not redshirt
I appear not to be as sold on Lambert as you guys.
Well then, I guess its really hard to see them doing any better than 2-10 next season. If that's the case, then they will be looking for both a head football coach AND a new athletic director.
Sums out the hit their defense is taking pretty well
Hoos be like
I LOVE how I always wear a lot more Tech gear out when we beat Uva. It gives me such satisfaction that we beat them with these "5* kids". Coaching is Key.