The Virginia Tech football staff may only just be recovering from the faxing frenzy of National Signing Day, but they're already casting their eyes to the next batch of potential future Hokies.
The program is hosting a "Junior Day" event for rising seniors on Saturday, as the staff tries to get an early jump on the class of 2016.
Over the last two weeks, The Key Play reached out to dozens of high school prospects to get an idea of who exactly will be heading down to Blacksburg tomorrow to get a look at Tech's campus.
While plans can always change, especially in the fickle world of college football recruiting, here follows a list of nearly a dozen juniors planning to attend as of last night. All rankings are according to the 247Sports Composite rating.
| Name | 247Sports Composite | Position | High School | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Josh Ball | 3-Star | Offensive Tackle | Stafford Senior | Fredericksburg, Va. |
| Samuel Denmark | Wide Receiver | Hanahan HS | Charleston, S.C. | |
| Jalen Elliott | 3-Star | Athlete | Lloyd C. Bird | Chesterfield, Va. |
| Tino Ellis | 4-Star | Wide Receiver | DeMatha Catholic | Hyattsville, Md. |
| C.J. Freeman | 3-Star | Running Back | Northern Guilford | Greensboro, N.C. |
| Victor Greene | 3-Star | Linebacker | Courtland | Spotsylvania, Va. |
| Thomas Hopple | Offensive Tackle | Nansemond River | Suffolk, Va. | |
| Eric Kumah | Wide Receiver | Forest Park HS | Woodbridge, Va. | |
| JJ McCargo | 3-Star | Offensive Tackle | Bishop O'Connell | Arlington, Va. |
| Troy Pride Jr. | Cornerback | Greer | Greer, S.C. | |
| Myles Wolfolk | 3-Star | Cornerback | Dr. Henry Wise | Upper Marlboro, Md. |
However, some prominent prospects also confirmed they won't be attending this particular event.
| Name | 247Sports Composite | Position | High School | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trevion Armstrong | 3-Star | Wide Receiver | Trinity Episcopal | Chesterfield, Va. |
| Logan Blake | 3-Star | Offensive Guard | Libery Christian | Lynchburg, Va. |
| Logan Byrd | 3-Star | Quarterback | Veterans | Kathleen, Ga. |
| Augie DeBiase | 3-Star | Quarterback | Duncan U. Fletcher | Neptune Beach, Fla. |
| Sean Foster | 4-Star | Offensive Tackle | Carmel Catholic | Mundelein, Illinois |
| Will Fries | 3-Star | Offensive Tackle | Cranford Senior | Cranford, N.J. |
| Simeon Gatling | Cornerback | Dudley | Greensboro, N.C. | |
| Zack Gilbert | 3-Star | Defensive End | South Mecklenburg | Charlotte, N.C. |
| JJ Givens | 3-Star | Safety | Atlee | Mechanicsburg, Va. |
| Brad Hawkins | 4-Star | Wide Receiver | Camden | Camden, N.J. |
| Grant Holloway | 3-Star | Wide Receiver | Grassfield | Chesapeake, Va. |
| Austin Mack | 4-Star | Wide Receiver | Bishop Luers | Fort Wayne, Ind. |
| Conner O'Donnell | 3-Star | Wide Receiver | CFA Academy | Concord, N.C. |
| Julian Okwara | 3-Star | Linebacker | Audrey Kell | Charlotte, N.C. |
| Phillip Patterson | 3-Star | Safety | Bayside | Virginia Beach, Va. |
| Jovonn Quillen | Athlete | Hampton | Hampton, Va. | |
| Robert Washington | 4-Star | Running Back | Southlake Christian Academy | Huntersville, N.C. |
| Charles Wiley | 3-Star | Defensive End | Stockbridge | Stockbridge, Ga. |
A quick glance at the list of attendees shows that the group is largely comprised of athletes within easy driving distance of Tech's campus, although both Denmark and Pride have committed to making the long journey from South Carolina.
It's also worth nothing that just one of the three players currently committed to the Hokies for the 2016 class will be attending.
Wolfolk is the only one that will be able to make it out, with Byrd and O'Donnell staying at home this time around.
O'Donnell said last week he hadn't heard from his recruiter, Shane Beamer, about the event, explaining he "assumed it must be more for the uncommitted kids" like when he stopped by for a Junior Day last year.
Byrd was hoping to attend, but schoolwork got in the way: "I'm taking the ACT that day," he notes.
The test also prevented two other recruits from joining the staff in Blacksburg. Holloway and Patterson also said they would've attended had the ACT not gotten in the way.
For others, their reasons for giving the event a miss were a little less academically oriented.
"My little brother's birthday is this weekend, and I'm throwing him a surprise birthday party," Wiley said.
With the way the recruiting process is about to ramp up as they enter their senior seasons, it's hard to fault any of the athletes for taking a little personal time.
Jamari Logan, an unranked defensive tackle out of Norfolk's Booker T. Washington, says he'll likely be out of state because "my birthday's this Friday."
The team recently handed out a new round of offers for 2016ers, but as of yet, it doesn't seem as if any will be heading to Blacksburg this weekend.
However, Quillen, who was just offered Wednesday, is already making plans to see campus. He says he's planning on attending Tech's next Junior Day event on February 28. Armstrong is also aiming for that late February date.
DeBiase was offered by the Hokies years ago, but he's in a similar boat. He won't be able to attend this Junior Day, but says he's trying to make it back for another one as soon as he can.
But for others that will be making it down, they're anxiously awaiting the chance to get a good look at the team's facilities and meet with the staff.
"I'm looking forward to it," McCargo said. "It will be my first visit to Blacksburg."
It might seem strange that the staff is already focused on the next class so soon after inking the 2015 bunch, but that's the state of affairs these days in college football. The coaches have to start laying the groundwork now if they hope to see some of these names on letters of intent next signing day.
Comments
Alex before people go off the deep end about Shane not telling a recruit about this weekend, can you say whether the recruit said anything about still talking to SB regularly?
He's planning on coming up during spring for a practice.
I wouldn't worry too much about O'Connell..
TKP, ruining surprise birthday parties since 2010.
It's the next quotes that did Wiley's surprise in.
Wiley: "I'm getting him a cake and everything!"
Alex: "What's wrong with pie? You don't like pie?"
Wiley: "Umm... it's his birthday, so I got him a birthday ca-"
Alex: "Birthday pie? Birthday pies are delicious!"
Wiley: "yeah, look I have to go pick up that cake. Don't tell anyone about the party ok?"
Beat me to it by a wide, wide margin but I'll play, too
Not anymore you're not!
Great work Alex!
Damn I was hoping Levonta Taylor would be on that list. Current 5 star corner from ocean lakes. UVA looks to have the lead on this one. Fucking Chip West
It sounds like he is heading out of state. If he stays in state and picks UVa over us, that is just plain stupid. We are DBU.
That's what we thought about Blanding. Hopefully Levonta is tight with Alleyne and he spreads the good word.
Where did you hear he's heading out of state?
I think CC on TSL said he was most likely heading out of state. But who knows. It would be nice to land an in state stud, especially at a position where we develop NFL talent.
if he heads out of state and picks anyone over us that is just plain stupid. we are #DBU
I have a strange feeling that Taylor will be at the top of Burden's list.
A quick look at 247 shows that he was recruiting Alleyne and another of his ocean lakes teammates for ODU. So hopefully he's already laid some groundwork with Levonta
I do recall him saying that his biological father is a VT fan, so either that helps us or hurts us. Either way, DBU will be DBU with or without him. Sure would be great to have him though.
Based on his film, I really like Troy Pride Jr. He appears to be exceptional in man coverage, effectively taking away an entire side of the field. He would be a really nice pick up this year assuming we lose Kendall to the NFL after this season.
I am still hoping that Kendall sticks around to play in the worlds largest college football game. The players will never see another crowd like it in College or in the pro's.
Glad we're getting Eric Kumah on campus. Now let's get him to commit and add a second WR to the 2016 class before the spring thaw.
EDIT: Hey, will Zohn Burden be on campus for this? I wasn't sure if he's arrived at VT yet or not. This would be a great chance for him to dive in head first in recruiting.
I guess this answers the question.
So Coleman's taking care of the dipping? Excellent.
It was going to be JCC or Rogers. Leaders always lead
I thought it was "Haters gonna hate (hate, hate, hate, hate)"
Hate us cause they ain't us.
This is also a thing that I like.
It looks like the #2 player in the Class of 2016 will be on campus too. He goes to the same high school in NJ as Billy Ray Mitchell attended.
Sounds like a job for Associate Director of Recruiting, Mook Reynolds.
That's Mookington to you.
Tim Settle is coming to spend some time with him apparently.
He sure is....
That doesn't suck. Good to see that McCargo will be in the house also.
This pic sends chills.
Tell me about it. In terms of conditioning, dude looks college ready TOMORROW.
I can't wait to get all those commits who then decommit by summer!
Used to be a fan of Bells, then she got all vaccines are bad and preachy. Never understand why actors don't just stick to acting.
Wrong Kristen, Bell is very pro vaccine. Don't want to get into that talk though.
My bad. I forgot that she dropped off for me for another reason (famous kids thing) and must have just pushed her into the same category as Jenny and some Others.
Oh well...
Another guy to watch - from the Wiles recruiting area in NC - Dexter Lawrence from Wake Forest. Will probably be the #1 recruit in North Carolina this year. Will be recruited by basically everyone, but he'd be a nice get for an interior DL. Guy looks dominant when you see him play live
I love the big time DT's taking interest in VT (make no mistake, thank Corey Marshall and Luther Maddy for the elite high profile showcase against the Buckeyes.)
I just wish we were getting the same kind of draw from defensive ends. We are super loaded at defensive tackle for the first time I can remember. End need (especially if Dee Fullwood ultimately moves inside) is significant.
I guess Ekanem and Dadi are just going to have to put on an elite high profile showcase during our Labor Day win over OSU.
Saw that VT sent out offers to a bunch of GA recruits that are DEs. Agree huge need for DEs.
Think you can never get enough DTs though. Some of these athletic DTs and a good bit of LBs on the roster maybe gets to more 3 down linemen looks.
I always think that the way to competing with the big boys week in and week out is getting that defensive front depth.
I wouldn't worry too much about any guys not on the list for this weekend. According to CZY over on 247, we're really stepping things up this year, should have about 5 of these Junior Days. A couple years ago, we only did 1 or 2. I like it.
What does a Junior Day entail? Are the players in a camp like situation, trying to earn an offer? Or are we wine (errr..juice box) and dining them, trying to woo them?
Mostly this is a lot of showing recruits and their families the campus, facilities, academics, etc. The main focus of these events is to get kids familiar with the staff and the campus. All the coaches will talk to them, as will guys like Whit and Jones and probably a few current players. They might get some time in small groups with position coaches too. I've heard they're pretty fun and informative. Any kids that don't hold VT offers get a chance to get to know their recruiters a bit more, but they'll have to wait for summer camps to go out and prove they deserve a scholarship offer.
1. Who is worried?
2. The 2015 class, much like the 2014 class, was when we were supposed to "step it up" and contend for more top-tier talent. At this point, I believe it when it happens.
1. Well there is an entire section dedicated to kids who couldn't make it. Not sure what that achieves.
2. I'm not saying we're going to land every single one, but you can't deny that getting guys on campus more = more better. Just noting that the recruiting infrastructure improvements we've seen over the past couple years are continuing.
1. Alex practices this thing called journalism, he's reporting what he was told. He reached out to a set of prospects, and reported one subset who can make it, another that can't. The goal is to inform the reader more. He followed that up by giving some insight as to why some prospects couldn't make it. For instance, I didn't know the ACT would be such a conflict for so many recruits. Thank you, Alex.
2. I can't confirm or deny it. There are kids who commit without visiting, and kids don't after visiting a bunch. If I've learned anything from covering recruiting it's that each kid and family is unique in their approach and it's a fool's errand to generalize.
I appreciate Alex's work, but still it doesn't seem to accomplish much. Although yes, it is interesting to note the conflict with the ACT. I like the attention to detail, Alex, you're the man. Anyways, they missed this one, maybe they'll get to the next one. Big deal. The main point of my post was that we're getting more Junior Days organized. And yes, every kid is unique, but having more opportunities to get kids on campus to check things out can't be seen as anything less than a big plus.
What do you want him to accomplish other than informing the reader? I believe you are a member of some paid recruiting sites so you may know the list of recruits attending or not already, but I don't. So in fact Alex accomplished a lot by giving me the information about which recruits we are targeting, which recruits will be there and which won't, as well as tempering the "sky has fallen" nature of some fan responses to recruiting by offering valid reasons why some recruits aren't attending. Is that not enough to write an article? This isn't a recruiting website passing hearsay and conjecture off as fact, or a "leaning towards" headline. It's just giving us fans the information we might not normally be privy to.
And I don't think anyone is arguing that having kids on campus isn't good for recruiting. Just that it's not always necessary.
I definitely see what you're saying, but my own opinion is that I don't gain a whole lot from that, other than it opens things up for a bunch of, "WHY ISN'T X COMING TO CAMPUS??? RECRUITING SUCKS FIRE EVERYONE!!!!11one"
Which, happily, Alex did a fantastic job of mitigating off the bat by actually reporting and getting good info (ACT, personal commitments, etc.) and all that - and not that we've seen a bunch of that here anyways. I'd just personally prefer to focus on the guys that are visiting this weekend and discussing the coaches' thoughts on them and their thoughts on us.
actually what you're saying is that you want Alex to selectively report what he's told, which is not journalism. He reached out to a long list of kids that VT is recruiting and got a "yes" or a "no". And went further to find out if there was a reason if the answer was "no". He then is reporting the information that he received without filter. Is that not what good reporting should be?
Your point is that you don't get much from the not attending list. But I think that's wrong. I think you actually gain less from knowing who is attending than knowing the list of who is not attending, because it gives you the full picture of VT recruiting efforts. Without the non-attending list then I only have half the picture which doesn't d the staff justice in their effort.
Sure, there's going to be people who always say stuff like "shame on everyone" etc but that's not for Alex to try to dissuade. He needs to give the information. The fan needs to take it and hopefully act reasonably about it or go mental about it.
Plus, Alex and team showed last season that they follow up on specific recruits to get their comments on coaches and their visits, but they need to wait until they actually have the visit. And coaches can't comment on recruits anyway.
My goodness, it's one piece of feedback from one reader. Joe and Alex can do literally whatever they want with that information including nothing at all. My point there (aside from my main point about the increased number of Junior Days which = good), is that the writer can guide the discussion based on what he focuses on. With such a large chunk of the article focused on guys who won't be here this weekend, I think that takes away from us discussing who is. So while I appreciate the work that went into gather that information, and agree that in the interest of good journalism it should be presented, putting such a heavy focus on it takes away from what I think this should really be about - the guys who are here this weekend. But again, just the opinion of one reader.
And shoot, this has gotten so far away from what I was originally saying, it really doesn't matter anyways.
.... SO, how bout that Rashan Gary, huh? He looks like a stud.
nothing personal. Just discussing it with you and certainly not saying your throwing shade at Alex. I agree that the juicier info would be comments of the people attending, but they have to attend first no? Otherwise I think it would just be a lot of "looking forward to it" "can't wait to to get down there and meet everyone". And looking at the comments so far everyone seems to be discussing the people coming more than those that aren't.
anyway, no offense intended
True, and for that I'm very proud of the TKP community, given how easy it could be to spin something as simple as, "this guy's going to his kid brother's birthday party" into "he hates VT the sky is falling, etc. etc."
Party on.
It's a matter of perspective. Most readers only care about who is coming to Junior Day (30-50 prospects). Not who isn't coming (2,000+ prospects). Kudos to Alex for checking with guys that are known to have offers from VT, and seeing what they're up to, but it takes some additional context to avoid making a negative impression when reporting the fact that most of our offered recruits are not visiting for (a) Junior Day this weekend.
Key bit of background in this case is that we're hosting multiple (at least 3 Junior Days this semester). "The next Junior Day" is mentioned in passing, but there was no clear statement that this is the first of multiple Junior Days being hosted by VT this winter/spring and it's not a recruitment-killer for a prospect to miss this weekends event. By leaving that out, the reader could get the impression that we're screwing up our chances with these recruits by scheduling Junior Day for ACT weekend. When in fact the opposite is true - we are hosting multiple Junior Days to improve the odds that more of our top targets can attend one (or more of them.)
I've been around too many recruiting cycles to worry about when we will step up or not. We have the same problems we have always had, it usually shakes out about the same by next NSD.
If I'm trending up on anything, it's the inclusion of Burden and what he can do in state. I'm of the belief that a certain % of in-state kids are now going OOS as compared to 10-15 years ago due to technology both with parents (facetime/social media) and coaches (no geographical basis). But VT, I believe, has now crossed a threshold where we have room to improve in state. It may not be significant, but we lost 2 or 3 kids this year in-state that we should have got (Taylor, Ferrell and the WR who went to MSU, notably) and I think Burden and the resultant changes to the recruiting responsibilities may get us back to where we should be in VA. That said, we may lose 2 or 3 kids from Moorehead's area/responsibility to even that out.
It'll be interesting to see if Cornell is shifted out to Maryland/DC to cover AMO's previous territory. No clue how we're gonna cover the Midwest like he did though.
"I don't know how it is going to shake out, but if someone on your staff won a Super Bowl with the Baltimore Ravens, that person should probably be walking into the homes of Baltimore recruits sporting that Super Bowl ring."
-Anonymous Coach
That does make a heck of a lot of sense.
I muttered "hard to disagree with that" to myself when the anonymous coach said it...
and they were on the SAT days. i was a long time lurker on rivals and it was brutal reading about that.
Yeah, this. VT's junior days routinely fell on major testing days and failed to get guys on campus at all as a result. The staff done a considerably better job about that of late. I'm sure getting a good director of high school operations has helped on that front.
We offered Quillen a couple days ago. Even though he won't be attending he says VT is his dream school
That's a whole lot of Hokieness around him. Next you're going to tell me that Vick was his next door neighbor and Bruce Smith is his father's best friend.
And they aren't yet, we need to make that happen.
A Hampton Crabber calling VT his "dream school"
Times they are a-changin'
Tyrod's been paving the road with pro-VT vibes in recent years
At the press conference:
"Tyrod, what did you see at your 757 camp this year?"
-"No comment."
"What about your contract with the Ravens?"
-"No comment."
"What do you think of the goal-line call in the Super Bowl?"
-"You ask me the same questions every day. I have nothing to say to you."
...
-"Where can we find Hokie fan merchandise?"
"I'm glad you asked. http://shop.TheKeyPlay.com. And don't forget, Junior Day is this weekend."
Good stuff, Alex. Thanks. According to 247 5* DT Rashan Gary (mentioned above), 4* DE Kyree Campbell, 4* WR Tino Ellis, 4* DE Ron Johnson, and 3* OT Landon Dickerson will all be there as well.
If you think Nijman is big, Kyree Campbell will blow your mind. He is in the 6'9 290 range playing DE.
Sounds like a heck of a TE/QB
"He is in the 6'9 290 range playing DE".
A 6' 9" defensive end? Like this guy?
There are no hormones in the chicken, I promise.
Let's wait about 20 more years and revisit that...
IDK if it's been posted, but is anyone else kinda laughing that we could have a player named Charles Wiley and his position coach would be Charley Wiles?
Yes, it took a minute for me to wrap my head around it when I first saw it.
First time I saw it I was like: He's a coach that's got to be a mistake
2016 Franklin (Reisterstown, MD) Wide Receiver Steven Smothers will be there.
Smothers? Sounds more like a DB.......
Reports that Kareem Felder has committed this morning!
Always good to get those DB's but I still want to see some "big uglies" on the line.
Love seeing all the pictures coming out of Junior day. Looks like VT even got some of the cheerleaders or dancers to help.
Where can I find pictures from junior day? I haven't seen anything
TKP recruiting Twitter account for starters. Also search for #sandman16 on Twitter.
This was a heck of a Junior Day. Tech's staff done good.
Any verbals?
At least one. I mean, who could say no to a pie eating contest and a carol lee donut eating contest?
Yes they did a hell of a job today!!! Some good looking prospects were there that I saw!
Oh yes, by all reports the staff crushed this about as much as Whit crushed Buzz's introduction press conference. Saw recruits in/around Merryman most of the day, and ran into Tim Settle at the basketball game. Side note: Rashan Gary is a large, bad man.