TigerNet interviewed Hokies DB commit Kareem Felder, and it seems like his recruitment is still wide open.
http://www.tigernet.com/story/football/Felder-talks-Clemson-offer-wantin...
Felder claims a top three of Virginia Tech, Ohio State and Clemson and there are things that he likes about all three.
"What they can do for me as a defensive back is the biggest factor for me," he said. "Virginia Tech - I have a good relationship with their defensive backs coach. There's a lot of honesty. It's a way to get my business done at Virginia Tech. Ohio State says that they will bring the best out of me and they tell me that I would have the chance to play in national championships and bowl games. It's a tough choice. Now that Shaq is at Clemson, I have to consider them. I like Clemson a lot."
One of the biggest factors working in Clemson's favor is that Smith is 100-percent committed and he and Felder have always wanted to be college teammates."I just saw the interview with Shaq and that's exciting. I would love to play with my brother," Felder said. "I look up to him on and off the field, so that's a good feeling. We go back to the seventh grade or eighth grade. We like playing on the same team. He's always told me that he wanted me to play behind him as a defensive back."
Felder said his final decision won't come until after football season.
Comments
Ahh yes, the wonders of the recruits who 'commit' to schools, yet still openly list a Top 3 or 5 afterwards...
Another RB recruit did the same thing this weekend. Commited to USCe but is still taking 5 official and numerous unofficial visits to make sure he is sure of his commitment.
The RB in question is CJ Freeman, former teammate of Mook Reynolds. VT is probably going to be one of the 5 official visits FWIW.
I'm glad our commit has us in his top 3.
If he gets to act with the mentality of a 17 year old boy then I get to act with the mentality of a 17 year old girl with it comes to this stuff
I'm ok with that
My momma always asked me why I would waste time liking someone who didn't like me back?
Ha! We do it here with legs. You like me, you really like me!
Well, can't say I blame you.
First Rule of Recruiting: Don't depend on commits until Signing Day.
Second Rule of Recruiting: DON"T DEPEND ON COMMITS UNTIL SIGNING DAY
sucks to hear, but as has been stated so many times before why not enjoy the time at other schools. Maybe he just wants to experience the pomp and circumstance that comes with recruiting trips. Fair enough, it will never happen again.
I feel the same way. However, if you commit, then at least act like a commit. Don't commit and then throw out top 3s and what not. Defeats the whole point of committing.
How does one act like a commit?
Removed.
EDIT: Too soon? ....apparently...
Go ahead and tell me it wasn't on anyone else's mind. I would almost believe it.
Nazi imagery probably isn't the best thing to post...
Well thanks for bringing that correlation
Like Mook did recruiting other beautiful recruiticorns to come play in the happy land of hokieville
mook also went on all his officials and was considered by some other schools as a possible flip up until the end.
Huh. I thought Clemson was his only other official. Was that just the only official he took after he verbaled to us?
hmm... you could be right. point is recruits can enjoy the recruiting process and still be committed to VT as Mook was.
A recruit taking other visits and offers after he's already made a verbal commit says to me "I really like my choice, but I am open to becoming more informed about the available options." I have no problem with that whatsoever.
A recruit who talks about his "top three" after he's already made a verbal commit says to me "I picked one just to have a safety net, but I'm hoping for something better."
I dunno, maybe its just semantics, but the second one feels different to me.
The problem is that with the number of scholarships that programs are offering nowadays, a lot of time it's "first come first serve". Athletes, especially non-elite athletes, don't have the luxury of waiting for the perfect offer. Athletes who hope to leverage a monster senior season into a scholarship offer at a dream school are best advised to commit to a school early and then decommit if their dream offer arrives.
I can understand that. Shoot, even regular students applying to colleges often have a "safety school" they apply to in case they don't get their dream offer.
It just sucks to be the safety school.
He went on officials to Tennessee and Michigan, per the 24/7 timeline. No mention of Clemson, maybe unofficial.
Leg for the research. It must have been unofficial. I think he visited Clemson then scheduled his press conference, and everyone was having kittens until "sources" posted on here that he was a VT lean.
That was perhaps my favorite TKP day ever.
I mean, this is one way to do it... (note the hair, not the odd body positioning)
What...what are you they doing here? It looks like #7 is giving #12 a fake baby and #12 thinks the baby just barfed on him.
#7 is JCC I think. I know I remember watching him on ESPN at a nike 7s camp with the VT cut in his hair and he was doing work!
Yes, 7 is JC from one of the camps before he enrolled at VT. But the talks of "acting like a commit" are stupid after we got all happy when we flipped Durkin, Clark, and Lawson. It's the nature of the beast.
No, see when they flip TO us it's totally cool, it's only not cool if they flip FROM us. /s
First rule about what????
I am not surprised a recruit is keeping their decision open. I am surprised that we are not Levonta Taylor's #1. These Virginia kids have no loyalty to their home state.
Why should they?
agreed. This is a really tired out notion. VT needs to win the hearts and minds of recruits everywhere and not depend on their allegiance to stay close to home or play in-state. It's not as if the state is giving them anything to do so. It just makes it a better argument for VT because they are close to home and the only relevant D1 football program in the Power5 conferences in VA.
Maybe I am just old fashioned and like the notion that the state public schools are a representation of the people in that state. I mean that more along the lines of the programs they offer and the type of research they do. People in the state take pride in their teams as they feel a connection. Growing up in Ohio, getting the scholarship offer from Ohio State was like the holy grail. It is a pride thing in representing your state on the national level. College sports becoming a business/minor league has really derailed this, but I think this notion still holds for more of the Olympic sports where the school/education is as important as the sport.
Sorry, but LOTS of Ohio kids leave the state. One reason Michigan is referred to as the University of Northern Ohio is the number of Ohio kids that end up at Michigan.
There are probably 40 kids from Ohio on the Michigan & Michigan State rosters. Then throw in ~15 each to Kentucky, WVU & PITT and a half dozen or so to Notre Dame & Indiana each. That's about about 20 players in each class leaving the state for just those 7 schools.
And other schools aren't just getting scraps. Yes, on the heels of a Nat'l championship season Ohio State did get 5 of the top 7. But OSU, even as the only power 5 school in the state, also only signed 5 of the state's 15 four star prospects and only 6 of the top 20 in the state.
He's very much considering Virginia. Does that count?
The loyalty to the state argument doesn't do it for me. Taylor or any other Virginia kid doesn't owe a Virginia school anything. Just like Kendall Fuller didn't owe Maryland anything. And I didn't owe Connecticut anything when I decided to go out of state to Virginia Tech. If anything, it's a failure of Beamer Co. to land talent in its own back yard.
Do you have any information or idea on why he's so high on Virginia and seemingly not interested in us? I mean, that is really just not adding up whatsoever. IMO, he will probably end up going out of state. This is likely London's last year unless he makes a bowl game. How they continue to post losing records and lose to us, yet still attract some top in-state talent, is just beyond me. Is our recruiting/perception really THAT bad in VA?
My initial reply regarding Virginia was a tongue-in-cheek joke. He's a kid we've tried to interview and have no success getting ahold of. I don't have many insights on him.
Some kids prefer Virginia over Virginia Tech, others want to leave VA entirely. Recruiting is all about relationships. If the school and player don't have one, proximity doesn't matter.
He's related to Eli Harold IIRC and has a lot of the same connections to UVA that Harold did (Thoroughbreds, etc.)
From chatter I hear, the only way we would have a shot with Taylor is if his mom divorced his step-dad.
I don't mind kids not giving in state schools preference, but I am pretty tired of them going to FSU. They just got Levonta Taylor. Their recruiter, Odell Haggins, has had soooo much success in Virginia and probably other states. I really wonder what he tells these guys.
"I really wonder what he tells these guys."
Probably mostly truth. You can play for a national title contender year in and year out that also produces NFL talent, Heisman trophy winners, and work in a state of the art facility. Oh yeah, we're also notorious for having some of the hottest girls in the nation.
I hate FSU just as much as you, but it's gotta be a pretty easy sell to 17 and 18 year olds, no matter what their hometown.
I will be very surprised if he sign his LOI with us come signing day, don't get me wrong I hope he does though.
Ah the chick from "the love contract".. so hot
You mean Rashida Jones, who was on NBC for years on both The Office and Parks & Recreation?
The chick from the love contact..unbelievable
Think she was in the Social Network also.
And randomly the voice of every single Southwest Airlines commercial that comes on during March Madness
Don't forget her best work, I Love You Man... not really her best work as she had a small part at best, but what a great movie!
And then there was that softcore erotica porno she was in on skinemax that obviously never heard of mor seen in my entire life.
Wait! What?! GIFs or it didn't happen
U mean the love contract wasnt her best role? lol
Ironic statement of the article: "Virginia Tech - I have a good relationship with their defensive backs coach. There's a lot of honesty."
Until the LOI is signed, there is no such thing as a commitment. Coaches know this, athletes know this, fans know this. That's always been the case.
Athletes are just more comfortable stating the obvious now then they have been in the past. Fans shouldn't hate on athletes for being 100% honest, I know the coaches don't. They know the game.
A player who commits to a school, but talks as if his recruitment is wide open, is not being 100% honest by definition. The honest thing would be not to commit.
And what about the schools that offer a scholarship, but later change or pull an offer. It's a tango and it takes two to dance.
I'm definitely not a "Virginia Tech Is Always Innocent" guy, but I don't think we have any type of reputation of pulling offers. We do bump kids to greyshirt, but I honestly believe they are made aware of the numbers when they commit and know that may happen. I have unfortunately been following VT recruiting for a very long time now, and I can't think of a single instance where a kid had an offer pulled. I can think of a few instances where VT has stood by kids who got injured after committing and kids with minor legal issues.
To me, a commitment means that a kid is saving a scholarship slot. So when he goes out and acts like he's not committed, it's a cake-eat-too situation. We wouldn't know this, but in this situation, I would be fine with Gray calling Felder up and telling him that if he is looking around, so are we. He is holding a DB slot, so if he backs out of it, we need to have another ready to fill it. IIRC, that happened to Ashton White last year.
Didn't Tech recently switch a scholarship offer to a greyshirt offer and the athlete decommit?
Thinking of Damien Dozier?
http://www.thekeyplay.com/virginia-tech-football-recruiting/2014/12/8337...
Seemed like a mutual parting of ways, but may have involved moving to a greyshirt.
In the grand scheme of things, Virginia Tech is a "good guy", but this is what Dozier told Koma.
http://www.thekeyplay.com/virginia-tech-football-recruiting/2014/12/8337...
Yeah, that's his perspective. And I'm sure it feels like we ditched him.
But I have always understood that these kids know that they could get bumped. Maybe they don't like to hear that and maybe the recruiting coach downplays it. But Dozier is saying he was called out of the blue and greyshirting was dropped on him. Maybe that's how it happened.
I have no reason to believe Dozier is lying. Koma did that interview, but I spoke to him a couple of times and he seemed like a genuine person. I also spoke with an administrator at VES who had nothing but nice things to say about him.
When I met with Bud last summer, he told me Beamer Co. won't pull an offer, but will bump to greyshirt. He also explained Tech doesn't like to send out offers without make sure they are committable. A lot of programs offer to offer, just to get their foot in the door, in case they plan on accepting a commitment. Tech doesn't do that.
I'm thinking of a WR from trinity christian that took an official visit to CVille after being a VT commit and we dropped him.
Name? year? Link to story?
I think I remember what he's talking about. Don't remember a name or year, I don't really follow recruiting. I believe the message board consensus was that it was a mutual thing.
That's right. And if we revoked his scholarship offer we'd be just as dishonest.
Yet we do not. And we've heard of stories where others schools do just that, at the last minute.
The problem comes with the term "commitment". Fans hear that word and assumes it means that the athlete is 100% invested in a school and has no desire to even look anywhere else. But that's not what the word commitment means when it comes to recruiting. "Committing to a school" has a specific meaning for coaches and athletes in regards to the recruitment process and both parties understand what's involved.
Fans blame athletes in a way coaches never do because coaches understand what that word means in the context of the recruiting world.
oh really? <--that's a link btw
Recruiting drama: I love that I hate it and I hate that I love it.
Yes really. <-- These are all links btw
Wiles probably would have said whatever was necessary to get that kid to sign, there is a reason that moment is described as "embarrassing". Coaches and athletes both know that until the LOI is signed and processed anything can happen. Coaches use offers as a recruiting tactic and athletes use commitments to reserve their spot in line.
Fans can either get with the program or spend the next few decades questioning the character of teenagers who are involved in a process that fans don't understand.
There's a big difference between renegging on a commitment a year prior to signing day - like what happened several times with our class last year - and renegging the day before signing day, which leaves you with zero alternatives.
In your job or house strawman, there's nothing keeping the employer from hiring the next candidate in line, or the homeowner from accepting the next offer. But since there's a signing day, there's a huge impact with late-term renegs. You just don't have the opportunity to find a replacement - you stopped recruiting other players, your remaining targets have selected other schools.
COM'MIT' MENT/. Obligation that restricts freedom of action , Dedication, Allegiance, Loyalty, Faithfulness. Obviously this word has a new meaning , with these high school kids.
Exactly, it has a new meaning. Not just with high school kids though, let's not get it twisted. It has a different meaning when used in the context of recruiting. Athletes, coaches, recruiting services, athletic departments, they all use the word to mean something different than fans do.
Fans need to stop getting hung on up on semantics.
I just don't buy that. Committing to a school has to mean something. I understand that verbally committing isn't legally binding and that the kids can still choose to go elsewhere. If dream school number one comes knocking, I get jumping. That doesn't bother me. What bothers me is apparently kids are treating a verbal commitment as "Oh, I like this school." If all you do is like the institution then come out and say it. List a top 3 or top 5 and put VT as number one. It seems to me that the act of committing is calling a person (coach) and saying "I am committed to this team and will attend your school. You can count on me." I don't understand defending completely opening up your recruitment as if you have no prior commitments to an institution. I'm not talking legally, I'm talking morally. Maybe I'm different. If I call you and tell you I'm going to do something, if I commit, I don't openly and actively look for a way out. Unforeseen circumstances and opportunities of a lifetime notwithstanding, I fully plan on following through. Is that not a normal sentiment?
Also, I've seen you stating that the term "commitment" means little and something different to the schools/students, but I've missed where you mentioned exactly what that term means. It's common knowledge to the players and coaches, yet the "new definition" of the act is unknown to me.
Really? You've never looked for better jobs than the one you currently have? What if I ran a business and I found a supplier who could give me a better price or product? Would it be immoral of me to "decommit" from my old supplier? What if I put a bid for a house only to realize before the paperwork is signed that there is a better deal and a better house down the road? Is it really immoral to do one's due diligence when it comes to money? Deciding which school to attend can be the biggest financial decision in a lot of these athletes lives. Literally. NFL money is no joke. Hell, even if you never go pro, playing for the right football program will open a ton of doors for you.
An athlete would be doing himself a disservice if they
1) didn't ensure they had a roster spot somewhere
2) didn't constantly reevaluate whether their current school is the best place for them to reach their maximum potential.
Exactly
This.
Imagine if he starts flipping kids to VT while on his visits to other schools. He'd be like, a super mole
There was a guy who was asked to leave an official visit (Florida I believe?) because he was actively recruiting other guys to another school.
I thought it was pretty funny.
It was a Tennessee guy at Auburn. He was wearing all Tennessee stuff. Although the rumor is that he got asked to leave for drug stuff. Apparently the actively recruiting to other schools happens a decent amount and coaches don't do much about it
Ah that's it.
Weird to me that coaches wouldn't do something about it, I'd kick them off campus for sure.
Hopefully Felder is just taking a page out Mook Reynolds book and looking around while recruiting for Tech at the same time. Honestly if he does go elsewhere, I am confident we'll get an equal or better commit to replace him. There is an abundance of DB talent this year and unlike DE we have a proven track record of sending guys to the league.
So many LOL's in this thread!
I'm so late to the gif party...I'll just toss out a meme
What's the old rule? Do not follow kids, animals...and a string of excellent TKP gif's...
"You can have that!"
"You can do that"
thus highlighting the stark difference between "can" and "should"
Ring doesn't go on the finger until Signing Day. Whatever. Just got to keep working.
that's the spirit, we just have to focus on the job at hand and keep chopping wo...dangit Moorehead
Looks like an Ohio State flip is looming
just saw this on 247. Meyer is really going for the jugular for that loss. /s
He gone
anything official on this?
OSU flips Felder, we flip 4* Mark Birmingham hopefully. It all evens out.
That would be sweet. Its so weird seeing Duke with 2 of the top 5 VA players
He Gone...
Wayne Davis gonna take his spot this weekend.
I never worry about DB commits...we will get PLENTY...Wish him luck wherever he goes, unless it's against us!