Since committing to the Hokies in late February, 2016 CB Troy Pride has been a traveling man.
After making the lengthy trip from his home in Greer, S.C. to Blacksburg for a Junior Day, Pride has taken a variety of visits to other interested schools.
In March, he stopped by UNC. In April, he took in South Carolina. In June, he swung by Kentucky, and in July, he returned to Virginia Tech for the team's big barbecue for recruits.
Most recently, Pride has taken a look at some even more prominent programs. He's fresh off an official visit to Notre Dame to see the Fighting Irish play USC last weekend, and he made appearances at Clemson and Tennessee to catch games on the first two weekends of October.
It's a packed schedule that has some of Tech's coaching staff a bit worried about the strength of Pride's commitment to the Hokies. Pride admits that he's gotten an earful from Bud Foster in the past about his decision, even if his primary recruiter has been more relaxed about the whole process.
"Coach (Torrian) Gray has expressed for me that it's best for me to do what I need to do to make the right decision for me, but I've gotten the feeling from Coach Beamer and Coach Foster that they really don't want me taking more visits," Pride said. "He's actually called me before and said 'why do you need take visits if you're committed to us?'"
Pride acknowledges that he understands that consternation, but is placing his focus on following Gray's advice at this point.
"They've expressed their feelings about what's going on, but Coach Gray really just pretty much told me, 'do what's best for you, do your thing so you know where exactly where you want to go, and if that's here, then that's here, but if it's somewhere else, it's somewhere else,'" Pride said. "He's really been just really cool through the process and he's really let me be who I am."
So while he insists he's "still very much committed" to the Hokies at this point, Pride is also doing his best to survey his other options.
When Notre Dame offered Pride back in June, he knew he wanted to get a chance to visit South Bend, and he called his first visit to campus a "phenomenal" one.
"It was my first official visit with my family, all of us going at the same time, it was really good," Pride said. "The campus was nice. I expected it to be bigger, but it was even better because it was kind of more close knit and there was a lot of stuff in one small area, so you could kind of access everything. The commute around campus was about five or 10 minutes, so that was good. Just seeing it wouldn't too overwhelming for me."
The Irish's matchup with the Trojans also provided Pride with a good chance to experience the atmosphere under the gaze of "Touchdown Jesus."
"It's a great rivalry, one of the greatest in the nation, so it was a great game to go to, and they came out with a win, which made it even better because everyone was happy," Pride said.
Pride was also eager to get a better look at Tennessee after they extended him an offer in August. When Pride headed down to Knoxville on Oct. 10, he got the chance to catch another thrilling match when the Volunteers bested Georgia 38-31.
"I got a chance to see them go out there and work and have a great game and they got the win as well, so it looks like I'm kind of a good luck charm for teams so far, going to games they can win," Pride said.
Pride noted that visit was unofficial and more "spur of the moment," given Tennessee's proximity to his hometown. Accordingly, he didn't get an especially thorough tour of campus, but he still noted some similarities to South Bend.
"I know Tennessee football is the real deal, they had great facilities, pretty similar to Notre Dame," Pride said. "Campus was a lot bigger, but at the same time the way that they did stuff and the things that they had were very similar. It was a great game at Rocky Top."
Pride says he doesn't have any more visits planned in the near future, but he has one school left on his wishlist: Virginia Tech.
"I want to get up to Virginia Tech and see their game day atmosphere, and how they prepare for that, because I haven't been up there for a game," Pride said. "I've been up for a Junior Day and for the barbeque, but I haven't got the chance to see them go up against someone so I've got to check that out."
He was set to get his first look at a Lane Stadium crowd when Ohio State came to town in August, but his coach took issue with the thought of him missing a weekday practice.
"We had a game that week and my coach pretty much said 'if you don't practice, you don't play' so I had to go finish that game, and that was eventually a good game for me, so it turned out pretty well," Pride said.
Now, Pride is targeting Tech's final home game on Nov. 21 against UNC for a visit. But if another conflict keeps him home once more, he admits it's "no stress" and he'll "definitely try to get to campus pretty soon" whether the Hokies are playing or not.
Even without catching a game in person, Pride has kept his eye on how Tech's performed this season. With young players like Adonis Alexander, Mook Reynolds and Terrell Edmunds getting a chance to shine in the secondary early due to some key injuries, Pride says he's definitely taken notice of the trend.
"That's very encouraging for me, and I definitely like to see that," Pride said. "But at the same time, the mindset I have coming in to any place is I want to play as early as possible regardless of what's going and regardless of what's happening. I want to play regardless. I understand if there are injuries and stuff, but I want to play even if there weren't injuries, I want to get on the field, even if everybody's there."
However, Pride's focus on the team's performance has hardly yielded only positive signs about the program. The Hokies' 3-4 record has the calls for Frank Beamer's job growing ever louder, and Pride admits that he hears them too.
"I feel like that factors in because I don't want to be left out with a coaching staff that really didn't recruit me or want me as much," Pride said. "But at the same time, as long as Coach Gray's there and he's holding it down on D-block, then I feel like I'll be secure."
Pride seems quite enamored with his would-be position coach, noting that he just spoke with Gray on Sunday and the pair talks "pretty frequently" these days.
"Coach Gray is still the man," Pride said. "He's the one who offered me, he's the one who stuck his neck out for me, so I definitely respect him and appreciate him."
Indeed, it was Gray's "boldness" that Pride cited as a major factor in his decision in the immediate aftermath of his commitment, making it clear that he valued the Hokies for taking a chance on him and offering before any other program would.
That would seem to be a major factor in Pride's loyalty to Virginia Tech, even as he gets a chance to evaluate the merits of programs that only expressed interest in him in the last few months.
"They were great visits, and my family and I need to sit down and talk about this past visit, but I'm still very much committed," Pride said. "The visits are just for me to see the campus and everything...I wouldn't say it takes me away from Virginia Tech, it's just for my reference and my understanding so I can see what they have to offer."
Pride hopes to end this exploratory process in the next months, as he attempts to strike a tricky balance between respecting the Hokies and thoroughly investigating his full array of college options.
"I'm hoping to wind it down right after the season, maybe a December type deal because I definitely don't want to be running around stringing teams along like that," Pride said. "I want to be solid and know exactly where I want to go. If that means taking 10 visits, I'll take 10 visits. If it's taking one more, I'll take one more. There's no set number, but I want to finish to where I'm not going all the way until signing day and trying to make it dramatic."
Comments
I don't know how this coach of his can sleep at night knowing he cost us the OSU game and in effect, probably the rest of our season. Yes, that's the one thing i took away from this whole article. Shame on me.
if hes a good luck charm why hasn't he been at ALL the games! im pretty sure his commitment would be as solid as they come if we were sitting at 7-0 right now and #1 in the country. who do we need to talk to to make sure he doesn't miss anymore games??????
Glad to hear Torrian's versed in not being a creep! Kid has an awesome thing going and should be enjoying himself.
Hard decision's over. He'd be foolish not to have a backup plan and not enjoy his last year of HS
Something about this just bothered me when I read it, and is still rubbing me the wrong way. I'm sure it's pretty common for coaches to say things like this in such situations, but it feels like a bully tactic. Hopefully it's a bit out of context.
Likewise. I know this is the way the staff used to handle recruiting, as in they were hands-off on kids that were committed elsewhere and Beamer got upset when kids committed to VT would visit elsewhere. He felt like an agreement was an agreement, but that's just not how recruiting works. The fact that Bud still has this mentality bugs me, too, but even more so is the disconnect in strategy between Bud and Torrian. Whereas Bud wants Troy to lock down and be done, Torrian is encouraging him to make sure he's making the right decision. The latter approach, I think, builds a much better relationship. But then, too, it seems Troy is pretty wedded to Torrian (based on his quote), so if there's staff turnover, I worry about the commitment. Guess that is to be expected, anyway.
Maybe it is more of a good cop bad cop strategy then a disconnect. Gray clearly has a good relationship with him and is letting him know, do what is best for you, while Foster is saying we need you and want you on this team, badly. I don't think we can speculate too much.
Either way, I like Pride. Seems well spoken and I like everything he said. He's approaching it the right way. I especially like that he didn't seem to upset about missing anOSU game. Said, I had to take care of that game. That shows commitment.
Dabo has a policy that once you commit your offer will get pulled if you visit anywhere else. But he fully encourages the players to visit elsewhere before they commit.
That is a sensible approach
im probably in the minority, but I really like that. Do your homework, study, know what you want, visit and then commit. The only exception I would give if and only if the head coach leaves before you arrive on campus
I like that approach as well.
Wake me up on signing day. He may be fully committed, but his actions don't reflect that. And if he's not fully committed, that sucks, but thats ok too (I just don't like the pretending).
I got the impression that he just wanted to get a bunch of free trips to see some football games, but that's just my impression.
This is par-for-the-course behavior from any recruit. I don't see how taking visits contradicts a commitment, which is verbal and completely non-binding. He wants to make sure he's making the right decision. Nearly all recruits do this. The ones that commit to a school and stop taking calls from coaches or visits to other schools are few and far between.
Please don't misunderstand me. I'm not saying its not within his right. I'm just saying I put ZERO stock in his words. I've seen too many last minute "flips" to buy into the "verbal commitment" that doesn't come with actions that reflect a COMMITMENT. And yes, visits count.
I hope this guy's a hokie, but I'm not counting on it until he signs the dotted line.
I'm with you. Maybe it should be called a "verbal non-commitment." Or what if it's called a "Like"?
Or we could start telling all recruits that we are making a commitment to them starting as Freshman, winning multiple championships, being drafted early into the NFL, and earning millions of dollars. Because, if we don't follow through, no big deal right?
I may be missing some sarcastia, but I'm fairly certain that's exactly what most college coaches tell recruits.
aw man, this is gonna turn out just like that Mook kid. He says he's committed then takes a bunch of visits and we never know where he's gonna end up /s #Beamer4Prez
Good on him if I was a highly touted recruitcorn I would take all the free trips to meet all the "coeds" and get all the free swag I could even if I 100% knew what school I wanted to go to...
Did he make a trip to Louisville? If he did, I think we lost him.
BUT DO THEY HAVE POTENTIALLY DISCOUNTED HARDEES?!?! I THOUGHT SO!
They have all you can eat papa johns
Dude is a stud for Greer.
He is a finalist for South Carolina's 'Mr. Football' and is having a great senior year.
He is a prototypical VT multi-skilled DB and will flourish here.
I just hope the (likely) coaching changes don't mess up the deal because he will be a good one.
There's an interesting debate to be had over how big of a deal losing a few Beamer/Foster recruits would be in the scheme of trying to get a coach in here who would be rebuilding the program anyway.
It's hard to be particularly dialed in to recruiting this year. With a coaching change, who knows which will actually sign with us.
I wonder if what Spurrier did (leave halfway through the season so someone in house gets a try out at HC) could actually work to our benefit for recruiting. if Bud takes over mid-season and, potentially, makes the case for staying on as HC, that would help keep our recruits stable (at least on the defensive side, assuming he looks to bring in another OC).
On the other hand, if it's not obvious that Bud is going to stay, then you have a truly interim coaching staff (as opposed to simply implied) trying to recruit kids throughout the rest of the season. I don't like that scenario.
[/rambling]
Yeah, not be pessimistic. Trying not to be, but I'm worried he won't go with us after the end of the season. I'm just not holding my hopes up (unless of course we win out).
"But at the same time, as long as Coach Gray's there and he's holding it down on D-block, then I feel like I'll be secure."
I wonder if this is enough to keep him on the hook. Guess time will tell.
Helps that Coach Gray would be a top candidate for DC should Foster leave for another program after Beamer retires. My guess is that if Foster got the HC gig somewhere else, Wiles would be his DC.
I'm pretty sure Foster has said exactly that, that Wiles would be his choice.
Much to my chagrin.
Good for him. Take all the visits you can. Visiting a football cathedral like Notre Dame has got to be pretty awesome
This has all the trappings of your girlfriend dating other guys.
She might come back to you. She might not.
You can still take her out to dinner, but don't overspend on Christmas.
cash money comment
"I'll be there on the wedding (signing) day, but don't ask me not to see other guys in the meantime."
Except for the fact that VT is also talking to other people...
But as far as I know VT does not offer non commitable offers outside of grades.
What about that O'Donnell kid from NC?
well, not for that scholarship. I mean, when we offer, we're stuck unless they bail, right? Or is that naive of me?
I think that generally, an offer is dependent on whether there is a spot available when someone commits. If someone waits too long, VT might give the spot to someone else.
When someone gives a verbal, they take one of the available spots.
If your girlfriend is dating other guys, she has stopped being your girlfriend.
I'd also stop taking her out to dinner. Netflix and chill only.
Anyone who's upset about this needs to fucking chill.
He's an 18-year-old kid who is about to make one of the most important decision of his life. Let him make the most educated decision possible (and let him have a little fun on the way). It he stays on board, awesome. If he decommits, so be it... it means that someone who really wants to come to VT gets a scholarship.
I don't think anyone is upset