Though many of the Hokies' top targets for the 2017 and 2018 cycles have been shuttling in and out of Blacksburg this spring, several took some time out for a high-profile Nike camp at Northern Virginia's Centreville HS this weekend.
None of the prospects the Hokies are most actively recruiting managed to earn an invitation to Nike's vaunted "The Opening" event in Oregon as part of the event — those honors went to Maryland products RB Anthony McFarland, DE Chase Young and DE Joshua Paschal, and while all three hold Tech offers, only Paschal has visited Blacksburg recently. Nevertheless, a variety of the high schoolers that the Hokies most highly covet from the DMV region got a chance to strut their stuff at the camp.
In particular, 2018 QB DeJuan Ellis of Arlington's Bishop O'Connell HS raised eyebrows during some of the individual drills. He managed a 4.5 second 40-yard dash and a 38.3" vertical jump, and placed fifth overall in Nike's (unofficial) athlete rankings for the camp.
Top 20 unofficial Nike+ Football Ratings from today's @TheOpening D.C. regional. Full marks later this week! pic.twitter.com/HxVcyPgD1E— Brian Stumpf (@Stumpf_Brian) April 18, 2016
As merely a rising junior, Ellis is still a relatively unknown commodity — none of the major recruiting services have assigned a rating yet — but the Hokies are already hot on his trail.
After wrapping up his testing drills at the camp, Ellis told The Key Play that he's fresh off a visit to Blacksburg on March 31. While he visited campus last summer and met some of Frank Beamer's staff, he said this most recent trip to meet Justin Fuente and company was "something new" for him.
"I just loved their energy down there," Ellis said. "He's got a lot of people that are working around him that were great, so it was nice to go down to Virginia Tech and see if we can make something happen."
Ellis noted that he got a tour of the team's athletic facilities on the trip, but he also spent some time getting to know the players that could end up as his teammates one day.
"I hung out with the football players in the locker room, danced around a little bit with them, stayed for a practice and had a meal with them," Ellis said.
The QB happened to be in town to see the Hokies scrimmage that night, and he kept a careful eye on how Fuente handled the players under center, given his reputation for developing stars at the position.
"He's really strict about their quarterbacks when he's coaching their quarterbacks, so they're in good hands there," Ellis said.
Ellis also came away impressed with new OC/QBs coach Brad Cornelsen after sitting in on a position meeting, watching them "going over defenses and the new offense they're putting in."
But he made sure to spend one-on-one time with Fuente as well, since the head Hokie apparently needed to clear the air a bit with Ellis.
"We had a little miscommunication," Ellis said. "He offered me a while ago, but I wasn't too sure about it, so I just went up there and confirmed it with him."
With that offer affirmed, Ellis says he's now "looking forward to working with" Tech's staff in the future.
2017 WR Hezekiah Grimsley of Williamsburg's Lafayette HS came away similarly enamored with the Hokies after making a spring visit of his own on March 22.
"It was a great visit, they put a lot of knowledge in my head," Grimsley said. "They're one of the top schools I want to go to."
Grimsley was on campus on just the second day of spring practice, and he says Fuente's emphasis on pushing the pace was immediately apparent.
"I like how fast they moved around, they all know what they're doing, I like that fast tempo," Grimsley said.
But Fuente also took a few minutes to slow things down and talk things through with Grimsley in his office after practice.
"We sat down in his office and talked a little bit about what would happen if I came to Virginia Tech and what I would get out of that," Grimsley said. "I like how he throws the ball, and wants something for me. I feel like I have a future there, he said I'd play early and I think I will."
Grimsley said he also met the bulk of the rest of the staff, including would-be position coach Holmon Wiggins.
"I could tell he was a great coach and knows what he's doing and wants the best for me," Grimsley said.
Yet Grimsley was hardly the only prospect in attendance that earned Wiggins' attention on a spring visit. 2017 DB Jonathan Sutherland of Alexandria's Episcopal HS said he got the full court press from Wiggins, Fuente and DL coach Charley Wiles on his Tech trip on March 26.
"Overall the trip was great," Sutherland said. "I got to see a spring practice and they practiced with intensity, and I liked the way the coaches coach the players."
For his first ever visit to Tech, Sutherland says he got a full campus tour, and then ate lunch with the staff, Fuente included.
"He has something big going on with the way the coaches coach the game and the schemes that I'd fit in," Sutherland said.
Specifically, he says the Hokies see him fitting in at rover in Bud Foster's scheme. Tech's longtime DC doubles as Sutherland's area recruiter, and he says the visit cemented his comfort level with Foster and his interest in the program.
"He has one of the best defenses in the nation with his scheme and everything like that, so it makes me real comfortable and I think it might be a good fit," Sutherland said.
It only helps matters that safeties coach Galen Scott and the rest of the staff assured him that Foster's defense could help him go pro like so many Hokies in the secondary before him.
"I know they're one of those 'DBU' schools out there, so if I go there, I could get developed and get ready and hopefully make it to the league one day," Sutherland said.
Though Sutherland stressed that academics are a high priority for him, as he's contemplating majoring in business, he added that his desire to "get coached up by the best and eventually get drafted" is also a huge motivating factor in his decision.
His college pledge will likely come soon — he anticipates announcing in July or sometime else in "mid summer" — but he has a few visits left to get to first. He plans to head to Boston College this weekend, then a handful of others in the intervening months.
Based on his first experience in Blacksburg, Sutherland expects to swing by VT once more soon as part of those trips.
"No dates have been set right now, but I will definitely visit again in the future," Sutherland said.
As for Ellis and Grimsley, their plans are a bit more up in the air. Ellis said he could visit Saturday for the spring game, but he's "not too sure," while Grimsley is also "trying to get down there" for the big weekend.
But even though Grimsley hopes to visit Tech again soon, he said the Hokies have already done plenty to impress him.
"I really don't have to see anything, everything was great to me last time," Grimsley said.
Comments
Great write up! Keep hearing the same things from these kids "The program is heading in the right direction..." but they don't commit... I dunno I hope this year we nab some big name kids just to turn a new leaf!
I don't know if we'll get too many blue chippers this year. I think Fuente will do a good job getting 3 star talent to meet needs. Outside of that, I'm tempering expectations until we start winning more.
Yep, great to hear all the positive news from recruits but want to hear some of our top targets giving commits! Crosby would be a great start.
Alex as always great write up. As for people looking for more commits
Fuente is in his first spring practice with VT. He needs to build momentum both on the field and in the recruiting circles.
Yep. Although it's way early, #17 class in the nation right now according to 247. I don't know how anyone can gripe with that. Let's keep the momentum and positive vibes rolling.
You will never hear me complaining about our recruiting ranking.
I know in the grand scheme of things it's completely useless and meaningless, but it's a good indicator that we are in much better territory than where we've been recently. Just thought I would mention it to those who still don't think we're making much headway yet. A few more big commits and we're in some seriously great company recruiting-wise.
I see what you're saying, but Dabo was getting blue-chippers in his first year as a coach, so part of me expects ... nay.... demands the same thing.
I assume you're being saracstic, but Dabo was also at Clemson before he was the head coach. That helps a lot.
How do you know that helps a lot?
I was being a bit sarcastic, but some of it was rooted in truth.
Preexisting relationships with high schools, coaches in the area, overall knowledge of the recruiting base.
Although it could be argued that this is a situational advantage. Could be a good thing, could be a bad thing if relationships were stale or not great.
via GIPHY
I don't think dabo had to do as much work to fix some of the stigmas held by area high school coachs like there has been here. You can seriously look at the reaction by coaches, recruits, and media and think we aren't well on our way back to building strong relationships and produce on the team. It's been along time since I have heard such excitement towards recruits when VT is brought up.
I sure hope you are being sarcastic.
I don't know about that. Clemson was a bit of a steaming pile when Dabo took over.
Dabo was the wide receiver's coach and was already one of the staff's best recruiters. It also helped that there was a lot of top talent from very close by in his first few years. Nuk Hopkins went to Daniel HS which is where all the Clemson coaches kids go and they produce a lot of talent and pretty much everyone from Daniel who is good enough goes to Clemson. Martavis Bryant went to my high school about 20 minutes from Clemson and that was an easy sell for them. That said, they did land Sammy Watkins, Tony Steward, and Stephone Anthony early in his tenure as well.
That's actually not true. Dabo's first two classes as head coach were ranked #31 and #28. Tommy Bowden's last class was ranked #10 so they saw a drop-off once Dabo first came in. It wasn't until they started winning more games that he consistently starting pulling in top classes.
This is also misleading based on the fact that his "first" one you are referencing was when he took over halfway through the season as interim coach and that second class was #19 by Rivals so it depends on your source as well. The class after that had four or five 5 star recruits, which was after a 6-7 season.
I'm on your side. I would preface it with my expectation that Fuente will never be "bringing in blue chippers" on the regular. I believe Fuente and Foster are both "system" coaches and will be looking to bring in guys who fit their system......a system that will not always be supported by the established recruiting network machine. VT may have an A+ class internally that is ranked 20th in the country. That's fine with me.
But I would say that my expectation is that Fuente and Foster to be recruiting near optimum levels in the first year and at optimum level in the 2nd year. And it seems like that is what is happening, we will have a solid recruiting year (by rankings...probably in the top 30) and meet most of the needs of the "systems" in our first year.
What I don't want to see, and I don't think we are seeing right now, is the following:
1. Blowing it with one position, creating massive imbalance at a position where we will always have a "chink in the armor" until that recruiting hole has graduated out. We just got past our OL hole and we are in the middle of our Linebacker hole right now. No more holes. Balanced recruiting.
2. In-state blue-chippers not even considering us. Big check mark. Whether we land Hunter, Crosby, Williams, Laborn, Capehart or not, it's clear we are being considered.
3. Stale outreach. Whether that is a direct representation of our twitter game or how the recruits respond to being on campus, we have heard all the right things. All the things we weren't hearing before.
I don't have hard and fast rules about what we need to do. I don't believe we need to land 5 of the top 10 in the state if we are doing well out of state. I don't believe we need one 5* and ten 4*'s per class, but those aren't bad metrics to consider. You know when we are getting the kids at the top of our list or not, the kids we are spending the time and resources on. Get those kids.
I'm not a big fan of "give a coach ____ years to get going." I didn't think we should wait 3 years for Loeffler to succeed and I don't think we should hold our expectations for 3 years for Fuente. College football just happens way too fast. A players life cycle is only 3 to 5 years. Kids you are recruiting are only cognizant of what is going on for 3 years or so. Media will write you off in 2 years. Dabo has established a timeframe that should be our goal. I have no problem being held to that standard. Results are expected.....soon.
System schmystem.
You win with talent. If system were enough someone would've done it by now.
System is enough to keep VT on the field with the top 10 and negate some depth advantages. But more guys capable of winning one on ones and dominating lesser athletes are needed.
I think both are important. Only one team in the BCS era has won a national championship without a top 10 recruiting classes within 4 years of the title game. But there are also plenty of top 10 recruiting classes that have finished the season unranked.
I feel like I should sticky this information, since it seems we're all looking at Clemson as a way forward. But while he did hit a few home runs in recruiting early, Clemson's rankings took a major hit when Dabo took over. Clemson was recruiting at very high level before the coaching change and they immediately tumbled in his first year. It wasn't until his third recruiting class that Clemson got to their current level that has allowed them to become title contenders.
2007 - 17th
2008 - 10th
2009 - 31st Dabo's first year, 21 spot drop
2010 - 28th
2011 - 10th
(all using 247 composite)
Okay, I just cleared this up above.
2008 was an anomaly in Clemson recruiting, ESPN had them #2 that year (LOL) but you're forgetting that he took over halfway through the 2008 season as the interim coach and that led to the dropoff in the 2009 recruiting class, which still landed Tahj Boyd. Also, 2010 had a few huge cogs in it such as Nuk Hopkins and Martavis Bryant. That 2011 class came after a 6-7 season and yielded 4 (depending on the recruiting service) five star recruits and they won the ACC the following fall (I hated that year). So just going off the class ranking doesn't always tell the whole story.
We're talking about judging the coach's recruiting efforts in his first two classes as they happen, class ranking is literally the only measurement we have. We may very well have picked up some of the big-time contributors you're hoping for, but we won't know for another 3-4 years. Literally all we have to judge by is the recruiting rankings, so that's the story for right now.
My point is that even the most successful case we can think of (Clemson with Dabo) included a tumble in recruiting for two years. If we're going to have extremely high expectations (and I think that's reasonable) then you have to base those on how it actually happened, not the results. It seems that people are jumping to the conclusion that because we're not immediately signing top recruits like Dabo did that we're never going to be able to. The reality is that Dabo took a couple years to get Clemson's recruiting to where it is now, and our expectations should be similar.
As for rankings not telling the whole story, there's a reason that class size matters in the rankings. It's because a small class means you're leaving holes all over your depth chart and leaves you vulnerable to injuries. It worked for Clemson because all of their guys panned out and injuries were kept to a minimum. That's as much pure luck as it is successful recruiting.
The original comment that all these comments stemmed from was about landing blue-chip recruits, not overall class rank.
Dabo did start landing big recruits immediately. I understand small classes have a downside and that's why they affect rankings, but 7 out of 12 four stars is good for a year where they took a calculated risk on taking a smaller class. Those 4 stars are the "blue-chip" guys that fill our boards with complaints each year when we fail to land them. Overall recruiting? You're absolutely right it took a few years to get them to where they are and that is expected. Landing blue chip guys right away? he definitely did that.
What blue chip recruits did he get in his first full year?
That class was ranked pretty low because it was very small, but 7 out of the 12? recruits were 4 stars by Rivals. Including Tahj Boyd.
I don't know why people look at those goofy rankings. I always sort by avg stars. Gives a much more realistic picture of the talent a school is signing.
There are other DBU's? My bubble is burst.
My heart will go on.
Makes me so sad.
How I felt after seeing that list of names
Some things are harder to judge for a rating than others. Size and athleticism are fairly easy to recognize, while insane effort (Rogers, Grimm) is not. Having the most athletic guy on the field makes difference, and most of them have at least 4 stars. A great system can help you compete without as many, but if you want to win consistently it sure helps to have someone out there is always a mismatch for the other team. I like the excitement I'm hearing from recruits. I think that will help us get just one or two more of the 50-50 recruits, which will help get back to competing for the ACC. Hopefully having an offensive system with help us get over the issues Beamer had with winning the big game, and we can get to that next level. I have not seen or heard anything that would make me think this expectation is off base so far, so I like what I am hearing.