Soon after receiving a scholarship offer.
The Maryland native joins a potentially very deep defensive backfield.
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Soon after receiving a scholarship offer.
The Maryland native joins a potentially very deep defensive backfield.
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Beat me by a second!
This kid has pretty good technique for a high schooler. I was pretty surprised looking at the defenses and covers the team was playing. The overall team looks well coached. I don't know anything about Maryland high school football but I was impressed.
He looks further along than most high school DBs from technical area. He shows the athleticism to play at the D1 level but he is small. As he is class of 2020 he probably still has some growth in him and will end up being a very solid 3 star recruit. I believe this is an actual out evaluation on the staffs part.
Now that he's committed, 247 will make him and .83, just to make it look like they were paying attention.
Delaware St and Townson offers. At some point you can't blame 247 for not watching the guys we're landing. #DBU
What were your thoughts on Eugene Asante when Tech originally offered?
Or Jaden Payoute?
To be fair, Pimpleton is an argument the other way. But Fuente has demonstrated he will process efficiently. I haven't watched a lick of this kid's film, but Fuente has done well at identifying underrated prospects.
I felt like Pimpleton and even Savoy were him and Corn just trying to get some speed on the offensive side of the ball at that point. They both got passed fairly quickly on the depth chart by other recruits.
Fuente has demonstrated he will process efficiently
Indeed; even ahead of signing day. For this reason, I really don't mind any offers this staff puts out.
Strong is an in-person eval and there was absolutely no pressure to give him a committable offer; but they did. They know his measurables, witnessed his technique, and the S&C staff has had a look. If they are expecting some continued improvement or growth and they don't see it, he won't sign with VT. But they clearly see something they like.
Many arguments the other way. Now is the time for those underrated prospects to produce on the field.
Asante and Payoute were both had pretty insane measurables and are super athletic. If you think his recruitment is going to blow up and he'll end up with 15 ACC, SEC, and B1G offers, so be it. I don't see it, and building a class of these guys is worrisome. 100% of our class 'under the radar guys' - you really have faith in that?
Did Stroman, or Adonis or Edmunds have 15 P5 offers? Yes overall this class worries me, not because every player doesn't have a CVS receipt of offers but because it doesn't seem to fill some needed holes. I've seen this defensive staff for over a decade go out and get the players they want to offer, some come to Tech some don't. But I trust them to offer players they think will work. Meanwhile the offensive staff has gone out and got some huge needs at WR and OL filled with highly rated kids. They need to land a RB , true but that's the only big miss on offense.
I guess there is no medium between Delware State and Towson offers and being offered by the entire SEC? Of course there isn't. And Stroman had much better offers than this kid.
If they bump him to .83, he'll be hitting Kam Chancellor levels, who also had offers from JMU, Kent State and LOLUVA
https://www.hudl.com/profile/8544509
Wow the comments under that article on 247 are something.
It's like the sky is falling over there or something
Recruit higher rated guys, develop this guy, build the two deep for the future. That's what this class is at this point.
(I will gladly eat crow if this guy is the next Brandon Flowers)
Hope he can help our secondary
Sorry I'm not sorry but I'm about to tell the damn truth. People over at 247 and anyone complaining about this kids commitment are cancer. How's about we welcome the kid with open arms and stop being such negative fans. We are just that, FANS. If you have an issue with the way CJF is recuiting then by all means pick up a clipboard and submit a resume to be the next HFC at Virginia Tech.
Anyways, welcome to the Fam Dorian Strong!
Yep. This kid be an under the radar type of recruit....maybe his recruitment is just starting to pick up and more offers will come in. Will people be bitching if other P5 schools start offering the kid?
Yes. Unless it's Bama or Clemson
And they'll be bitchin if Bama and Clemson offer him and he flips.
Well in this particular case, Clemson and Bama aren't going anywhere near this kid, so there's that.
Your misery wears me out just reading, I'd hate to live that way.
I live in reality with regards to VT football. I lived in fantasy land for years and did things like spent 2K dollars going to the Orange Bowl to watch us gift Kansas their biggest football win ever. That gives you perspective - like the 100% reality that we are not recruiting the same level players Clemson is. We are not- thats not hating or misery or negativity, we just are'nt. so when people suggest 2 star players with 1AA offers going into their senior seasons are now going to be on Nick Saban's radar because VT is recruiting them is preposterous. It really is. It's not misery, that's reality. What's misery is keeping one's head in the sand thinking that VT is targeting the same level players Clemson is right now.
It's one thing to be jaded about it. That's your personal thing. But you've gone out of your way to put that on others.
I'm not all sunshine and rainbows about our football program, but I'm sure as hell not going to rain on someone else's parade in the way you've been doing.
Huh?
I know! Fuente really messed up in that Kansas game huh? Since you were the only person there I completely get why you were so personally effected by it.
Saying "I'm not real high on this kid" would be one thing. Coming in a verbal commitment thread on a forum we know players and family members read, and specifically implying they are not good enough is just wrong. Reality is, the kid is still in high school, has never taken a snap in college and you cannot be quick enough to write him off.
If you have to be negative about a hobby and fandom that is supposed to be entertainment and fun, at lest save it for those currently on the team. I personally am of the opinion we should show some restraint in threads meant to congratulate and welcome a new perspective Hokie.
Great rant... I said none of that, but thanks.
I think your message is getting lost. I'm confused by your views of past, present, and future expectation of Hokie football. Now would be a great time for one of those posts where you gather your thoughts and clarify your message. However, your general tone toward an individual recruit (who may be the next Brandon Flowers for all we know) is unacceptable. Who cares who offered or what a rating is, there is nothing but potential at this point. As for saying Clemson or Bama won't consider him, we had Michigan swoop in on a diamond in the rough just last year.
I agree, they put some words in your mouth, I upvoted to offset the dogpile
Same.
dcwilson will get sh!t throw his way no matter what he says. I don't see anything wrong with where he's coming from. I agree with a good bit of it.
For someone who lives in reality with regards to VT football, I would think you'd be able to handle disappointment a wholllleeee lot better and enjoy the small victories a whole lot more.
Disclaimer: My first memories of VT football are the Gator Bowl loss to Tenn in 94 and sitting in the wooden bleachers watching us lose to Cincinatti in 95 sooo i learned to manage expectations quickly.
I do both of those. Clemson and Bama also don't offer 2 star's with 1AA offers going into their senior years. Both can be true- neither are trashing a kid or hating or whatever other adjective
3 star and O yes Clemson has and does. Offered a Safety in 2018 that was 800 and some change ranked at his position. Strong is ranked higher than that. But keep on ranting.
There is certainly a happy medium. We can welcome a recruit to the Hokie family while understanding that you will struggle to win anything, or attract top talent with a roster full of players that are not recruited by other P5 schools. Most of the negatives we've heard about Fuente is his arrogance. I wish him well but I have a hard time believing every one of his 2020 evals are better than every D1 school in the country.
You think Fuente alone is offering these kids? I mean Bud Foster one of the best DC's in the game is signing off on offering kids to play on his defense or do you think he doesn't have any say? That's what I don't get everyone saying Fuente is failing at recruiting especially on the defensive side of the ball are just going to ignore that Bud Foster and Wiles both coach that side of the ball? Along with a player who played for Foster.
Right on cue...
Amazing response. It brings so much to the conversation. Please explain why you think Bud Foster, Charlie Wiles and Justin's Hamilton are allowing Fuente to offer kids they don't think can play on their defense? I'll hang up and listen to your well thought out answer.
So just to be clear, your defense of Fuente in this case is to throw his defensive staff under the bus?
Because you just did that with consecutive replies.
I'm not throwing anyone under a bus I'm saying this isn't 1) a new issue Foster has never been a spectacular recruiter and goes out and tries to get guys who fit his defensive mold 2) Foster isn't going to let a new HC tell him who to offer or recruit so this kid like all the others Bud brings in are kids he is ok brining in.
Since this kid is a DB, let's talk DBs. How's Buds track record been with DBs? Has VT had trouble landing 4* DB talent in Buds system? DB has been historically one of our easiest areas to land top talent. For 15+ years, if you were a starter in Buds backfield, you were basically assured to be drafted, and talented guys knew that.
So what happened? Why has it been so challenging for us to land DB talent the last few years? Since it's apparently Buds fault, should we just assume he totally forgot how to recruit guys with a pulse?
Mitchell is a joke, and Fuente across the board is the man in charge. This isn't one you can pass on Bud.
So you think Fuente rolled in and said we are gonna stop taking these great 4 star guys because we don't need them?
Clearly no. I don't think he knows how to recruit well - which is why we still miss on top talent even though we have a long history of producing DB and sending them to the league.
The point is that DB recruiting, specifically the dropoff at CB, can't just thrown on Bud bc some of posters here refuse to believe Fuente has a weakness in the recruiting game.
So you are saying Bud Foster has given up control of his defense? That's what you just said. Yea everyone remembers those star recruits Stroman, Alexander and Edmunds that Tech has to fight off every P5 team for. Foster not only has gotten the star DB's he also has gone out and found plenty of guys he thought for his system. You are also ignoring Connor, Peoples and Hunter to name but three sought after DB's that yep signed with Tech.
TGray quit saying hello to moms. GScott wouldn't quit saying hello to moms. TNix had the playbook backwards. /s
All while our 2* and 3* DBs are going into the NFL.
Let's see here... Kendall Fuller is the only 5* DB we've ever pulled in, and that's almost certainly due to the success of his brothers. As for 4* DBs under Beamer:
- In 2003, we signed James Griffin
- In 2004, we signed Kent Hicks (who?)
- In 2005, we signed Macho Harris
- In 2009, we signed Jayron Hosley
- In 2010, we signed Nick Dew
- In 2011, we signed Kyshoen Jarrett
- In 2012, we signed Donaldven Manning
- In 2013, we signed Holland Fisher (failed to qualify)
- In 2014, we signed Holland Fisher again
That is 9 4*-5* players in Beamer's final 13 recruiting classes, about two every three years, and only 5 of them really panned out. Now, let's take a look at who Fuente has signed at DB so far:
- In 2017, we signed Devon Hunter
- In 2018, we signed Jeremy Webb and Chamarri Conner
Let's see, that's... 3 4* DBs in 4 full recruiting classes. Sure, he didn't sign one this past cycle, and might not sign one in 2020, but it's not like he's less capable of recruiting the position than Beamer was. Additionally, most of our success came from recruiting 3* DBs and turning them into elite players. Seriously, look at this list:
- Antone Exum
- Brandon Facyson
- Eddie Whitley
- Brandon Flowers
- Chuck Clark
- Kyle Fuller
- Adonis Alexander
- Terrell Edmunds
- Aaron Rouse
- Jimmy Williams
- Rashad Carmichael
- Roland Minor
- DJ Parker
And those are just the big names I saw on 247's list of all-time VT recruits. Additonally, Kam Chancellor was only a 3*, but that was as a QB.
Can we give up on the idea that Fuente is focusing less on recruiting DBs than Beamer did?
Comparing the 2000's to the 2010's level of recruiting coverage and industry involvement is not an equal comparison. Making those comparisons isn't as meaningful as it seems.
It's still relevant. The coverage of blue chip recruits has been fairly consistent with recruiting sites. The number of composite 4* and 5* players hasn't changed much. The number of 3* players HAS.
The biggest challenge in using data from back then is comparing all of the players in the early 2000s that are "Not Rated" then, that now have enough eyes on them to give them a composite score today. Trying to argue which comparable recruits (then and now) were more overlooked will have you twisted in knots. This makes comparing old team data and modern team data, since the "floor" has changed from "who the heck knows" to mostly complete data across the FBS.
Whether or not a player has a ranking of "NR" or ".8450 - 3 star composite"; they're not a blue chip.
To your point, it is essentially hyperbole to claim Kam Chancellor was a 2* recruit (by today's standard). Scout gave him a 2* rating; Rivals 3* and no other service had him on their radar. Nowadays he'd probably rank a bit above 247's retroactive composite score for him (considering he's in the top 700 of recruits by that. Back then, a 2* grade was pretty common for an FBS recruit; now it's reserved consistently across recruiting platforms for FBS walk-on-caliber and FCS-caliber athletes.)
If we're talking about how "overlooked" players are, or we compare entire teams from then to now, the old data is a crapshoot.
The blue chips on his list were rated among the top 300-some players in the country, and the non-blue chips were not. This seems to fit with the point he was making.
So I was curious about this, because I've actually discussed many times before about the shortcomings of the composite, especially for comparison back in the 2000's compared to now. There are an awful lot of weirdly even "blanket" grades like .9000 or .8500 showing up on the old 2000's composites.
In 2006, according to the composite, there were 236 4 and 5 stars (blue-chip recruits).
In 2019, according to the composite, there 385 4 and 5 stars.
That's an increase in total blue-chip prospects by 63%, that's a pretty big difference. So I really don't think it's fair to compare those recruiting classes on the basis of number of blue-chip recruits.
Though I do agree with the part that you are largely correct about identify and evaluating more three star recruits as well.
To add two more years: 2005 had 226 total blue-chip recruits and from 149-226 they were all rated .9000.... which just screams lazy revised or directly inputted grades. Overall, I just don't want to use their data for years they weren't operating full-time.
2018 class had 376 blue-chip recruits.
If his overall conclusion had been to isolate the older, incomplete data against newer, more complete data; i.e. a Fuente vs. Beamer comparison, then it's definitely comparing apples and oranges.
2005 - 2015
#5*: 38 - 37
#4*: 226- 365
#3*: 948 - 2114
I don't believe his conclusion relies on exploiting this variance.
Those step-changes are still a thing- albeit in far smaller increments today.
247 didn't exist until 2010. Their composite before then is just a retroactive sweep of the evaluations available from whatever "reliable" major services were available those seasons. (I have yet to land on a conclusive list of which sites are used in which years. I think Lemming just used star grades, so there would be some really steep jumps from one tier to the next).
Yeah I realize this guy in particular wasn't making that jump. However, I do see Fuente's blue-chip hauls compared to Beamer's frequently over the last few months. I think I may have read some of those former complaints into that post.
Don't forget about JR Walker and Nyquee Hawkins, Chatman.
Walker was a 4 star and Hawkins, Chatman and Thompson were all given 4 stars on multiple recruiting sites. Caleb Farley was also rated as a 4 star in most places.
Totally agree and these kids haven't even had a chance yet for the most part. All of the belly-aching is premature.
I know. We've heard nothing but good things about Connor. Walker enrolled early, had a great spring and filled in nicely at FS. Reports are that Walker has improved. It sounds like Chatman and Thompson are pushing for playing time...those two are probably the reason Bryce Watts transferred. Farley, a 4* ATH is back after switching from QB and spending his WHOLE RS freshman season recovering from an ACL tear. Webb, a 4* juco is back. So that's four 4* kids at the cb position.
Connor is backing up Ladler at the whip - both rated 4*s by a lot of folks. SS has Floyd with Hunter behind him. Floyd was a 4* ATH by most services, Hunter even had a 5* under ESPN I think. At FS - Deablo had a 4 star as a WR on a few sites and he's going to probably have JR Walker and his 4th star backing him up.
Totally agree - watts was demoted due to good recruits and transferred as a result. This is a literal upgrade in talent that hasn't been realized (because the season hasn't even started!!! so I feel good about the long term)
hey! now wait just a dagum minute! you take your facts and logic and git! skee-dattle!
Would you say Fuente is more or less arrogant than message board posters who think they are more qualified to run a Division 1 football program?
If you want to call him stubborn or a disciplinarian, you can make that argument. But I don't see how you could listen to any of the numerous interviews with him and come away thinking he's arrogant.
He's more introverted. That has NOTHING to do with arrogance! He's not and never will be as outgoing as Beamer.
I'm old enough to remember when Coach Beamer defended Coach Newsome with the same argument.
When a booster blows up on the launch pad, it doesn't really take a rocket scientist to accurately suggest something went wrong.
Actually I think he said something to that effect when defending Stinespring. Also there could be an interesting debate regarding Newsome's net effect on the program as he wasn't successful as a coach but was a huge factor in Tyrod's commitment.
Anyway comparing a 6-7 football season to a rocket exploding is a truly absurd analogy. Yes everyone can say, "the rocket exploded and that's bad," but that doesn't make the average person even remotely qualified to tell the rocket scientists what the root cause of failure is for the rocket explosion. Similarly everyone can say, "they lost 7 games and that's bad," but that doesn't make the average fan qualified to know exactly what could have been done differently to change the outcome of those games.
Trust me, even if it doesn't explode it can still be a bad day. It's just a certainty that you had a bad day if it does.
Also, that never stops people from telling you exactly what went wrong.
I mean, I'm more qualified than this guy:
He could recruit five stars, I'll give him that.
but have you heard that he used to be a police officer
He was also kinda successful at Richmond, wasn't he?
Also just a quick look through of the roster shows 20 players who were 4 star as recruits so that kinda blows up the whole "roster full of no P5 offers kids"
Per the 247 Composite recruiting rankings for All-time VT recruits since 2000, Fuente has recruited:
11 of the top 50
23 of the top 100
62 of the top 250
Numbers-wise, he's been here 15% of the time and recruited 20%+ of the best recruits in our program's history. Not an opinion, just the numbers.
Correct... on the lists above: Nick Dew, Joel Caleb, Austin Clark, Dwayne Lawson, Holland Fischer, Shai McKenzie, Raymon Minor, Jarontay Jones.
Not on those lists above: Cody Grimm, Jack Tyler, Danny Coale, Woody Baron, Donovan Riley, John McLaughlin, Augie Conte, Sam Rogers, Ricky Walker, Isaiah Ford, Cam Phillips, Tremaine Edmunds
Wait so are you saying we should offer more guys with no offers because Sam Rogers panned out... or that we shouldnt offer guys with dozens of big time offers because Joel Caleb didnt develop?
You were literally just railing on taking this kid because he has only 1AA offers and Bama and Clemson wont come close to him amd now you are pointing out all our big time recruit busts and diamonds in the rough...
You are either one of the worst communicators of all time or a huge troll.
Edit (for clarity): I think we should take any 4 or 5 star we can get our hands on (because talent matters) and hope they all meet or exceed expectations. I also think we should celebrate any recruit our staff has the chance to evaluate and decides to offer, even if their next best option is Towson, because identifying and developing under-the-radar talent has been one of the most exciting parts of following VT football.
It's the old "player development matters much more than recruiting rankings but its better to start off with higher ranked players than lowers ones except instead of saying that i'm just gonna list all of our highly rated misses and lowly rated hits and let everyone try to piece it together" stance
At least that's what i'm pretty sure dcwilson's take is after a few years of being around TKP. I just wish he communicated it better. I'm not sure how Shai McKenzie's wonky knee plays into it, but that's neither here nor there, and there always seems to be one of those thrown in. Kam Chancellor also always seems to be one that's excluded from the "hits" for some reason that I've never quite narrowed down
On another note: of players that dcwilson listed, there's a strong bias towards beamer-era names. which really doesn't mean much for discussing how fuente recruits and develops players
If his point is player development is important (everyone would agree with this) and he is going to use Coale and Rogers (Strong will be more highly rated than either at signing day) as examples then why would he be so down on this kid further up in the thread, has dc had the chance to do an in person evaluation? Im guessing it is more likely he is just a troll who wants to argue, I shouldnt oblige, but I couldnt help but take the bait this time.
I'm not "DOWN on this Kid".. jesus. Saying that Bama and Clemson won't late offer this particular player and pointing out the fact that VT is his only P5 offer going into his senior year, is simply stating facts. There is a difference between those two that you refuse to entertain.
Pointing out that the big dogs wont sniff him (not a fact, an opinion, that may prove to be true) and that all he has are 1AA offers, and that he isnt as good as Greg Stroman (you evaluated him?) in a thread designed to celebrate a commitmemt is an odd way for someone who isnt down on this guy to communicate his excitement about a new Hokie...
Clemson and Bama have not offered this player going into his senior year. That is a fact. The top two college football programs in the country typically do not offer rising seniors that are not very highly rated players this late in the process. Yes Fireman listed ONE example above, but again that is not "trashing a kid". I also did not compare his game to Stroman's, I said Stroman had much better offers, which is AGAIN- fact.
I think the Bama/Clemson comment above was pretty tongue-in-cheek about us getting in on players first and then them big-timing us and we all complain about it.
As the person who wrote said comment, I can confirm this.
To give you a bit of your own medicine... I never said you were trashing him, which you put in quotes, presumably meaning you are quoting something i said... I only said you are down on the kid, which is ironic given your use of Coale and Rogers as positive examples, and then clarified to say if you arent down on him you have a funny way of showing it...
Additionally, as noted, Clemson has offered lowly rated recruits during their senior year and just last year we hit the nail on the head with an early evaluation of Sainristil, also a DB that many complained about having a spot in our class, who Michigan then proceeded to swoop in and snatch.
Edit: Also, Stroman had offers from VT, Campbell, UMass, Norfolk State and Duke... so sure he had a better offer by the end of the recruiting process than Strong has now... I'll bet you 2020 season tickets strong has a better offer list by Feb 2020 than Stroman did.
just FYI dcwilson uses quotes like Dr. Evil does
No one is saying it's not a fact. There are an immense amount of facts in the world. Not all of them are appropriate for sharing at any given time. The facts around our currently weak 2020 class have been discussed to death in plenty of threads, and do not need to be reiterated in a thread where we are celebrating a new addition to the team. If these are seriously the only things you can think about when you see a recruit with less than four stars, then just don't comment on the thread.
I'm saying that pointing out that Justin Fuente has signed some of the top rated recruits in VT history at a unique or accelerated % is 1. Not a justification for the 2020 class, and 2. Not a direct correlation to results on the field.
Your rant continues to be the same in that recruits need to produce now. I think recruits needing to produce isn't a unique argument, it's just that you are wildly premature in your grading assessment.
I agree that it's time for some of the first class or two to produce some results, but I would suggest the best I can grade is incomplete (I believe this was stated in another thread so I apologize if it sounds like I am stealing that thought - I simply agree).
I do NOT agree that if a kid isn't a star producer by his redshirt freshman season then we can come to a conclusion about the veracity of the recruits' success. If you aren't getting 5 star recruits this is even MORE true. Time, development and team will be the factors you can build on to get those kids to the level of higher rated kids out of high school. You still have to do it and those results will eventually happen or not happen, but we have a bunch of players who have much more time in Blacksburg left than they have been there to date.
If you live in reality that's a fact. I'm not stating there shouldn't be progress in 2019, I'm simply saying your point of view comes across as very black and white and it's far more complex than you are giving it credit for.
Im sorry, I wasnt aware that anyone was using Fuente's improved recruiting stats to excuse the dismal ranking for the 2020 class. I also didnt realize anyone claimed that the results on the field last year were acceptable and that another roughly .500 season would be welcomed. If you think by listing out two groups of players you can make counter arguments to arguments nobody is making and expect people to appreciate your contributions you arent just a bad communicator you are crazy.
sometimes your replies seem like you read a comment as if it's in a vacuum and not part of a larger discussion wherein it was a reply to someone else's assertion
the point of the commenter showing that CJF has signed some of the top rated recruits in VT history at an accelerated rate was to dispel the idea that our roster is full of guys with no other P5 offers, not to try to establish either of the two things you're "pointing out" several comments into the exchange
I've been saying that about 247 for years lol
The kid has a strong last name.
I'll see myself out...
If you are going to try dad jokes you have to step up your game.
"One of this kids strengths is his last name."
I dunno, this version kinda weakens the joke.
*skrong
Too much negativity about this recruit from some of the TKP family. Its like some think that bud and his defensive coaches have forgotten how to find the diamonds in the rough that they've found for 20 years. So, all of a sudden that recipe was just lost?
I disagree, w the hiring of JHam i think the recipe just got re-envigorated.
I predict this kid turns heads and kicks ass.
Welcome aboard to the Hokie family.
Remember when commitment threads were 100+ comments of celebratory GIFs?
Welcome to Hokie Nation, Dorian!
Are you surprised? We cannot even have a BB verbal without 3-4 of the same people making daily reminders of how terrible they think our football staff is. Even if the majority is is "wait and see" or "cautiously optimistic " we have our own version of bad apples in the locker room spoiling the mood and enthusiasm of the rest.
They are absolutely allowed their opinions, but those opinions read day in and day out will dampen any community.
Of course this is just, like their's, my own opinion.
I for one am looking forward to this guy having his name called in the draft like many DBU alums before him.
I'm soooo sick of all of these Internet tough guys who think their credentials of working at an insurance agency, making pizza, selling cars or doing taxes makes them qualified to run football teams and scout players because the pay $9.99/month to an insider college football website.
We are all friends here, but there is a bit of a filter you have to apply to any community forum. The VAST majority of people that contribute and read here just want what is best for the team and players, regardless of a positive or negative opinion on a topic.
Bust some men just want to watch the world burn.
They're the same asshats who will be there when we are doing big things and say "I was there for the bad years" or "I've supported them from the start" when they were being toxic and impatient and didn't trust the process.
Maybe people know more than I do or have more expertise. Honestly, I haven't had time to pay attention to the daily details of what is worrying people over recruitment. Frankly, it's liberating. I have better things to do with my time than worry about it. I have a 2-month-old son and I just scored a major NIH grant to fund my research program. Bigger fish to fry, frankly.
I love this team and this school, and as I have always said, I will support anyone who suits up in O&M and comports themselves honorably. If the on-field performance isn't great, changes will happen. I don't have time to concern myself with it. I'll go to the games, cheer on my team, be happy if we win and disappointed if we lose, and allow people who make a lot more money than I do call the shots.
For now, welcome to the newest Hokie.
Seems like a strong addition to our backfield
via GIPHY
I remember when Mike Sainstrill(sp?) committed and people were upset because he only had one offer(I think it was BC or UConn) then, Michigan swooped in and took him away...and people were saying, Oh I guess he was good...with this current staff...i trust the evaluation process..as long as Foster and JHam are here...
Speaking of Jham...i was watching some old clips of Jham from when he was playing RB...wish he had a chance to stick at one position.
Putting him at safety in 2005 was a move I don't think gets as much appreciation as it should. He more than sufficed there, and it gave DJ Parker a chance to grow into the free safety position and be very good in 2006 and 2007.
CB is harder to project than people give it credit for and lots of smart coaches lean on other coaches early evals
If the kid isn't yet ranked...and his previous best offer is from Delaware State or Towson, and commits to the good guys - you don't need to be a brain surgeon to understand that he's ready to be a little fish in a big pond. Why we gotta go and get negative on this kid's recruitment thread? There are plenty of opportunities on TKP to talk about recruiting metrics, coaches that recruit well, recruiting class strength history - in other threads. Why we gotta do that here? Come on FAM....we can do better.
Welcome Dorian.
This looks like Dzansi's offer list. He's turned out to be a contributor, Maybe this is the same type of thing. Kid didn't go to camps or the recruiting events and is truly under the radar. It's not outside the realm of possibility even in 2019
It is still very possible in 2019. Look at Darrisaw as well as Dzansi. These camps and stars and big school offers perpetuate themselves. As everybody says, yes the stars are relevant but not nearly as much as people think. Look at the starting lineups for NFL games and listen to all the D2 and below players in the league that never got a star or any attention coming out of HS.
I agree but will clarify one point. Having a high number of successful players be low rated recruits does not mean a high percentage of low rated players excel. There are many many more 3 star and lower players in the pool to pick from. But, any time VT is offering a player, I'm assuming that player is going to ball out until proven otherwise.
Yes, exactly. People always say "there's a higher rate of success for higher star recruits". Well yes, but there's also a higher rate of success for 3 stars that we offer vs. 3 stars that we don't offer, because we offer the ones we feel are overlooked. This staff has already, in a pretty short period of time, proven itself to be quite good at evaluation. It's fair to be disappointed and complain about recruiting when we miss on a big recruit, but everyone needs to stop complaining about people who do commit because the number by their name isn't high enough. It's just not the right place for it.
Agreed. I haven't seen him play and if he wants to play for us welcome home Dorian.
Everyone Relax...the guy's last name is Strong, the last time we had a DB with Stro in his name was Stroman who was similar size...he did fine with some time....and this kid has similar size. Strong is what you have to remember with this guy.
via GIPHY
Another post where the collapse thread button is worth the TKPC fee.
I will say one thing. He's strong. Goodbye now
*skrong
If each of dcwilson's posts in this thread get an additional 552 downvotes he will no longer be able to post. Just saying.
BTW Welcome Home Dorian!!!
That would deserve mention in the "off season bright spots" thread.
just collapse and move on. too many people see dcwilson's poor rhetoric as an invitation or a challenge
I only wish that the new comment counter ignored all the new comments in collapsed comments so I wouldn't check into a thread only to see the slapfights picking up participants.