Recruitsburg Recap

Even though the Maroon-White game was a washout (puns, puns, puns), Tech still addressed a lot of its needs for the 2013 cycle Saturday on its biggest recruiting day ever. Four of the six players that committed held UVa offers too (Charles Clark, Bucky Hodges, Parker Osterloh and Braxton Pfaff), so naturally this is appropriate.

Of course this from our very own VTBox. His giffing skills apparently know no bounds. Every frame above is absolutely glorious.

The Hokies could take as many as 6 offensive linemen this year, and they're off to a fantastic start by landing the top two o-line recruits in the state.

Osterloh, a 6-foot-7, 275-pound junior, committed this weekend while in Blacksburg for the Hokies' spring football game.

"I've always felt that Virginia Tech was a great fit for me, athletically and academically," said Osterloh, who is leaning toward a biology major and has been recruited as an offensive tackle. "I was very comfortable with the coaching staff."

Braxton Pfaff  a 6-5 290 tackle from Liberty Christian Academy in Lynchburg, will join Osterloh in Blacksburg. It was a toss up between Tech and UVa to land Pfaff. He was at Festivus last week and enjoyed his time, but lucky for us he picked Tech.

"When it came down to it, I couldn’t see myself playing for anybody else," Pfaff said. 
...
"I've been a Virginia Tech fan since I was a kid. It's always been a real good football program," Pfaff said. 

Linebacker and quarterback are two other huge  positions of need for this class.  Verbal commitments from Salem teammates QB Bucky Hodges and LB Andrew Motu'apuaka put Tech in a great position moving forward. Tech fans (myself included) having been oohing and ahhing over Hodges since his sophomore season. He's a top recruit for a reason, at 6-6, he's athletic as hell. He's got all the upside in the world and he'll be a gem once O'Cain gets him all polished up. Motu'apuaka might be the Whip in this year's class. Look for Tech to take another QB and another couple of LBs.

Rivals rated 3-star defensive back Charles Clark also committed Saturday.

Charles was enthusiastic about his commitment to the Hokies. "It feels as if it's home away from home," Clark said. "The coaching staff makes sure that I’m comfortable."

King's Fork Coach Joe Jones played his college ball at Virginia Tech, so the door was already open but Clark felt at home all along in Blacksburg. He even had a indoor track competition there this weekend. He kept in touch with the Hokies regularly.

"Coach Jones' relationship might have helped, but I built a strong relationship with the coaches at Virginia Tech myself," said the defensive back. "I like the fans, the team and I love the lively atmosphere. People I didn't even know made conversation with me, (welcoming me today)."

Clark shared that the Hokies plan to put him on the defensive side of the ball at DB, and that he's eyeing a major in Health, Nutrition and Exercise Studies. 

Finally, in a somewhat surprising move, Vinny Mihota a high school sophomore, also verballed to Tech yesterday. The 2014 defensive end/tackle is the younger brother of former UVa center Anthony Mihota.

"I haven't talked to him, but I'm sure he'll be happy for me," Vinny said of Anthony's likely reaction to his choosing to play for Virginia’s arch-rival. "He'll expect it because it's always been a sibling rivalry. So for us to go to two rival schools, it's perfect."

Vinny (6-foot-4, 245 pounds) is a sophomore defensive end for the Panthers. Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster emailed him Thursday night to offer him a scholarship.

In other news, Bud Foster uses email.

What an absolutely tremendous job by the coaching staff to make the best of a rainy day.