ALL GLORY TO GODπ€πΎAND HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MEβ€οΈ@HokiesFB @CoachLecht @Nash_OFallon @CoachFuente #GOHOKIES pic.twitter.com/0MvN2SgNWFβ πππππ πͺππππππππ (@KenjiChristian5) August 24, 2020
One of the higher upside and most exciting RB's left on the board for us. I am personally very excited about this commitment.
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He runs angry, and has good size and speed. Could be an every down back for us. Let's Go...
Hokies!
Is it just me, or have we been having a good month from a recruiting perspective?
Damn, we need a good RB... Good size and speed, looks like he could fit the bill.
6'2 200lbs before he even hits a college weight room is a lot of canvas for S&C do work with. His frame looks like it can carry more weight as well without getting too bulky and losing speed/flexibility.
Big frame for sure. Paging Coach Hilgart. I think his top end speed might have limited his rating. But I like his drive and vision - he seems to read blocks fairly well. He might get you 50 yards at a shot, but I will take 6-7 yards every time.
A Bama fan on reddit claims he ran a 4.58 at a camp last year, so he may have that deceptive long stride speed. That is a very good time for a HS sophomore or junior of that size. Even if it's off a tenth from a hand time or something.
Edit: it's verified from a The Opening camp on his profile.
I saw that time on his HUDL page, but his clips did not seems to show that breakaway speed. Don't get me wrong, he should be plenty fast for our needs. I was just making the point that his top end may have lowered his star rating. I like the pickup. We have plenty of 6' 190 slot WR/RB/all pupose dudes. I want one or two RB studs and this guy has that potential!
I agree, time will tell if this guy has breakaway speed at the P5 level. I just wanted to point out that 4.58 is a very fast time. If that speed is legit, that is more than enough for breakaway long runs.
Looks like he could be 225-230 easy by end of a redshirt year
B R U I S E R
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BAM!!!
Welcome to Hokie Nation, Mr. Christian!
lol
what in the world is this from?
From some quick googling, International Collegiate Programming Contest?
Looks like we scored 20 programmings then. Well done lads.
via GIPHY
Really liking this commitment. Seems like an excellent athlete even at this stage. Imagine after a year spent training at VT.
via GIPHY
What 90s Geocities webpage did you find that epilepsy inducing gif?
It was a play on his last name w/o getting religious LOL, should've put a disclaimer on this one...
Let us pray
this has anglefire written all over it
In reverse image when you close your eyes.
Man I love this guy's commitment video. I believe the facial expression at the end says it all: "This isn't the finish or reward for anything but instead it's the start of something that I am fully committed to. Now, get out of my way."
Nice.
Game changer!
Great pickup! Congrats to Mr Christian! If Fuente wants to stick with rotating backs, it will sure be nice to have a bigger body back there to run over and through a tired defense.
Yep. Way of the world now. True every-down backs are unicorn-like in their rareness.
With that said, from purely a 'height/weight+muscle development+speed' standpoint, he's the most complete back we've landed in quite a while.
Since we are a #sauce society on here, I vote we dub him "KC Masterpiece"
How many back do we have now? It feels like 10 including current guys, incoming transfers, and incoming croots?
On Scholarship:
1. Khalil Herbert
2. Raheem Blackshear
3. Jalen Holston
4. Marco Lee
5. Jordan Brunson
6. Keshawn King
7. Jalen Hampton
8. Terius Wheatley
9. Tahj Gary
With 3 incoming in this 2021 class if things hold up.
We will have 10 scholarship RB's at the start of next season if there is no attrition beyond Herbert and Blackshear. Potentially more depending on who utilizes their blanket year of eligibility.
You can subtract Blackshear if he ends up primarily being a slot WR, but still a lot of bodies in the RB room.
**Pulled from my own comment on reddit** lol
I forgot about Brunson already, damn you 2020. So maybe we need a spectrum from Brunson/Lee to Blackshear for Bruiser to Shifty?
I've heard Rumor that King may be out. Which made no sense to me.
If anything, I could see Gary stepping away, but since King saw some action, I wouldn't see why he would.
Though, they noted he was under weight and may be opting out this year or something similar. So who knows.
Heard some of this as well, but has since been practicing. He still could choose to opt out, but being at practice is a strong sign that he isn't.
So just to clarify out in this case "out" means opt-out, and not portal-out, correct?
Rumor was he would opt out and then transfer portal out. Neither made sense to me, but the person noting this seemed to feel pretty good about it.
I think these young guys question whether or not to do things like this a lot more often than we realize. Usually guys end up sticking it out. I think we have more access to inside information via recruiting and connected journalists than ever before. There's such a huge demand for inside team and recruiting information it was bound to see more things like this coming to light more frequently.
I think it has become similar to the workforce.... every employee under 10 years at my company is constantly thinking about changing jobs in the back of their mind - even though its likely to take paycuts. Combination of a "grass is always greener" mentality but also location/family/job satisfaction considerations. Younger generations are much more willing to move from job to job / team to team
That's a fair observation but to be honest, after 15 years at one company, I'm realizing that dedicating your career to an employer isn't at all rewarding when the employer's dedication to their employees isn't what it used to be. Older generations had pensions and rewards for being in one place a long time but nowadays companies aren't living up to that end of the bargain anymore. So I'd argue that the younger generations are just responding to the market they've inherited.
yeah, he tweeted today about "Legends in the Making" and had a pic of him and Hendon together. Doesn't sound like a kid who is on the outs.
He's been practicing
Fuente and Cornelsen setting the table with 10 RBs to run a spread version of the ND Box and take the college football world by storm
Blackshear will be here next year, he's got two years eligibility left. The NCAA may steal one, but he's still got two. He's not in the same class as Herbert.
It's confusing, because if Blackshear plays this fall, the NCAA may hold him out next Fall. Or he could sit out this Fall and would it count for his in-eligible season if nobody loses eligibility this year? Such a stupid situation.
Nice Get...great all around, good cuts, catching the ball out of the back and a bruiser..little bit of everything
Pinson Valley has produced some solid talent over the years. Alabama is not a bad state to build up a little pipeline, and it definitely helps when you see a guy, known by many of his peers in-state, choose to come play for VT. Alabama produces a good bit of talent and because Alabama and Auburn recruit nationally and regionally, there are usually a lot of guys who just miss the boat being takes for the in-state schools who are quality players.
We tried hard to get in on one of those types last cycle in Top 25 in state ILB Rodney Groce, Jr. but ultimately the allure of playing in the SEC led him to decommit from Nebraska and head to Miss State. This is an unfortunate but common hurdle with a lot of these kids in Southeast states.
Did anybody else see a 6'2" 200 lb running back and think safety?
Yeah, except I want to see him running over safeties en route to the end zone.
Or wide receiver, or linebacker, or defensive end, or tight end, with his build he could transition into alot of positions a la Justin Hamilton.
So future DC confirmed?
Don't need him at safety - we have the 6'2", 210 lb. Will Johnston on the way at safety, right?
I believe Will Johnson is going to a linebacker for us. That's why his 247 score got a bump last - he was officially listed as an LB. But we got Stroman and Hoyle (who the staff is high on) at safety.
One thing's for certain - this is definitely Lechtenberg's running back room now. You don't bring in 8 new guys in two years without a purpose.
FAM!!!!
In my dreams, Tech starts to play a power-I offense and blows a lot of teams right off the ball. Imagine being under center inside the five yard line.
But this kid seems like a great get. Significantly boosts the average P5 offer/recruit metric. I can't recall a Tech RB with his height.
Suggs, Jones, Ore, Evans, Gregory, Brunson, Thomas were 6-0
McMillian, Beck, and Black were 6-1
Humes Wright were 6-2
Take a good look at our best recruiter. Lechty continues to haul 'em in.
Something to be said for a guy who has had to work his way up from the low level jobs. Hope the trend continues
Mark Davis (Raiders owner) would be proud of this haircut
Fam!
6'2" 200?
Sounds to me like a mix of an early Derrick Henry and an old school Roger Craig.
Much love Kenji, welcome to the team.
Ohhhh...this is nice....very nice..."Tommy Likey....Tommy want wingy". Not sure that is relevant here but that dude has room to grow and could be an absolute stud....niiiiiicccce
Welcome aboard Kenji, hope you turn into a star at Tech
Great pickup!