The Hokies didnt venture west into Tennessee often in the latter Beamer years and signed just five players from the state during Justin Fuentes six seasons, most notably linebacker Jaden Keller in 2021. 1. READ MORE, 2024 tight end Amir Jackson picked up a Virginia Tech offer recently, and he's had early conversations with Tyler Bowen. quarterback Kyron Drones and receiver Ali Jennings III. . Coney could also play linebacker, but it sounds like the plan is to stick in the backfield. 231-4132. -, S / As much as I like the cornerback class, I equally like the safeties. Really high football IQ, great wheels and can spin it. READ MORE, Ari Watford will be one of the top prospects in the state in the 2025 class. 250, LB / CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Life Christian Academy (Colonial Heights, VA), Clarkson Football North (Mississauga, ON), RB / The highly versatile defensive back has played nearly every position in the Hokies' backfield dating back to 2018. Here are three areas that should give Hokie fans hope. I also wouldnt be shocked if Pry looks for a defensive tackle via the transfer portal. Virginia Techs Elizabeth Kitley pulls down her second ACC player of the year award, Georgia Amoore and Taylor Soule get team honors, and Tech gets ready for Selection Sunday. By Bryan D. Manning @BryanDManning. He committed on Sunday, three days after he decommitted from Boston College and a day after an official visit in Blacksburg. 6-1 / The Hokies locked up his commitment late Tuesday night, springing it as a surprise on signing day. The receiver group rounded out late with the additions out of Tennessee of both Ayden Greene, a one-time Cincinnati commit, and Chance Fitzgerald. 282, RB / He has compiled 314 total tackles (207 solo), 21.0 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, 4 interceptions, 23 passes defensed, 4 forced fumbles and one block. Drones was a hot commodity and gives the Hokies and offensive coordinator Tyler Bowen the type of passer who can run his offense; that should be RPO-heavy. Stevens will probably end up at defensive end, and, like Abbey, be a pretty good one. In addition to key transfers in quarterback Kyron Drones and receiver Ali Jennings III, the Hokies have gotten six high school commitments this month, with four coming from players who are among the top-six ranked recruits in Techs class receivers Chance Fitzgerald (2) and Ayden Greene (3), cornerback Antonio Cotman Jr. (5) and quarterback Pop Watson (6). 318, DL / 180, QB / 5-10 / Arena is Virginia Tech's fourth commitment for 2023, joining offensive linemen Lance Williams (Alcoa, Tennessee) and Hannes Hammer (Roanoke, Virginia via Germany and defensive end Jason. Buy Tickets Opens in new window. NA 135 140. Varner has been dealing with a foot injury, but if healthy, he will be Virginia Techs best pass rusher immediately. Receiver and ACC champion sprinter Cole Beck will run track again this spring, then see how things how shake out before a determination is made about his football career. We've got a lot of those conversations, I think I've got 33 or 34 meetings scheduled over the next couple of days.". He offers consistency, Mines said. Dec 20, 2022 31 BLACKSBURG, Va. So this is what recruiting momentum feels like? Early signing day is Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2021. Virginia Tech Hokies Baseball Walks Away with a 3-1 Week 2 Record, Quarterback: William Pop Watson III, Dylan Wittke, Wide receiver: Chance Fitzgerald, Ayden Greene, Marcell Baylor, Takye Heath, Krystian Williams, Offensive line: Layth Ghannam, Lance Williams, Gabriel Arena, Hannes Hammer, Edge [DE/OLB]: Jason Abbey. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). The Hokies signed 25 players last week and could sign a few more before national signing day in February. He has that mentality to play this position at a high level.. Again, its about being transparent and open and honest and having conversations ahead of time. (Top photo: Courtesy of Virginia Tech Athletics). Football Nov 18 TBA. Executive Assistant to the Head Coach. 300, LB / For more details about the site, including a list of TechSideline.com staff, see our About page. While the Hokies have continued to add players from the NCAA transfer portal . READ MORE Football Nov 11 TBA. You can access the playlist below, beginning with Dante Lovetts video, and stepping through all 25 videos. But for now, Techs riding some good waves heading into the early signing period that begins Wednesday. Several schools out there went hard after a few Hokies commitments. ('2023-02-23 11:46:09 -0600') }} football Edit. 6-4 / FB Recruiting Six players I am most excited to see during spring ball for Virginia Tech VIP Evan G. Watkins FB Recruiting Top target Keylen Adams returns to Virginia Tech VIP Evan G.. Welcome to Virginia Tech Football Recruiting Signing Day Central for the Class of 2023. After a showy signing day ceremony, the hay is in the barn now, with Pry finalizing his first full class with the Hokies, a group that ranks 35th in the 247Sports Composite and sixth in the ACC, not far from Virginia Techs historical norm. 6-2 / The Hokies had circled him as a possibility before he went in the portal, so once he officially put his name out there, offensive coordinator Tyler Bowen had done his homework and was the first coach Drones welcomed on an in-home visit. 6-2 / 32 among NCAA FBS programs (per Rivals ). Highlights: No. He was a hybrid linebacker-defensive back in both 2019 and 2020, registering a bulk of his . Email Address. Will these recent good fortunes pay off down the line? Once commits sign their NLIs to the Hokies, they will have a green check next to their name in the table below and move to the top of the list. Try a week on us. 0.8714. Their parents, especially, have an appreciation for where Virginia Techs been, and they understand what this program can be.. The 6-foot-2, 260-pound Varner was a first-team All-AAC performer at Temple in 2022 and can slide inside on passing downs. We really like the way he rushes the quarterback, Pry said. 5-10 / It sounds like the Hokies want to see him begin at receiver, but I like him as a cornerback. In order to create the most comprehensive Team Recruiting Ranking without any notion of bias, 247Sports Team Recruiting Ranking is solely based on the 247Sports Composite Rating. 6-4 / Felton is from Portsmouth. Virginia Tech basketball has picked up its first commitment of the 2024 recruiting cycle. Dante Lovett and Cameren Fleming were two of my favorites in this class. Theres no such thing as 50-50. @CoachPryVT @TylerBowen @CoachShawnQuinn @HokiesFB pic.twitter.com/tCR903bBkM, Zeke Wimbush (@zekewimbush7) December 19, 2022. Tech Sidelines content of this years signing day includes a podcast around 3:30 p.m. Odds & lines subject to change. - / Each recruit is weighted in the rankings according to a, Readers familiar with the Gaussian distribution formula will note that we use a varying value for. Virginia Tech Hokies Defensive Back Chamarri Conneris participating in the 2023 NFL Combine, looking to boost his stock ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft. Its there. 623 55 9. It wouldnt be easy after Justin Fuente ignored the state for years. All three will enroll in January, adding some juice to spring ball at the position. 10 Virginia Tech Hokies Trade Wins and Losses with No.9 Texas. Id like to get a bona fide pass rusher off the edge, a proven guy that can win more one-on-one battles, Pry said. He didnt garner much Power 5 attention coming out of Maury High in Norfolk in 2019, ranked as the 29th player in the state, but Pry said he was the heart and soul of a 15-0 state championship team down there. While its unclear how many of the soon-to-be signees will get on the field early, its clear from the Hokies recent push that theyre focusing on reshaping the offense, particularly the receiver room. Its not easy, Pry said of the juggling act of adding three quarterbacks in a class. READ MORE, Within 10 minutes, 4-star linebacker Gabriel Williams had received a text message from nearly every member of Virginia Techs coaching staff. Over the final month heading into the early signing period, Pry picked up commitments from six high school players and four transfers. Liz Kitleys 53rd double-double, matched by Taylor Soules double-double, and G sinks 5 Threes! More than anything, we wanted to get guys who had good production, Mines said. 6-2 / READ MORE, Virginia Tech hosted arguably the top prospect in the state of Virginia last weekend for their second Junior Day event. Here are some key takeaways from signing day: Virginia Techs class has a distinctly Virginia flavor to it, with 16 of the 29 total signees having played their high school ball in the commonwealth. His size, athleticism and football IQ had him extremely undervalued. AZ, CO, CT, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, (select parishes), MD, MI, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, TN, VA, WV, WY, CA-ONT only.Eligibility restrictions apply. Cotman was once considered one of the top players in Virginia, and if you go back and watch him in high school, he is a really good football player. 10 ranked all-time Virginia Tech Hokie in career tackles. -, IOL / Recruits can send in their National Letter of Intent (NLI) starting at 7 a.m. We'll begin providing updates at that time, and we'll be here all day. Add in Jennings out of ODU and its been a very good month for receivers coach Fontel Mines. Theres a little bit of a gap between the old guys and this group, he said. 295, TE / From analyzing Techs 2023 class, you see a heavy emphasis on Virginia and the Hokies making some noise in regional states, such as Tennessee, Maryland, West Virginia and South Carolina. Period. I can see both playing in 2023. TSL) is an independent publication that is in no way affiliated with or sponsored by Virginia Tech or the Virginia Tech Athletic Department. Jason Abbey is a defensive end from Richmond that has coaches excited. There are probably going to be more, but the Post season conference awards are a big deal for the players that win them. Though none is ranked better than a three-star prospect in the 247Sports Composite, all four are 652nd or higher nationally, boosting what had been a solid but not spectacular class in the final month, with the Hokies now up to 34th in the national team rankings and sixth in the ACC. So a guy that can supply some depth and come in and be a rotational guy, give us a chance to develop this young group.. 6-6 / Tech has also gotten confirmation from defensive tackle Mario Kendricks and defensive end Pheldarius Payne, a Nebraska transfer who missed last year with an Achilles injury, that theyll return. You have ball skills, theyre usually pretty quick twitch, the short-area quickness. (Courtesy of Virginia Tech Athletics). Conner has late Day 3 value as a potential backup., He was given a prospect rating of 5.82 - which defines him as an "Average backup or Special Teamer. Receiver Cole Beck, defensive tackles Norell Pollard and Mario Kendricks and defensive end Pheldarius Payne could also come back for another season. He misses too many tackles due to risky angles and struggles coming to balance in the open field. Privacy Policy | Terms of Use. 2023 Virginia Tech Athletics - All Rights Reserved. You can win those jump balls, 80-20, is what I call it. Offensive lineman Lance Williams, a Tennessee Mr. Football for his classification, was the first commitment in the class from Alcoa, south of Knoxville. Woodson is a fun player with good size and speed, who many believe ends up at linebacker. 310, LB / Lets break down Techs high-school class by position: Watson was a late flip and has a chance to be Virginia Techs successor to Drones if things go according to plan. There were no last-second decommitments or signing day swings and misses, a welcome change from recent years, and the Hokies even had a few surprises up their sleeves for the public, with a pair of transfers, defensive end Darian Varner and receiver DaQuan Felton, and high school safety Mose Phillips announcing their intentions to sign with Tech on Wednesday. CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Conners size and versatility could buy him time on a roster, but he might need to keep fighting for his spot. Area Code 540. 6-5 / #8 Virginia Tech Hokies Dominate Miami to Reach the ACC Tournament Semi-Finals: 68-42. The 6-foot-1 wide receiver has over 20 scholarship offers and is the No. In fact, 12 of the high school signees from Virginia were ranked 20th or lower in the state, with Penn State (six of the top 10) and North Carolina (five of the top 20) at the forefront of the poachers. Ultimately, it wasnt enough. That means the Hokies need to have another wave of attrition at some point, be it when the new semester starts in January or later once spring ball concludes and a second transfer window opens up, just to get to the 85 max number. The recent additions put the Hokies at 91 scholarship players by my rough count if you include all of the 2023 commitments and every senior who has an available COVID-19 year. 5-11 / But at the same time, we have to be better in that area.. However, most of the heavy lifting has been done, and any further additions will likely come through the transfer portal. Thats not to say the Hokies landed top local talent, as ranked by the recruiting sites, in Virginia. 6-3 / Associate AD, Chief of Staff. For more details about the site, including a list of TechSideline.com staff, see our About page. And for some of those players, Pry either flipped from other schools or beat some good competition to land those signatures. 300, S / Meanwhile, guys like Heath, Pennix and Marcell Baylor showed plenty of versatility in high school, excelling on both sides of the ball. Pry thinks Tech secured commitments early from some undervalued players in the state who had strong senior seasons, which helped the Hokies fend off late challengers once their recruitment heated up, We came in here talking a big game about recruiting this state, he said. I worry about the lack of defensive tackles in this class, but the Hokies are counting on the top group from last year returning and the development of last years class. 197, QB / One concern for the Hokies is they didnt do enough on the defensive line. Virginia Tech and Brent Pry picked up their 18th commitment in the class of 2023 on Sunday night with the pledge of three-star defensive end Ishmael Findlayter (Ontario, Canada). The 2018 class is probably the last one with a strong finish that paid dividends on the field, with the Hokies landing future NFL tight end James Mitchell before the early signing period that December and coveted linebacker Dax Hollifield in February to punctuate a class ranked 22nd nationally, back before the wheels fell off during Justin Fuentes tenure. 788 37 8. An offensive lineman: The Hokies have 16 in the room right now, but only one is a senior (Jesse Hanson) and only three more have junior designations (Kaden Moore, Parker Clements and Bob Schick).

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