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). Cameron Clark Makes First Virginia Tech Visit. Later on Friday afternoon at 3 P.M., Conner will participate in the Defensive Back drills. S. Caleb Hardy Eagle's Landing (Mcdonough, GA) 6-3 / 182. LB. In order to get under the limit with all the players the Hokies still hope to land or could pursue in the future, it wouldnt be surprising if that number doubles by the end of spring. We really like the way he rushes the quarterback, Pry said. More than anything, we wanted to get guys who had good production, Mines said. 195, CB / Find the latest updates on Virginia Tech's roster below. He will be a starter wherever he lands. They can do a lot of different things with their bodies, so having those qualities is a plus for me. The highly versatile defensive back has played nearly every position in the Hokies' backfield dating back to 2018. He and Drones struck up a fast relationship during their visit, and both committed. 6-2 / 247Sports employs a staff of more than 50 full time recruiting reporters and evaluators that rank and compile data on the nation's elite . Virginia Tech has offered Salisbury (N.C.) 2024 cornerback Deuce Walker. Presented by, 2024 tight end Cameron Clark took his first visit to Virginia Tech in late January after picking up a December offer. Lord Botetourt Contingent Makes The Trip In addition to some final high school targets, the Hokies are still pursuing several transfers Temple defensive lineman Darian Varner and Norfolk State receiver DaQuan Felton are a couple to watch in the short term, with former five-star Tony Grimes out of UNC an automatic take if Tech were somehow able to beat out some heavyweights and convince him to come here. The last Tech signee ranked that high came in 2019 when wide receiver Jaden Payoute was a consensus top-five recruit in the state and fellow receiver Tayvion Robinson cracked the top five on Rivals. The 2019 class was punctuated by offensive lineman Doug Nesters signing day flip from Ohio State in February, though that joy was erased years later by his transfer to West Virginia. Coney was a late flip who looks the part. You have ball skills, theyre usually pretty quick twitch, the short-area quickness. Virginia Tech football is putting a stamp on its 2023 signing class with as good of a finish as you could. 10 ranked all-time Virginia Tech Hokie in career tackles. The Hokies added four offensive linemen. We've got a lot of those conversations, I think I've got 33 or 34 meetings scheduled over the next couple of days.". 190, DL / ACC Championship. Four Virginia high school coaches share their impressions of Brent Pry, how Virginia Tech slipped recruiting the state, the importance of keeping players home, plus more. -, QB / 5-10 / (Virginia Tech sports photography) On early signing day, 25 prospects from the class of 2023 signed their NLIs with Virginia Tech football: 13 on offense and 12 on defense. @CoachPryVT @TylerBowen @CoachShawnQuinn @HokiesFB pic.twitter.com/tCR903bBkM, Zeke Wimbush (@zekewimbush7) December 19, 2022. Though both are 6-foot-2, joining the 6-5 Felton, getting bigger wasnt necessarily a primary objective of the Hokies coaches. Virginia Tech Football Recruiting Virginia Tech football: Hokies land 4-star JUCO pass-rusher James Jennette Jennette is a promising edge rusher. Since the end of the season, seven of the eight commitments the Hokies have gotten either from the transfer portal or the high school ranks have been on offense, which makes sense, given Techs struggles on that side of the ball last season. Subscribe to The Athletic for in-depth coverage of your favorite players, teams, leagues and clubs. 233, Edge / All original material and images are copyrighted by TechSideline.com and may not be reused or reprinted without permission. The Hokies signed 25 players last week and could sign a few more before national signing day in February. READ MORE, Kyron Drones is a quarterback transfer from Baylor who got meaningful snaps in one game for the Bears. The high schoolers are Watson and Wittke at quarterback, running back Jeremiah Coney, Greene and Baylor at receiver, offensive lineman Layth Ghannam, Hannes Hammer and Williams, defensive end Ishmael Findlayter and Cotman and Phillips at defensive back. QB. Welcome to Virginia Tech Football Recruiting Signing Day Central for the Class of 2022. Period. Two of the Upstate's finest high school football players are part of the Virginia Tech football 2023 recruiting class - and they happen to be cousins. And Florida State made a late push for linebacker Caleb Woodson. Highlights: No. If he does return, likely in a special teams capacity, he wouldnt be on scholarship, though hes marketable enough that Tech could pursue NIL opportunities for him. 205, CB / They include: A defensive end: With Varner likely to play tackle, Tech has a need on the edge, especially with last years top pass rusher, TyJuan Garbutt, graduating. This years class is loading up on defensive backs. 305, DL / Ishmael Findlayter, Linebacker: Tavorian Copeland, Aycen Stevens. 236, RB / TSL) is an independent publication that is in no way affiliated with or sponsored by Virginia Tech or the Virginia Tech Athletic Department. TechSideline.com (a.k.a. Again, its about being transparent and open and honest and having conversations ahead of time. 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. Cornerback: Dante Lovett, Cameren Fleming, Antonio Cotman Jr. Safety: Mose Phillips, Braylon Johnson, Caleb Woodson, Athlete: Thomas Williams, Jonathan Pennix, Tralon Mitchell. 230, CB / Area Code 540. You can see that the area under the curve gets smaller both as the rating for a commit decreases and as the number of total commits for a school increases. Let's take a closer look at who visited. 1 ranked player in Ontario, per 247. Teams; CBS Sports; CBS SPORTS HQ; SportsLine; MaxPreps; Shop; . 205, RB / 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. Offensive lineman Lance Williams, a Tennessee Mr. Football for his classification, was the first commitment in the class from Alcoa, south of Knoxville. He was a hybrid linebacker-defensive back in both 2019 and 2020, registering a bulk of his time at the coined 'Whip' position. All six could reasonably be considered starting candidates next season. All four have legit size and Ghannam could play early in his career. In this article, we'll analyze some overall thoughts about the class from head coach Brent . The No. 285, DL / Note that this isn't necessarily a complete list of recruits who are in Blacksburg; it's only a list of those who we can confirm visited via social media. The Hokies wanted to add talent to the wide receiver position, and they certainly did. A ranking of the 2023 Best College Football Players in West Virginia. S. TyLyric Coleman Dan River (Ringgold, VA) 6-3 / 175. The Hokies locked up his commitment late Tuesday night, springing it as a surprise on signing day. Duke, Virginia Tech offer 2025 top-75 QB George MacIntyre. There are probably going to be more, but the Post season conference awards are a big deal for the players that win them. Johnson had other options before committing to Virginia Tech but chose the Hokies. He'll visit Blacksburg for Junior Day next weekend. 8 Virginia Tech Wrestling Travels To Raleigh For ACC Tournament By: Jack Brizendine | March 2, 2023 Greene (Knoxville), Fitzgerald (Nashville) and Phillips (Nashville) all came on board this month. 191, RB / BLACKSBURG, Va. While signing day went off without a hitch for Virginia Tech, that doesnt mean there werent some nervous moments leading up to it. Hes a triple-threat guy, Pry said. The Portsmouth product is a former basketball player who didnt start playing football until his junior year, earning a camp offer from Norfolk State, where he caught 67 passes for 1,062 yards and nine touchdowns the past two years, with seven scores last season. Signed. Their parents, especially, have an appreciation for where Virginia Techs been, and they understand what this program can be.. Michigan, Oklahoma State and Oklahoma had shown interest in him. The first order of business at the combine was the measurement portion, on Friday morning, where the Virginia Tech defensive back verified his frame. READ MORE, Despite being a UVA legacy, Grant Karczewski will walk-on at Virginia Tech after specific advice from his parents. What Is Virginia Tech Getting In Kyron Drones? CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Life Christian Academy (Colonial Heights, VA), Clarkson Football North (Mississauga, ON), RB / READ MORE, Virginia Tech recently became the fifth program to offer Kentucky wideout receiver Montavin Quisenberry, who has yet to take a visit. Signed Letter of Intent (15) Pos Ht / Wt Rating Status Chance Fitzgerald Nolensville (Nolensville, TN) The recruiting classes for the champions of both . We just know more about these guys. Unofficially, all the recent movement puts the Hokies at 92 scholarship players, a figure that will need to be trimmed significantly to get to the 85 maximum scholarship number, especially if Tech has designs on adding more transfers next month. (Gio Heater) On Monday, Virginia Tech's complete 2023 football schedule was releasedon the ACC Network. 200, IOL / READ MORE, TechSideline.Com
What we learned about Virginia Tech's Class of 2023 as the early signing period began Wednesday, with 25 prep players and four transfers. Thanks for the effort, fellas! The secondary class is a fun group. Virginia Tech added Baylor transfer QB Kyron Drones. Some of them, you had a new head coach in the Big Ten celebrating, This is our first offer, a Virginia Tech commitment! And it went as far as guys had graphics of taking official visits to other places, which they never did. #8 Virginia Tech Hokies Dominate Miami to Reach the ACC Tournament Semi-Finals: 68-42. Conner has late Day 3 value as a potential backup., has participated in the 2023 Reese's Senior Bowl, Virginia Tech DB Chamarri Conner receives a pre-Combine draft score. Theres a fairly even split between safeties (Johnson, Krystian Williams and Phillips) and cornerbacks (Lovett, Fleming, Cotman and Thomas Williams), though the Hokies preference is simply for players who can cover at any spot in the secondary like last year with Mansoor Delane, who came in as a safety and ended up starting and thriving at cornerback. He will start somewhere in Virginia Techs secondary for multiple seasons. Takye Heath is a player to watch. Several schools out there went hard after a few Hokies commitments. I think in this cycle, they understand we meant it. 282, RB / But getting the Hokies back in good standing with the top-tier prospects is a process, one Pry and his staff set about remedying last winter, with travel clinics in hotbed areas around the state and meet-and-greets to show high school coaches that Tech, which had lost some standing within the borders under Justin Fuente, was being genuine. GO HOKIES!!! These guys were recruiting, thats an important trait that were always looking for.. It helps the quarterback not have to be as accurate. If Joe Rudolph picks them, you should like them, too. 6-5 / The commentary is also linked in the Our Take column of the table below. Terms at draftkings.com/sportsbook. 6-6 / The 6-foot-2, 225-pound Drones was Techs top transfer quarterback target. Virginia Tech football is putting a stamp on its 2023 signing class with as good of a finish as you could have asked for from head coach Brent Pry in his first real recruiting cycle. Tech Sidelines content of this years signing day includes a podcast around 3:30 p.m. READ MORE, Virginia Tech hasn't signed an Ohio recruit since 2014, but with most of Ohio falling within the 6-hour radius, that should change. After veterans Hanson, Moore and Clements, the most experienced linemen on the roster are Schick (58 snaps) and a pair of freshmen, Braelin Moore (81) and Xavier Chaplin (27). Jennings averaged over 1,000 yards and caught 14 touchdown passes the past two seasons at ODU, despite missing three games at the end of last year with an injury. . 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. Wimbush did a bit of everything last year for Stone Bridge, sometimes playing quarterback and sometimes lining up out wide.