Tunnel Talk: Sept. 11, 2020
- By TimSullivan
- The Gobbler
- 1 Replies
Welcome to Tunnel Talk, with the latest on Hokies recruiting.
Tray Curry
With 2021 commit Tray Curry all settled at North Cobb High School in Georgia, any worry about his being dropped from the Hokies' class (which wasn't in the plans, but when a kid doesn't have a senior year of high school - to say nothing of senior season on the field - you have to keep it in the back of your mind) can be forgotten. The staff likes his talent, and with his academic and football plans squared away for this year - in this unconventional year for high schoolers around the country - he's solid in their eyes.
That raises another potential worry, though: at a higher-profile program just outside the Atlanta area, there's a greater likelihood that he is heavily scouted and late suitors try to steal him away. He's already spurned Tennessee (which was then his local program) once, pulling back from a silent commitment to flip to the Hokies. The VT staff will certainly make sure they do everything in their power to continue beating back SEC programs for a kid who's in the thick of SEC Country. For the time being, the confidence that they'll be able to do so is high.
I think - have long thought - that Curry is a four-star talent (at least), and holding onto him is important for this class.
Ben Stewart
Touched base with Class of 2021 long-snapper Ben Stewart about his recent trip to Blacksburg, where he checked out campus (but couldn't meet with coaches due to the emergency Dead Period). That's become something of a regular process now for a lot of kids with the means and motivation to take those types of visits, while others are understandably waiting until they can get an actual visit experience before gong out-of-pocket to travel to the programs they're interested in.
For a player whose offer is as a preferred walk-on, there's not even really the promise of a payoff (in terms of a scholarship to more-than offset the costs of taking such a visit), and that indicates serious interest on his part. I'd have a hard time seeing him end up elsewhere, unless big programs closer to home in Texas get seriously involved, or even go for scholarship opportunities to pull him away from the PWO spot at VT that is clearly separating itself atop his list.
With Stewart highly interested in the Hokies and his Dickinson (Texas) teammate Canon Boone committed as a scholarship member of the 2021 class, I touched base with another Class of 2021 player for the Gators, three-star linebacker Keith Cooper. At this point, it doesn't sound like the Hokies have seriously ramped up attention for him, despite the growing connections. There simply isn't a ton of need at the OLB position, especially given the uncertainty of scholarship numbers going forward, etc. etc. He is one player who could be primed to become very interested if VT changes course and goes after him full-bore down the road, though.
Chris Adams
While I do expect that the Hokies still want him (and that should mean good news when his decision date comes), I haven't been able to nail down just how much the staff is really pushing for Hagerstown (Md.) South 2021 offensive lineman Christopher Adams. With some of his finalists hailing from the mid-major or even FCS ranks, a Hokies team that truly wants him should be able to seal the deal relatively simply, but a kid with James Madison and FIU among his finalists is often the type of kid that a program with Virginia Tech's stature sort of goes after lukewarmly in the end. Again, my expectation is that VT considers him a take and will do enough to seal the deal, but not getting a solid answer on that question will leave the uncertainty open just a bit - enough that I'm holding off on a FutureCast pick.
From my perspective, he - like Curry mentioned above - is severely underrated both by coaches in the Mid-Atlantic region (in part because they're wary of offering a kid who had a knee injury late last year when they won't be able to see him play this Fall, and there are simply enough fish in the sea that pushing the chips in on a kid with a recent injury history isn't necessary), and even by Rivals. If the Hokies land him, this isn't quite a Darrisaw-like prospect in terms of obvious potential, but he's a kid who should outperform the expectations and be a multi-year starter at the Power-5 level.
It will be interesting to see how the final month of his recruitment plays out, and what decisions the Hokies make over the course of these final weeks.
As always, thanks for visiting HokieHaven.com. Feel free to use this thread to discuss the topics herein, or anything else Hokies recruiting-related.
Tray Curry
With 2021 commit Tray Curry all settled at North Cobb High School in Georgia, any worry about his being dropped from the Hokies' class (which wasn't in the plans, but when a kid doesn't have a senior year of high school - to say nothing of senior season on the field - you have to keep it in the back of your mind) can be forgotten. The staff likes his talent, and with his academic and football plans squared away for this year - in this unconventional year for high schoolers around the country - he's solid in their eyes.
That raises another potential worry, though: at a higher-profile program just outside the Atlanta area, there's a greater likelihood that he is heavily scouted and late suitors try to steal him away. He's already spurned Tennessee (which was then his local program) once, pulling back from a silent commitment to flip to the Hokies. The VT staff will certainly make sure they do everything in their power to continue beating back SEC programs for a kid who's in the thick of SEC Country. For the time being, the confidence that they'll be able to do so is high.
I think - have long thought - that Curry is a four-star talent (at least), and holding onto him is important for this class.
Ben Stewart
Touched base with Class of 2021 long-snapper Ben Stewart about his recent trip to Blacksburg, where he checked out campus (but couldn't meet with coaches due to the emergency Dead Period). That's become something of a regular process now for a lot of kids with the means and motivation to take those types of visits, while others are understandably waiting until they can get an actual visit experience before gong out-of-pocket to travel to the programs they're interested in.
For a player whose offer is as a preferred walk-on, there's not even really the promise of a payoff (in terms of a scholarship to more-than offset the costs of taking such a visit), and that indicates serious interest on his part. I'd have a hard time seeing him end up elsewhere, unless big programs closer to home in Texas get seriously involved, or even go for scholarship opportunities to pull him away from the PWO spot at VT that is clearly separating itself atop his list.
With Stewart highly interested in the Hokies and his Dickinson (Texas) teammate Canon Boone committed as a scholarship member of the 2021 class, I touched base with another Class of 2021 player for the Gators, three-star linebacker Keith Cooper. At this point, it doesn't sound like the Hokies have seriously ramped up attention for him, despite the growing connections. There simply isn't a ton of need at the OLB position, especially given the uncertainty of scholarship numbers going forward, etc. etc. He is one player who could be primed to become very interested if VT changes course and goes after him full-bore down the road, though.
Chris Adams
While I do expect that the Hokies still want him (and that should mean good news when his decision date comes), I haven't been able to nail down just how much the staff is really pushing for Hagerstown (Md.) South 2021 offensive lineman Christopher Adams. With some of his finalists hailing from the mid-major or even FCS ranks, a Hokies team that truly wants him should be able to seal the deal relatively simply, but a kid with James Madison and FIU among his finalists is often the type of kid that a program with Virginia Tech's stature sort of goes after lukewarmly in the end. Again, my expectation is that VT considers him a take and will do enough to seal the deal, but not getting a solid answer on that question will leave the uncertainty open just a bit - enough that I'm holding off on a FutureCast pick.
From my perspective, he - like Curry mentioned above - is severely underrated both by coaches in the Mid-Atlantic region (in part because they're wary of offering a kid who had a knee injury late last year when they won't be able to see him play this Fall, and there are simply enough fish in the sea that pushing the chips in on a kid with a recent injury history isn't necessary), and even by Rivals. If the Hokies land him, this isn't quite a Darrisaw-like prospect in terms of obvious potential, but he's a kid who should outperform the expectations and be a multi-year starter at the Power-5 level.
It will be interesting to see how the final month of his recruitment plays out, and what decisions the Hokies make over the course of these final weeks.
As always, thanks for visiting HokieHaven.com. Feel free to use this thread to discuss the topics herein, or anything else Hokies recruiting-related.