Will be very nice to see somebody with his speed on the football field next Fall:

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My understanding is that this is more like a preferred walk-on offer (they've made this type of move with other kickers in the past couple years too, with similarly ambiguous reporting on the kid's end), but Larson is a pretty good kicker from what is obviously an extremely talented program.

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Getting him to Blacksburg could help chip away at VT's struggles recruiting St. Frances (obviously 2021 commit Aaron Willis and 2020 RB Blake Corum, who is very high on VT, also help there).

I'd recommend checking out his film; it's pretty darn good.

New Virginia Tech football offer: CJ Beasley

A 2020 center:

New Virginia Tech basketball offer: Jonathan Aku

Virginia Tech is after a big fish in the 2019 class, trying to flip Rivals250 offensive lineman Doug Nester from Ohio State to put a cherry on top of what is already a very strong group of offensive line offensive line signees. The 6-6, 312-pounder is a big one indeed, and at No. 152 nationally would be the top-ranked offensive line signee since Austin Clark in 2015 (though Clark gave up football after just one year to focus on academics).

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Nester has previously spoken about plans to see a few schools in January before putting pen to paper and signing his letter of intent. Now, those plans are set.

A previously-scheduled trip to Georgia for this weekend has been canceled, and he plans to focus on the programs a little bit closer to home rather than considering Athens for his college ball. He'll take an official visit to Ohio State next weekend, Penn State the following weekend, and Virginia Tech Feb. 1-3, immediately before the opening of the traditional signing period the following Wednesday.

There's quite a bit to unpack there, not least of which is that he'll be in Columbus on another official visit. Ryan Day's Buckeyes are taking advantage of a new NCAA rule allowing multiple official visits to a single program if one comes prior to a head coaching change. Nester took an official to OSU December 7, before Urban Meyer officially announced his retirement. That means Day will have a chance to entertain the four-star once again - even though he spent time in 2018 as the interim head coach for the program. That's a big boost to that program's chances of retaining Nester's commitment, given the amount of familiarity they'll be able to give him.

If he makes it back without firmly committing - that is, canceling his remaining visits - Virginia Tech might be well poised to make a run. The first official visit and last official visit are often the most important positions when trying to land a prospect, and the Hokies obviously will be bringing up the tail end.

He didn't get much game action, so not much from there, but some good shots in practice and off the field.

In photos: Jaden Payoute at the All-American Bowl

With the forecast, Bud needs to load the team on the bus and drive to C'ville on Saturday. Practice in JPJ Arena Sunday & Monday.

Perhaps the TV analysis was correct in diagnosing VT's shooting woes as being due to NO TIME (ZERO) PRACTICING AT GT'S BB COURT.

Don't wait until Tuesday to travel to C'ville due to the weather!

Unfortunately, things had been trending this way for a little while in the case of Elijah Bowick's 2020 safety teammate:

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There was a time when he seemed a near-lock to be VT's first 2020 commit. It'll be interesting to see how/if things change with North Carolina's first season under a new staff.

(in fact at this point they don't plan to), but it's always worth keeping an eye on the talent in Georgia under this staff:

https://virginiatech.rivals.com/news/plenty-of-2019-talent-left-in-georgia

had a chance to watch him this weekend as well as talk and catch up with his father and former Hokie Hank Coleman. Kid is super athletic and honestly a lot like Chris Clarke in how he plays. He runs the floor extremely well and plays with tenacity. He was facing Julian Wooden who is a JMU commit. Wooden got the best of him a few times but Henry showed why he has 30+ offers. Hank told me that they wanted to swing by and see the BC game it just didn’t happen. So all in all I feel pretty good about this one.

Of course you'll take the best players you can get at any position, but some need instant-impact guys more than others:

Depth v. top-end: What are the Hokies' 2020 recruiting priorities?

They don't have a show today, so I was on a day earlier than usual this week:

Audio: Tim Sullivan on ESPN Blacksburg’s The Drive

I so jealous of what CLEMSON HAS.. We used to have a nasty DEFENSE AND SPECIAL TEAMS.. BEAMER in his hey day if he would have just put an aggressive mind set in the program on offense I fully believe he could have won a couple NATTY’s....

I believe we have the pieces in the program with these young guys to be much improved. The offense should really be improved but I have to say we need a game changing QB.. WE NEED HOOKER OR PATTERSON TO STEP UP AND LEAD THIS OFFENSE TO NEW HEIGHTS. Also we need to change the offensive philosophy to go down the field aggressively, I do believe we try to many plays east and west. WE NEED TO GO DOWN THE FIELD.

I believe we got some young studs on defense that needs to step up and lead this defense back to where we are used to it being. WHAT I AM REFFERING TO IS DBU, NASTY, TERROR DOME, HARD HITTING, AGGRESSIVE, TONE SETTING!! IT STARTS NOW AND I HOPE THIS STAFF AND THE LEADERS OF THIS TEAM WATCHED THIS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME AND IT MADE THEM HUNGRY. This team is in our conference and I am so HAPPY FOR COACH SWINNEY GIVING ALL THE GLORY TO GOD. If CLEMSON CAN DO IT BEING IN THE ACC SO CAN VIRGINIA TECH!!! We need more help in the trenches exspecially at D TACKLE. I believe we are going in the right direction on the offensive line with the haul we are bringing in this year and last year.

SORRY FOR MY RANT BUT I LOVE MY HOKIES AND I WANT TO BE IN THESE PLAYOFFS AND SEE MY HOKIES WIN A TITLE!! IM JUST JEALOUS OF WHAT CLEMSON HAS. But who couldn’t sell them being in our conference and getting to play them every year in the ACC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME AND HAVING THAT SHOT EVERY YEAR ON THAT STAGE TO SHOW WHO WE ARE AND WHO ARE WE?

WE ARE VIRGINIA TECH!!!!
GO HOKIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Virginia Tech's basketball staff remains in pursuit of a bigman to cap off what is already a very good 2019 class. The focus for that position has long been in-state center Qudus Wahab.Just outside the national top-100, the 6-10 prospects is a good fit for Buzz Williams's system.

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The four-star has yet to set up his official visits to Georgetown and Syracuse (though he's seen both on unofficial trips), which is the primary delay in making a decision - one that he'd hoped to make during December. He intends to take both official visits before coming up with a new commitment timeline and ultimately coming to that choice.

The pendulum has swung back and forth on how prominent Virginia Tech is in his recruitment, and for the time being, it seems to be at a position farther from where Hokie fans would like to see. Among his top five (UConn is the remaining finalist), it appears Pitt has not only been able to maintain momentum better than other schools, but turn that into a long-term favoring of that program.

Of course, as we've seen, Wahab is a kid who likes to conduct his recruiting business relatively quietly and privately - and it's tough to begrudge a kid that in an era where too many seem to be in it for the attention rather than the opportunities to play - so his individual whims can change much more frequently than anyone in the media is privy to.

Still, the Hokies' staff is keeping an eye on backup plans to ensure they won't be left out in the cold if Wahab ends up elsewhere. That alone may indicate where they feel they stand for him.

Obviously there's a little truth on both sides of the matter here (did he fight somebody?) and there would have been quite a bit more leeway had this been his first... or fifth... strike:

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At this point, it's unlikely he ends up at VT. Nebraska seems most likely to me, but clearly he's still giving everyone a chance:

Asante continuing to do his research

Possibly the last one of the year; not many NFL Hokies left:

Hokies in the NFL 2018: Wildcard round