I'm told Kareem Felder 2016 DB just committed to VT
This post was edited on 2/7 10:02 AM by RivalsFriedman

Guys, the last of my updates on the Paramus Catholic (NJ) guys who visited VT for Saturday's junior day. I also spoke with two-star WR Donald Stewart, who made the trip with his teammates, which included five-star DT Rashan Gary and 2018 QB Allan Walters.

Stewart right now does not have a VT offer, but has offers from Rutgers, Syracuse, Temple, Wake Forest, Illinois and Boston College. This is a kid who will be borderline getting a Hokies offer, probably dependent on what happens with some of the guys who have offers right now, but Stewart is on the board.

This was his first visit to VT, but he said he loved the atmosphere and also how long so many of the coaches have been with the Hokies. Stewart said he also liked the graduation rate, as well.

Stewart did meet with new receivers coach Zohn Burden and they watched his film together and critiqued. Burden didn't offer Stewart at Old Dominion, but he had been in contact and was recruiting him.

This is a kid who I think will probably get three stars at least, later on in the process. He has work to do, but the potential is there. Likely no decision until at least summer and he plans on visiting Syracuse, Wake Forest and Rutgers among others, coming.

Full story coming, but as always, what's posted here, STAYS HERE. Don't de-value your own subscription by giving away information to others who don't pay like you do. It's also a violation of our terms of service and will result in the termination of your subscription.[/B]

Donald Stewart profile

Guys, I spoke earlier with Dematha (Md.) four-star WR Tino Ellis, ranked No. 133 in the Rivals250. Ellis is a kid I've been watching and keeping track of for almost three years now. I first saw him at VT's camp in June of 2012 before his freshman year. He's cousins with Donovan Riley and played with Cam Phillips at Dematha.

Ellis has visited VT a lot through the years, for games or camps or just to see Riley, so he's been in the mix for a while. But the big thing is right now, Ellis said that after this past weekend, "VT was my best visit so far, so they're number one." He's already named a top five a few weeks ago with the Hokies, Maryland, Rutgers, West Virginia and Wake Forest.

This past weekend, Ellis said he went with his parents and his uncle and they went 30 minutes early to speak with new WRs coach Zohn Burden. Ellis said he liked Burden a lot and that Burden told him he could be a thousand-yard receiver at VT. But after meeting Burden and talking with coach Frank Beamer, Ellis said he and his family basically spent the day with Phillips. They stayed with the Jr day group for a little bit, but broke off with Phillips after that, walked around campus, ate on campus and hung out in his dorm.

Ellis is busy this week, though still. He'll be at Maryland for a quick visit, to see the Terps play basketball tomorrow against Indiana, then he'll be at Wake Forest's junior day Saturday.He's set a decision date for July 31.

There's plenty of time right now, but VT is in the lead here. It looks like it will for sure come down to VT and MD, so we'll see who can win him over in the end.

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Tino Ellis profile

and number of stars each recruit has"...... re a famous coach my father used to know & quote ....."that & a nickel will get you a cup of coffee" when it comes to a recruits commitment......many continue to visit and look around.....they are easily swayed and conned elsewhere by friends, parents desires, & their high school coaches. Even if sign the LOI ---it can be gotten out of.... the premiere programs are loaded with 3-4 years of premiere recruits that rarely if ever end up on the field or contribute significantly to the program.....sometimes the high profile programs will take a marginal recruits wanted by rival programs only to suggest they transfer elsewhere a yr or so later ...some have attended expensive high profile camps where counselors over rate # of stars etc to get their kids scholarships (establish a camps rep & the fees it can charge)....and camp coaches build their own reputations and claims of high levels of expertise.,,,,, kind of like selling cars.... its a cut throat game...

After Beamer's program took off and quickly gained a national reputation in all facets....following a series of issues/ problems on & off the field with "look at me" recruits with big mouths & over-inflated egos....Beamer dialed back on recruiting or going after any recruit that didn't have the "CLASS" or 'CHARACTER" to match the recruits walk, talk, and ability to earn their degree and represent themselves, their families, and the university well. Beamer enjoys the comraderie of coaching and mentoring the players...... his program is meat & potatoes. --- no surprises ---drama free.. He learned a lot from Michael Marcus, and Deangelo , He has honed his staff & his program to where the only drama that takes in his program is what takes place on the field. Its like buying a car......you do your research. He has chosen the "consumer reports" approach towards
getting a reliable, no surprises, "steady as she goes" ---- results versus a Vegas high roller approach. that may not yield any possibility or consideration of contending for a position in the the national championship final four.....but will likely insure his standing as one of/ if not the winningest cfball d-1 coaches of all time.

Last night's UConn-South Carolina game proved that most pollsters do not know what they are doing. For most of the year, SC was ranked #1 and UConn #2. Even the dumbest person within NCAA/Media should have known UConn is best team in the nation. Yet pollsters voted SC #1 week after week.
For the record, #2 UConn beat #1 South Carolina by 25 points. Every poll voter who voted UConn #2 should be dismissed as a voter, for lack of knowledge.

Hello,

I'm new here but am a huge fan of college football and decided I finally wanna start visiting some of the stadiums for this upcoming season. I gotta start planning now and I decided Lane stadium is one I wanna venture to this year, with that said I see Ohio State is playing you guys this year and its gotta be the biggest game of the year.

Was just wondering if somebody could help me out and give me some insight on how to get tickets for such a big game without having to pay an arm and a leg? Everywhere I looked its all second hand sites like stubhub selling the tickets and jacking up the prices........there going for over $300 even for the nose bleeds. Is this normal? Whatever happened to gate prices for the genreral public or have they just not gone on sale yet?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

Hope he gets to play against osu.

Mrs. Snell passed away today.
This post was edited on 2/9 7:19 PM by 1bburgfan

I noted that Univ of Tenn had a great recruiting year for 2015 and has some key commitments already for 2016.

They have 8 graduate assistants, basically one for every position coach. These guys are young, former players and often from the surrounding colleges.

Plus, they have an attractive woman in charge of on-campus recruiting.

Is this playing out for them in the recruiting realm? The GAs keep the frequent contact alive and speak the recruits' "language". The position coaches keep in touch and speak to how great they are and how they'll "fit in". The the campus tour with young co-eds to make the trip and events more fun.

Question is - How do we stack up?

Guys, I just got off the phone with the No. 2 player in the 2016 Rivals100, Paramus Catholic (NJ) DT Rashan Gary. He's on his way back home with his teammates, 2016 WR Donald Stewart and 2018 QB Allan Walters, who visited VT for the Hokies junior day yesterday. And as I've mentioned on here before, Gary was also at the Military Bowl, with the family of OL Billy Ray Mitchell, wearing VT gear.

Gary said this was his first trip to VT. But he said he loved the family environment and how, "when it comes to education, they have that down pat." Gary said he also spent plenty of time with assistant coaches Cornell Brown, his recruiter, Charley Wiles and coach Frank Beamer. All three told him how he could have an instant impact. Gary also said, "they have the perfect scheme that I could fit in" and he loves the Hokies' reputation.

With Mitchell, Gary said they did catch up and hang out yesterday. Gary and his teammates also went to the VT basketball game. But while Gary said he and Mitchell are very good friends, he made it clear that Mitchell won't influence his decision. Obviously, though, those guys are tight and Gary said Mitchell "knows what I need."

Long way to go here, but VT is in excellent shape. This was Gary's first visit this year and he said he has a lot of other places he wants to visit, though he didn't name any specifically. He did say he'd be travelling more with his teammates, though, who mentioned wanting to visit Rutgers, Syracuse and others. All three will also be at the Rivals Camp Series stop in New Jersey in April

But Gary said right now, he plans on deciding next signing day. He told me the only way he'd announce earlier would be at next year's Under Armour All-American Game, which he's playing in. He sounds pretty wide open still, but the Hokies definitely have a very realistic shot here.

Full story coming, but as always, what's posted here, STAYS HERE. Don't de-value your own subscription by giving away information to others who don't pay like you do. It's also a violation of our terms of service and will result in the termination of your subscription.[/B]

Rashan Gary profile

Guys, I alluded to it earlier in the Rashan Gary post, but I also spoke today with Paramus Catholic (NJ) 2018 quarterback Allan Walters. He visited VT for yesterday's junior day, along with Gary and their teammate, 2016 WR Donald Stewart. They actually all three passed the phone around while on their drive home today.

Walters does not currently have a VT offer, but it will likely come at some point. Right now, as just a freshman, he has a Rutgers offer.

This was Walters' first trip to Blacksburg. He told me he really enjoyed the visit, the atmosphere and that the facilities "blew me away." Walters said he especially spent time with offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler, which was his favorite part of the trip. He said Loeffler put him on the spot in talking coverages and that he did well. But he was also floored by some crazy scenarios that Loeffler put on a white board.

Walters still likely has some growing to do. He's already 6'2" and 200 pounds, but that growth spurt is a big reason why schools are waiting, to see how he fills out. Walters said this was his first junior day, but that he hopes to get to a lot of others and rattled off Rutgers, Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Wake forest, North Carolina, Penn State, Michigan and Tennessee as possibilities.

LOOOOOONG way to go here, but VT at least in early in Walters' recruitment.

Full story coming, but as always, what's posted here, STAYS HERE. Don't de-value your own subscription by giving away information to others who don't pay like you do. It's also a violation of our terms of service and will result in the termination of your subscription.[/B]

Allan Walters profile

Nice win for our boys! We were so ridiculously outmaned inside, I can't believe we actually won that game. One thing you can say about Coach Buzz is our guys scrap and compete for the full 60 minutes. Nice game for Mueller.

nm

Anyone on here gather any notes/do a small write-up like some really awesome people have in the past? It's usually a great read, and its a shame some of us who live a ways away cant make it.

What's his deal? Thought we offered and he committed. Reading there might be somethin odd here.

I see via twitter that he was arrested last night for public intoxication... Not an optimal offseason; but at least he wasn't driving.

The women's soccer team signed 6 new players for the fall. I'm excited to see what this class is able to contribute. Congrats to them!

Soccer Signings

Yeah we've had MV and TT and then LT but has it ever been so wide open?

Motley, Ford and Durkin all have time in the system and want Brewer's job now.

Lawson flipped to VT because he sees an opportunity to get on the field earlier than at Miami.

Brewer looked brilliant in some games and lousy in others. Maybe because he took to many hits.

Any predictions?

Guys, I haven't been posting new offers on the message board, but I have been tweeting them. Do you guys want me to post on here when we confirm VT offers as well?

Who does one root for in a game like this ? Bennett is a nicer guy than Pinto, but I despise the players on both teams.

Guys, I spoke for a few minutes earlier with South Caldwell (NC) three-star OL Landon Dickerson. He visited VT today for junior day, his first visit since the UVA game in November.

Dickerson said he had a great visit, met with coach Frank Beamer and also saw a photo of the 1934 team, which his grandfather played for. Dickerson said he also lived getting to see the dorms and also loved talking with assistant coaches Shane Beamer and Stacy Searels.

The big thing after this visit is that Dickerson told me VT, Tennessee and South Carolina are "kinda in front right now." But Dickerson said he doesn't plan on deciding until sometime next fall. That could change, but his commitment is not one to be looking for right now.

Full story coming, but as always, what's posted here, STAYS HERE. Don't de-value your own subscription by giving away information to others who don't pay like you do. It's also a violation of our terms of service and will result in the termination of your subscription.[/B]

Landon Dickerson profile

Hey guys, because I missed associate AD Tom Gabbard at the Blacksburg Sports Club last week due to national signing day, I've arranged to speak with him tomorrow night before the VT basketball game. I have some questions I want to ask him about facilities, but is there anything specific that you guys are curious about? I'll be sure to ask him about your questions.

Guys, I've got tons of info on where VT is with all of its athletic facility projects. At today's Blacksburg Sports Club meeting, associate AD Tom Gabbard, who oversees facilities, gave a breakdown of everything. Here's all the notes:

*The football indoor facility is probably what everyone is most interested in. Gabbard said the building was designed by HKS and William M Jordan.

**The windows will all be reflective glass. That will keep the heat down, let in more natural light and also create a glow at night. The wrought iron fence surrounding the building will mirror that around Lane Stadium. There will be a coaching deck on the second floor, that looks both inside and outside. There will be hokie stone surrounding the building ad natural lighting lining the building.

***Gabbard said the building will be 400 feet long, 210 feet wide and 85 feet high. Beamer wanted the building to be tall enough to punt. UVA's facility, by the way, is only 65 feet tall.

****One cool aspect is that there will be six remote control video cameras placed around the facility. They will also be wired to the video studio, so that practice could in theory be aired live and that film can be edited and cut at the same time. It should be a HUGE time saver.

*****Since the facility will take up half of the current room for practice, there will be the option of having one full-length field or having two, one that will be 75 yards long and another that will be 65.

******The west wall of the facility will have eight columns and they'll each have one of the words for BLLUSSHD, which is also on the VT memorial. One word from each will go on the bottom of each column.

*******As far as a timeline, construction starts next week. The building should be completed by the time of fall camp in August of next year. The renovation of Rector Field House will begin once the indoor facility is completed.

********Gabbard spent quite a bit of time talking about the Hahn Hurst Practice facility for the basketball teams. He said all the offices and amenities are the same for both the men's and women's basketball teams. The only difference is that women's coach Dennis Wolff's office is six inches bigger.

*********In the past year and a half, all of the locker rooms for all olympic sports have been renovated. One of the things VT has done is put a lounge in or adjacent to all locker rooms. The football locker room is also plush, as I'm sure you guys could see even from the Harlem Shake video. Funny story with that. Gabbard said when they consulted coach Frank Beamer, he said, "Who has the biggest lockers?" Gabbard told him, Texas' lockers are 40 inches wide. Beamer told him, "Well, make ours 42." And so VT did.

**********Cassell Coliseum will also get some work done. Gabbard wants to redo the concourse again, as far as the outside walls and carpeting on the concourse level. The back wall to the Bowman Room has been redone, but Gabbard also wants the Hall of Fame part redone. He also wants to build an entrance lobby, so when the doors are opened outside sections 6 and 8, there's not such a cold draft coming in. The handicap section on the floor has been overcrowded, so three or four sections will be added on the concourse.

***********This season, Cassell will be getting a new sound system, though it probably won't be ready until January. Right now, the hold up has been that there's a study being done for how much weight Cassell Coliseum can support. The answers from that will be coming in next week, and the groundwork will be done after that.

************Gabbard also wants to take the crows nest in Cassell down. He wants to build a lounge and elevators going up to it, but this is only in the planning stage right now.

*************There's more work that will be done on the softball field as well. Apparently, coach Scott Thomas loves Florida State's stadium. There's a second floor pavilion that VT will be building that's similar. It will be available for football tailgates and will have two hitting lanes, two pitching lanes and a hitting lane.

**************For other sports, there will be new space for soccer and lacrosse lockers. For tennis, VT will be expanding the current facility, to add private locker rooms and lounge. The baseball press box will also be expanded to add restrooms.

***************Also, Gabbard talked about some of the stuff around campus. The entrance from 460 will change in a few years, as will Perimeter Road. The airport will be expanding in the next few years, meaning the runway will expand and that will shut down the road. There's three entities involved, the FAA, the airport and another entity I can't remember. But when it's done, 30-passenger jets will be able to land and take off, meaning that the basketball team and smaller teams can charter out of Blacksburg instead of Roanoke.

More info coming when available, but as always, what's posted here, STAYS HERE or it will result in the termination of your subscription per our terms and conditions.

This post was edited on 2/12 12:11 PM by Jason Stamm

Baseball starts this upcoming weekend for the Hokies. Last night the Hokies held Baseball Night in Blacksburg in Lane Stadium's banquet area. Special guest speaker was Charlie Manuel, long time manager of the Phillies, and winner of over 1000 games as a manager. Charlie also played for several major league teams during his career. Charlie was an excellent speaker and kept the crowd interested with many major league stories.

All of the Hokie Players were on hand to talk and were very friendly and outgoin. Very nice young men and very willing to help during the ceremonies. There was a silent auction which had many autographed major league items as well as many VT items signed by former players, Frank Beamer and Buzz Williams to name a few. There were many items for auction, some from all sports, Baseball, Football, Hockey, Golf, NasCar and many other items.

Dinner was served by Bull and Bones and was delicious as always. There was a free bar for wine, beer and soft drinks. Mike Burnop served as the host.

It was disappointing that no one from the Athletic Department was there to speak or support the event or baseball for VT.

All and all my wife and I had a great time as others did that we spoke to and we will support again next year.

Hope to see some of you out supporting the baseball team this year, we try to make as many games as possible to support there young men and baseball at VT.

Guys, I talked for a while earlier with Asheboro (NC) four-star DE Nick Coe. He visited VT for junior day today and was also offered by the Hokies. I also spoke with his coach, Owen George.

First of, Coe said his top three is VT, North Carolina and West Virginia. Coe was offered today, but he's been looked at by assistant coach Charley Wiles for a while. Coe said he loved going into coach Frank Beamer's office to receive the offer from him today. He also said the whole visit was 'great' and that he didn't realize how many bowls the Hokies have won.

The big thing with Coe is that he's originally from Richmond and moved to North Carolina in sixth grade. He said he grew up a fan of Virginia Tech and even visited when he was 8 years old. But since then, he and George said that Coe has been a UNC fan. So those seem to be the two of the three that stand out.

Coe is also a very accomplished wrestler. At 6'6" and 265 pounds, he wrestles as a heavyweight and is currently ranked No. 2 for that weight class in North Carolina's 3A division. Coe even went to VT a day early this weekend, on Friday, to go to the VT wrestling match against Pittsburgh with Wiles. But George said he's also a great overall athlete and ran a 4.78 at Tennessee's camp last year.

It's still early as Coe said he has no idea when he wants to decide, but the Hokies are in great position right now.

Full story coming, but as always, what's posted here, STAYS HERE. Don't de-value your own subscription by giving away information to others who don't pay like you do. It's also a violation of our terms of service and will result in the termination of your subscription.[/B]

Nick Coe profile