Obviously the decision to enter the transfer portal looked like a foregone conclusion during parts of the season, but Jackson's departure opens the door for a whole lot more opportunity:

Hendon Hooker to remove his name from the transfer portal

...if these charges turn out to be true:

https://www.roanoke.com/news/crime/...cle_294c7df2-0699-5c7e-bb2a-10b795551384.html

It took a hiatus when interest fell off during what was a pretty underwhelming football season, but let's give this another go. Want a question answered in a front-page story? Football, basketball, recruiting, off-topic, let me know, and I'll be answering them either Sunday or early next week!

OK good luck competing for playing time.

This is one of the risks of recruiting heavily out-of-region. You're not going to get every guy (and VT hasn't really been in a position to compete for nationally elite guys in recent years), but not having a chance is going to happen.

https://virginiatech.rivals.com/news/preston-stone-recaps-ut-visit-plans-to-narrow-his-focus-soon

Hokies would be better off if that ends up being a pretty loose top 10, obviously.

The former walk-on LB was a special teams grad assistant for VT this year:

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Not positive it's a huge loss (the special teams were as weak this year as they've been in the Fuente era), but losing an alum to a coaching gig elsewhere - you could say particularly at Alabama, which isn't in the position of hiring guys who don't know what they're doing - always sorta stinks.

Scheduling of the Duke game may be very fortuitous with Zion Williamson's knee injury. Hopefully just a knee sprain and he'll be back soon... just not by Tuesday night. Beat ND and Duke, then get Justin Robinson back for the FLA ST game. Could finish 4-0 and be a top four seed in the ACC. Perhaps just a hope, wish and a prayer, but stranger things have happened.

Just one of the tidbits in Corey Evans's three-point play:

Three-point play: VT recruiting Bamisile hardest and more

Hokies offered his son:

New Virginia Tech football offer: Marvin Harrison Jr.

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This may actually help VT have a legit shot at Oregon transfer Braxton Burmeister, who has the Hokies and Terps among his top options right now.

Virginia Tech is the favorite for the nephew of assistant coach Jamie McNeilly (and cousin of Nickeil Alexander-Walker):

Basketball Without Borders: Standouts & Notes

He could even end up a 2019 prospect.

A TE from Georgia:

New Virginia Tech footballoffer: Cane Berrong

The South Carolina linebacker doesn't hold an offer, but he's been to Blacksburg on several occasions.

https://virginiatech.rivals.com/new...oping-for-offer-from-south-carolina-gamecocks

I don't see the effort in that state falling by the wayside (which I do expect to see from the brief push into Alabama/Mississippi)

New Virginia Tech football offer: Robert Wooten

A lot like the departed Eric Kumah:

From the film room: Jacoby Pinckney

No offer yet, but I think he's one who should earn one in due time:

Wide receiver Kerion Martin enjoys VT junior day

VT being strong in West Virginia is 1) geographically wise, and 2) a high-reward, low-risk (there's maybe only two or three really good prospects in a given year, so you won't be expected to blanket the state with a ton of offers just to have a chance with the top guys) strategy.

The Hokies are strong in this one... though Grimes is also the sort of prospect who they've seen slip away around these stages of the process in recent years. Their staying power will say a lot about how serious a factor they're going to be on the recruiting trail for elite in-state guys going forward:

Elite 2021 DB Tony Grimes narrows to 15 schools

Not to be a Debbie Downer, but some context on what we (myself included) are lauding as a game-changing offensive line class...

Not in the top 10 nationally.

Of course, I think Will Pritchard and likely Jesse Hanson are underrated and can overachieve (and of course adding a transfer lineman is good, if outside the scope of the traditional recruiting process), but Alabama, for example, landed two guys higher-ranked than anyone in VT's class, and three more who are higher-ranked than all but Nester and Hudson.

Of course, within the context of the ACC, the class looks a little more impressive: no conference team is in the top 10 (Notre Dame, a regular opponent of the league, is No. 3, though), so within the relevant cohort, VT looks quite a bit better.

When Jahquez Robinson didn't make it to the junior day just over a week ago, I think the writing on the wall was there as it relates to the Hokies' chances:

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