Welcome to Tunnel Talk, with the latest in the world of Virginia Tech recruiting.
Donovan McMillon
Perhaps Virginia Tech's top remaining (realistic) 2021 target in the coaches' eyes is McMurry (Pa.) Peters Township safety Donovan McMillon. Although he's a low three-star prospect, I would anticipate that a re-evaluation at least sees him bumped within the three-star ranks (I'll admit it's been a little while since I watched his film, but he didn't jump off the page to me as a sure-fire four-star, for what it's worth).
He's teasing an announcement today, and while he's gone radio silent in the past 24 hours or so, the expectation from coaching staffs is that he'll be making a college commitment. Our FutureCasts for him point in one direction: Florida. It's basically a two-team race between the Gators and Hokies among his finalists, and while I haven't submitted my pick due to a lack of confidence, I'd lean UF as well.
So why haven't I put in a FutureCast for the 6-2, 193-pounder? The Hokies still feel like they're right in this one, and there are certainly reasons to believe that, including that McMillon has visited Blacksburg more than any campus among his finalists (in fact, VT is the only school he's visited more than once, with two recruiting trips plus a self-guided tour through campus a couple weeks ago). The reason I won't be a contrarian on a pick? This Hokie staff tends to be a little more optimistic/confident in some recruitments than the situation warrants - not necessarily a problem in the grand scheme, but certainly indicating that those pieces of information require calibration when interpreting them for people in my industry.
If McMillon's "big announcement" today is not a commitment... well, it'll be pretty annoying, but the Hokies wil remain in the hunt in that circumstance, too. If it is a commitment and the choice is not either Gators or Hokies, I expect the coaching staff to continue pursuing him as though he's an uncommitted player.
Empire State of Mind
I spent yesterday in Southern New Jersey at the NLG 7-on-7 tournament, and one of the more prominent teams there was New York Hustle (a great team name, for what it's worth), which is mostly made up of players from Christ the King High School in Brooklyn. That name should be familiar: there are a number of current and former VT targets on the team's roster.
The hectic nature of recruiting in the age of the novel coronavirus means there are no absolutes, but the plan is still for a large crew from that high school program to take an unofficial visit to Blacksburg at some point during the football season.
Quarterback Noah Bodden is no longer a serious VT target - though I really like him as a pure passer - but underclassmen Sean Wilson (a 2022 prospect listed as a wide receiver on Rivals, but playing almost exclusively corner at the event) and Tayvon Nelson (a 2023 defensive back) are the names to remember there.
City of Brotherly (lack of) Love
Virginia Tech's inconsistent ability to make a big impact in Philadelphia, especially since the hiring of Jafar Williams (a native who has recruited Philly at his previous stops) is just weird to me. It's not for any failure in effort, but players are just lukewarm on the Hokies. It's likely the sort of thing that needs just a little bit of a turnaround on the field, and that first commitment to really turn the tide.
While VT has some Philadelphians on the roster (Darryle Simmons and Nasir Peoples, and soon Rutgers transfer Raheem Blackshear will be eligible to see the field, as well), it just feels like a place where players don't really have a ton of interest in VT - yet. In fairness, the Philly Fast 7-on-7 team brought a mostly-underclassman group of players to Sunday's tournament, and a few of them (including some pretty good players) don't have much college interest yet, so it's too early for them to worry about which programs they really like. It's just that VT doesn't jump off the page as a team that draws immediate interest. It takes time to change that.
As I've said many times, I expect VT to be pretty good on the field this year (in a way that changes the narrative about the direction of the program - an unfair narrative in my estimation, anyway). I also think the Hokies will be in it until the end for DE Robert Jackson, which is a benefit for drawing attention for other players from the area.
These things take time, and even if the results aren't obvious yet, a little behind-the-scenes groundwork is being lain.
Donovan McMillon
Perhaps Virginia Tech's top remaining (realistic) 2021 target in the coaches' eyes is McMurry (Pa.) Peters Township safety Donovan McMillon. Although he's a low three-star prospect, I would anticipate that a re-evaluation at least sees him bumped within the three-star ranks (I'll admit it's been a little while since I watched his film, but he didn't jump off the page to me as a sure-fire four-star, for what it's worth).
He's teasing an announcement today, and while he's gone radio silent in the past 24 hours or so, the expectation from coaching staffs is that he'll be making a college commitment. Our FutureCasts for him point in one direction: Florida. It's basically a two-team race between the Gators and Hokies among his finalists, and while I haven't submitted my pick due to a lack of confidence, I'd lean UF as well.
So why haven't I put in a FutureCast for the 6-2, 193-pounder? The Hokies still feel like they're right in this one, and there are certainly reasons to believe that, including that McMillon has visited Blacksburg more than any campus among his finalists (in fact, VT is the only school he's visited more than once, with two recruiting trips plus a self-guided tour through campus a couple weeks ago). The reason I won't be a contrarian on a pick? This Hokie staff tends to be a little more optimistic/confident in some recruitments than the situation warrants - not necessarily a problem in the grand scheme, but certainly indicating that those pieces of information require calibration when interpreting them for people in my industry.
If McMillon's "big announcement" today is not a commitment... well, it'll be pretty annoying, but the Hokies wil remain in the hunt in that circumstance, too. If it is a commitment and the choice is not either Gators or Hokies, I expect the coaching staff to continue pursuing him as though he's an uncommitted player.
Empire State of Mind
I spent yesterday in Southern New Jersey at the NLG 7-on-7 tournament, and one of the more prominent teams there was New York Hustle (a great team name, for what it's worth), which is mostly made up of players from Christ the King High School in Brooklyn. That name should be familiar: there are a number of current and former VT targets on the team's roster.
The hectic nature of recruiting in the age of the novel coronavirus means there are no absolutes, but the plan is still for a large crew from that high school program to take an unofficial visit to Blacksburg at some point during the football season.
Quarterback Noah Bodden is no longer a serious VT target - though I really like him as a pure passer - but underclassmen Sean Wilson (a 2022 prospect listed as a wide receiver on Rivals, but playing almost exclusively corner at the event) and Tayvon Nelson (a 2023 defensive back) are the names to remember there.
City of Brotherly (lack of) Love
Virginia Tech's inconsistent ability to make a big impact in Philadelphia, especially since the hiring of Jafar Williams (a native who has recruited Philly at his previous stops) is just weird to me. It's not for any failure in effort, but players are just lukewarm on the Hokies. It's likely the sort of thing that needs just a little bit of a turnaround on the field, and that first commitment to really turn the tide.
While VT has some Philadelphians on the roster (Darryle Simmons and Nasir Peoples, and soon Rutgers transfer Raheem Blackshear will be eligible to see the field, as well), it just feels like a place where players don't really have a ton of interest in VT - yet. In fairness, the Philly Fast 7-on-7 team brought a mostly-underclassman group of players to Sunday's tournament, and a few of them (including some pretty good players) don't have much college interest yet, so it's too early for them to worry about which programs they really like. It's just that VT doesn't jump off the page as a team that draws immediate interest. It takes time to change that.
As I've said many times, I expect VT to be pretty good on the field this year (in a way that changes the narrative about the direction of the program - an unfair narrative in my estimation, anyway). I also think the Hokies will be in it until the end for DE Robert Jackson, which is a benefit for drawing attention for other players from the area.
These things take time, and even if the results aren't obvious yet, a little behind-the-scenes groundwork is being lain.
