The latest in Virginia Tech football recruiting.
Jordan Poole
After he narrowed his list of contenders to three remaining schools a couple weeks ago, Westboro (N.C.) North Stanly 2021 linebacker Jordan Poole has made some noise about approaching an early decision, though it hasn't been truly set in stone. His preference was to make that choice this week, but we shall see if that happens.
Regardless, his destination is not one that's obvious. It looked like an NC State-VT battle around these parts, but a source close to him told Hokie Haven this weekend that it had seemed like the Wolfpack and South Carolina looked like the most realistic options. The constant has always been NC State, and that still feels like the most likely landing position to me. I do feel like VT is more likely than South Carolina, despite what the source mentioned to me.
We shall see if Poole even makes his commitment this week. As noted above, it's not locked-in for the time being. And indeed, if it extends into the season (assuming there is a season in the form we're familiar with), that could be good for a Hokies team that looks to have a strong year on the field. If he does commit this week, it could ultimately be for the Hokies anyway - he's one of the quieter kids out there when it comes to giving away his hand.
Isi Etute
A couple stories this weekend on Virginia Beach (Va.) Cox 2021 linebacker Isi Etute should indicate where things are trending for a player who plans to end his recruitment within the next couple weeks: the Hokies are in good shape here.
Etute is a brand-new addition to the VT offer board, and in fact a fairly similar player to Poole once he fills out his frame a bit: a mobile linebacker who's not the biggest in terms of height or mass, but can get the job done. It's tough to expect anyone to have the intelligence of All-ACC linebacker Rayshard Ashby, but certainly from a physical perspective, that's the mold a lot of these guys are cut from. The staff likes him a heck of a lot more than his two-star rating (and certainly, if he develops just a bit heading into his senior year, there's a likelihood he shows enough on the field to improve that rating as he shows the direction his potential is heading in).
I have a hard time seeing him end up at either of his other finalists, NC State or West Virginia, as long as VT wants him. There's obviously a finalist in common with Poole, and I've already noted above that they're fairly similar players. One recruitment could certainly end up impacting the other (though from a Hokie perspective, the utter dearth of linebacker signees the past couple classes probably means there's an opportunity to take extras if the Hokies have a chance at both).
757
The weekend's GAME Academy camp in Virginia Beach indicated that there's plenty of work for the Hokies to do in re-planting their flag in an area that had once been a Hokie stronghold. It'd be unfair to say there was an explicit anti-Hokie sentiment expressed at the camp, but certainly the vibe was not favorable. There are obviously reasons that may explain the feeling without extending into future classes: the camp was run by a coach recently fired by the Hokies, in tandem with a trainer whose son (Tony Grimes) has never seemed to vibe with the Hokies (and who seems destined to pick ACC rival North Carolina this week).
Still, the Hokies have to continue controlling the controllables when it comes to having a bigger presence and a more favorable standing among players in the region. They don't have to go and offer/land every Power-5 player from the Tidewater, but the perception that they aren't giving prime recruiting territory its fair due... may be more fair than they'd like to admit.
Landing a player like Etute would certainly help. Evaluating and offering top-caliber players from the 757 earlier in the cycle would, too. Some have said it feels like - fairly or unfairly - a backup plan when dozens of Texas offers go ignored by prospects in the Lone Star State, and nothing more than that. Even if that's overstating things (and from my perspective, it is, at least a bit, but there's a legitimacy to the over-emphasis on Texas, too), there are some hurt feelings that will take some time to heal.
I've long said that VT doesn't need to build the entirety - or even majority - of its classes from home turf. But doing so little that it builds up enemies on home turf is damaging in the long term. It has seemed like those bridges were starting to rebuild. The feelings at this weekend's camp indicate that there's much more building to do.
Jordan Poole
After he narrowed his list of contenders to three remaining schools a couple weeks ago, Westboro (N.C.) North Stanly 2021 linebacker Jordan Poole has made some noise about approaching an early decision, though it hasn't been truly set in stone. His preference was to make that choice this week, but we shall see if that happens.
Regardless, his destination is not one that's obvious. It looked like an NC State-VT battle around these parts, but a source close to him told Hokie Haven this weekend that it had seemed like the Wolfpack and South Carolina looked like the most realistic options. The constant has always been NC State, and that still feels like the most likely landing position to me. I do feel like VT is more likely than South Carolina, despite what the source mentioned to me.
We shall see if Poole even makes his commitment this week. As noted above, it's not locked-in for the time being. And indeed, if it extends into the season (assuming there is a season in the form we're familiar with), that could be good for a Hokies team that looks to have a strong year on the field. If he does commit this week, it could ultimately be for the Hokies anyway - he's one of the quieter kids out there when it comes to giving away his hand.
Isi Etute
A couple stories this weekend on Virginia Beach (Va.) Cox 2021 linebacker Isi Etute should indicate where things are trending for a player who plans to end his recruitment within the next couple weeks: the Hokies are in good shape here.
Etute is a brand-new addition to the VT offer board, and in fact a fairly similar player to Poole once he fills out his frame a bit: a mobile linebacker who's not the biggest in terms of height or mass, but can get the job done. It's tough to expect anyone to have the intelligence of All-ACC linebacker Rayshard Ashby, but certainly from a physical perspective, that's the mold a lot of these guys are cut from. The staff likes him a heck of a lot more than his two-star rating (and certainly, if he develops just a bit heading into his senior year, there's a likelihood he shows enough on the field to improve that rating as he shows the direction his potential is heading in).
I have a hard time seeing him end up at either of his other finalists, NC State or West Virginia, as long as VT wants him. There's obviously a finalist in common with Poole, and I've already noted above that they're fairly similar players. One recruitment could certainly end up impacting the other (though from a Hokie perspective, the utter dearth of linebacker signees the past couple classes probably means there's an opportunity to take extras if the Hokies have a chance at both).
757
The weekend's GAME Academy camp in Virginia Beach indicated that there's plenty of work for the Hokies to do in re-planting their flag in an area that had once been a Hokie stronghold. It'd be unfair to say there was an explicit anti-Hokie sentiment expressed at the camp, but certainly the vibe was not favorable. There are obviously reasons that may explain the feeling without extending into future classes: the camp was run by a coach recently fired by the Hokies, in tandem with a trainer whose son (Tony Grimes) has never seemed to vibe with the Hokies (and who seems destined to pick ACC rival North Carolina this week).
Still, the Hokies have to continue controlling the controllables when it comes to having a bigger presence and a more favorable standing among players in the region. They don't have to go and offer/land every Power-5 player from the Tidewater, but the perception that they aren't giving prime recruiting territory its fair due... may be more fair than they'd like to admit.
Landing a player like Etute would certainly help. Evaluating and offering top-caliber players from the 757 earlier in the cycle would, too. Some have said it feels like - fairly or unfairly - a backup plan when dozens of Texas offers go ignored by prospects in the Lone Star State, and nothing more than that. Even if that's overstating things (and from my perspective, it is, at least a bit, but there's a legitimacy to the over-emphasis on Texas, too), there are some hurt feelings that will take some time to heal.
I've long said that VT doesn't need to build the entirety - or even majority - of its classes from home turf. But doing so little that it builds up enemies on home turf is damaging in the long term. It has seemed like those bridges were starting to rebuild. The feelings at this weekend's camp indicate that there's much more building to do.
