Virginia Tech recruiting was busy this weekend, hosting over a dozen recruits for the Hokies’ annual Blacksburg Bash. The Hokies also held a camp for prospects on Sunday, which turned into one scholarship offer.
Let’s dig into the details in this week’s Virginia Tech recruiting update.
Gervin, Hollifield visit for Bash
Two of Virginia Tech’s top targets visited on Saturday for the Blacksburg Bash, and other recruits visited as well. Here are the recruits and commits who attended the outing.
Class of 2018: defensive backs Kalon Gervin and Jermaine Waller, offensive lineman Rasheed Walker, linebacker Dax Hollifield and tight end James Mitchell
Class of 2019: linebacker Drake Thomas, defensive backs Khalid Martin and Nick Cross, wide receiver Jacoby Pinckney and defensive end Adarious Jones
Class of 2020: running back Blake Corum
Virginia Tech commitments: athletes Nadir Thompson and Armani Chatman, defensive backs DJ Crossen, Nasir Peoples, Braxton Clark and Chamarri Conner, wide receivers Tre Turner and Darryle Simmons, offensive linemen John Harris and Jordan McFadden, defensive tackles Joe Kane and Cam Goode and linebacker Alan Tisdale
Getting Kalon Gervin on campus was very important for Virginia Tech recruiting. The Hokies are in Gervin’s top group, but the Michigan cornerback had not visited Blacksburg since April.
Gervin almost didn’t visit. After receiving a scholarship offer from Alabama last Monday, Gervin then canceled his visit to Tech in order to camp at Ohio State. Gervin backed off that decision on Wednesday, and fulfilled his promise to visit the Hokies. Virginia Tech sits in very good position, but the Alabama offer could change things.
Defensive back Jermaine Waller was also on campus, giving the Hokies another option in the secondary. Virginia Tech is high on Waller, but the numbers are tight there, especially if Gervin were to commit.
Rasheed Walker has visited Virginia Tech before, but getting him back on campus will help the Hokies’ in his recruitment. The 4-star offensive lineman has a top group of Ohio State, Penn State and the Hokies, and Tech will need to fight to earn Walker’s commitment. Having him on campus for an event like the Blacksburg Bash is a step in the right direction.
Dax Hollifield remains one of the top targets on the overall board for Virginia Tech. The North Carolina linebacker is high on the Hokies, but he has several options for his college future. South Carolina, North Carolina, Florida State and Stanford are all major players, and the Hokies will need to stay on Hollifield throughout the remainder of his recruitment.
James Mitchell dropped a top-5 this week, and unsurprisingly, Virginia Tech is in contention.
Top 5❗️(no interviews) s/o @Parker_Kirkmyer for the edit! 💯 pic.twitter.com/v8ysKDEkj5
— James Mitchell (@j_mitch82) July 20, 2017
Mitchell is now the main target at tight end for Virginia Tech. With Kyle Pitts committing to Florida, Mitchell is Tech’s best option at landing a tight end in this class. That’s an impressive top-5, and Tech will have their hands full to keep Mitchell from going out of state.
Having that many Class of 2019 recruits on campus is a good sign that Virginia Tech is laying the foundation with those recruits. Drake Thomas is teammates with commit Joe Kane, and wide receiver Jacoby Pinckney is teammates with Jordan McFadden. Adarious Jones was offered a few days before visiting, but more on that later. Also, Blake Corum is a name to watch in the Class of 2020.
Virginia Tech had a solid turnout for the Blacksburg Bash, but a couple of their top targets were unable to attend. Linebacker Keshon Artis notified the staff ahead of time he wouldn’t be able to make it, and defensive end KJ Henry had a scheduling conflict. If the Hokies are to remain major players for Artis and Henry, they’ll need to get both on campus again soon.
Two new scholarship offers
After waiting out the dead period, Virginia Tech has offered two more recruits, both of whom are Class of 2019 players.
The first offer was Adarious Jones, a defensive lineman from Bishop Sullivan in Virginia Beach, Va. Jones is a 6-foot-3, 275-pound prospect who would play defensive tackle for Virginia Tech. Jones only has one other scholarship offer right now in Rutgers, but that could easily change after a season at Bishop Sullivan.
The second offer came on Sunday. Class of 2019 running back Jordan Houston camped at Virginia Tech and impressed the coaches enough to earn an offer. Houston is listed at 5-foot-9 and 170-pounds, and plays for Flint Hill School in Oakton, Va. Boston College, Old Dominion, Penn State and Tennessee are Houston’s other offers.
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Who is the guy in front kneeling down & looking at the ground? I hope that’s not a sign of disinterest.
I’m pretty sure that is Ferguson(sp?) and he posted his own very positive picture on Twitter. Look at all of them and you wonder how long they were waiting for someone to take the picture.
I read elsewhere that KJ Henry was in Columbus at Ohio State.
He was at a 7 on 7 tourney in that area which afforded him the opportunity to visit OSU