(This article has been updated to reflect that Darvin Taylor II , junior DT out of Thomas Dale (Chester, VA), informed TSL that he will be in Lane Stadium tomorrow.)
A good number of football recruits are expected to be in Lane Stadium tomorrow for Virginia Tech’s final home game of the 2013 season. Of the committed players, at least two — Dan River (Ringgold, VA) senior cornerback recruit Terrell Edmunds and Stonewall Jackson (Manassas, VA) senior cornerback Greg Stroman — will be making their official visits to Virginia Tech. Hylton (Woodbridge, VA) senior quarterback/athlete Travon McMillian , another Tech commit, may be making his official visit as well, though we have not yet confirmed that with him.
A 6’2″, 220-pound outside linebacker with good speed off the edge, Keihn could alternate between linebacker and defensive end on the major college level. In alphabetical order, his final five includes Maryland, Miami, Penn State, Virginia, and Virginia Tech. Virginia Tech appears to have a solid edge right now, though, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to me to see him commit this weekend. Keihn has already taken official visits to UVa and Maryland, which were perceived to be his top two this past summer. Virginia Tech made a big surge earlier this fall, when the talented prospect attended the UNC game on an unofficial.
McKenzie is considered one of the top running back recruits in the country. Early on in his senior year he suffered a torn ACL, an the injury that required surgery, but so far the recovery is going well. None of his top schools backed off as a result of the injury. Florida State, Pitt, and Virginia Tech are his top three with Tech perhaps still being on top (McKenzie listed Tech as his favorite earlier this fall). He tweeted earlier in the week that he will announce his college choice on December 20. Washington head coach Mike Bosnic says McKenzie plans to enroll in college in January of 2014.
Atlanta Sports Academy (Atlanta, GA) postgraduate outside linebacker/defensive end Jay Payton will be at Tech this weekend. He has said before it will be for an official visit. The 6’2″, 235-pound prospect could end up as an outside linebacker or a defensive end on the next level. As of now Payton does not have an offer from Virginia Tech, but if one comes he would accept it. It all depends on his academics, which may have gotten a boost with the ACT score he received earlier this week.
As a postgraduate prospect, Payton is hoping to enroll in college in January of 2014.
In addition to the prospects discussed above, here is a list of those other recruits expected in Blacksburg tomorrow on unofficial visits:
Class of 2014
– Jaylen Bradshaw , WR, VT commit
– Xavier Burke , TE/DL, VT commit
– Andrew Ford , QB, VT commit (Ford wrote the following on Twitter: “#HokieNation Saturday is a HUGE day for recruiting. Everyone needs to be in Lane Stadium at 12:30 ready to be loud”)
– Colt Pettit , OL, VT commit
– Marshawn Williams , RB, VT commit (Williams posted on Twitter that he will enroll at Tech in January of 2014)
– Carson Wise, PK, Blacksburg H.S. (VA), Offered by VT as a recruited walk-on
Class of 2015
Prominent class of 2015 prospects are expected at Tech tomorrow as well. The list includes…
– Woodland (S.C.) DE Michael Barnett , who has an offer from VT and has visited Blacksburg a handful of times this year. Tech is in good shape at this point with the standout prospect.
– St. Christopher’s (Richmond, VA) DE Ricky DeBerry Jr. , whose offer from Tech is one of about 30 major college scholarship offers he has received.
– Dan River (Ringgold, VA) outside linebacker/tight end Tremaine Edmunds , who recently added an offer from Maryland to go along with previous offers from Virginia Tech, Virginia, and others.
– Good Counsel (Olney, MD) DE Darius Fullwood, a 6’5″, 240-pound prospect with top offers including Florida State and Virginia Tech.
– Lawrence Central (Indianapolis, IN) LB Darrin Kirkland Jr., whose teammate, Brandon Lee, picked Missouri over the Hokies last week. VT has offered Kirkland as well.
– Oscar Smith (Chesapeake, VA) RB Deshawn McClease , who has been offered by Tech. If McClease makes the trek, it would be the second Tech regular season game he has been to this fall.
– Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) OL Richie Petitbon, grandson of Washington Redskins Hall of Fame defensive coordinator Richie Petitbon. Alabama leads LSU, Maryland and Penn State at this point. It is not known if Tech has definitively come through with an offer at this point.
– Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) QB Nick Johns, who has not yet been offered by Virginia Tech. UVa is currently his only offer.
– Gonzaga (Washington, DC) WR/DB Marcus Lewis, who reportedly has an offer from the Hokies.
– Thomas Dale (Chester, VA) DT Darvin Taylor II , who has offers from VT, Florida State, Miami, and others.
Stay tuned to TSL for more recruiting news from this weekend, including any breaking news and reports as well as a list of those we confirmed to be in Blacksburg.
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Someone help me. Throw me a lifeline. Why would any talented defensive player want to go to.uva?????? Don’t you want to play for a school that puts a lot of its players in the NFL? Seriously over the last 15 years which school has sent more defensive players to the next level?
We put mainly DBs in the league, not many DL (Tapp and Engleberger being the exceptions) or LBs (Adibi or Ben Taylor can hardly be called successful). UVA has a better record along the front 7.
Great to see Ford already excited about being a Hokie. QB needs to be a leader and he’s already at it.
BTW – this is the last home game for the seniors. We need people in the stands before the game giving these guys a great send off. Senior Day is one of my favorite Hokie experiences.
There might be as many as 50+ kids there this weekend . Last Home game and I hope we see a verbal or two !