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One of my own personal favorite sweatshirts, this one is unique and classy -- Will Stewart.

A TechLocker.com original. Classic arch "Virginia Tech" embroidered in white on left chest. Official VT logo embroidered on upper right sleeve. Lee Crossgrain super-heavyweight reverse-weave fleece. This crewneck is the softest, toughest sweatshirt we could find.

• 95% cotton / 5% polyester.
• Set-in sleeves and Lycra trim.
• Ribbed inserts at sides with Lycra.
• Fully coverseamed.

To order, click the picture or click here.

This was a wild week in recruiting, and there promises to be more to come.

On Wednesday, Phoebus (VA) cornerback Phillip Brown, a unanimous top-4 player in the state of Virginia (#4 by TSL) committed to the University of Virginia. Brown was considered to be a Tech lean from the beginning of the recruiting process, but as time wore on, Virginia became more of a player and eventually won him over.

According to a January 9th report in the Newport News Daily Press, Tech's interest in Brown appeared to be cooling, and according to Brown in a later interview, the Cavaliers continued to keep regular contact with him and work closely with him. The Hokie coaches met with Brown in school early this week and appeared to clear the air over the lack of communication, but Brown decided to pull the trigger and commit to Virginia, before even taking his official visit there this weekend.

To learn more about Brown's reasons for his decision, see our TSL Pass recruiting update on his commitment.

In other recruiting news, VT commitment QB Courtney Denson visited Auburn last weekend, and upon returning, gave conflicting reports to various recruiting services. Denson was quoted by one Auburn web site that he was no longer committed to VT and might even visit Rutgers. He told TechSideline.com's Chris Horne that he was still committed to VT (TSL Pass update) and wouldn't take any other visits.

Perhaps Denson changed his mind throughout the day and spoke to various services at various times, but whatever the reason for the conflicting reports, Denson is indeed a mystery, and VT's ride with him won't be over until the very end, it seems. According to a Rivals.com report that was posted after Chris Horne spoke with Denson, he will visit Rutgers on 1/17 and South Florida on 1/24.

The rest of the excitement in recruiting this week surrounded RB prospect Rodney Kinlaw. A normally-reliable site that covers Clemson recruiting said that Kinlaw committed to Clemson on a visit last weekend, but that report turned out to be false, as Kinlaw told Chris Horne in a TSL Pass update from Sunday.

Moving forward, the heavy concentration for Hokie fans for the next two weeks will be on Kinlaw, LB Xavier Adibi, LB Vince Hall, and DE Chris Ellis. All three players are playing it close to the vest and not naming a leader, but most of the buzz surrounds Ellis. Many UVa insiders think they've "got" Ellis and might even get a commitment from him after his UVa visit this weekend, while VT insiders also feel very good about Ellis and think they'll land him after his 1/24 VT visit.

Adibi will join Ellis on the 1/24 visit to Blacksburg, while Hall has already visited VT and is scheduled to visit Tennessee on 1/24.

You can keep up with VT recruiting in much greater detail with a subscription to our TechSideline Pass service. TSL Pass costs $34.95 per year, but monthly ($4.95) and quarterly ($10.95) subscriptions are also available. Click here to subscribe.

How You Can Help VT Recruiting

As documented in earlier TSLMails, the Hokie football coaching staff has a big recruiting weekend the weekend of January 24th. On that weekend, according to our most recent information, Tech will host (in alphabetical order by last name) LB Xavier Adibi, ATH Chase Anastasio, RB Alonzo Coleman, DE Chris Ellis, RB Rodney Kinlaw, and VT verbals TE John Kinzer and ATH DJ Parker.

One of the activities scheduled for that weekend (and here's where you can help) is the men's basketball game between St. John's and VT on Saturday, January 25th. The game is at 2 pm, and all of the prospects listed above will be in attendance. Coach Beamer will escort them in, so look for Beamer and about eight athletic looking young men all seated together.

A good-sized crowd at the game would make a favorable impression on the recruits, so if you make one men's basketball game for the rest of the season, make it that one:  VT versus St. John's, Saturday, Jan. 25th, 2:00 pm.

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TechSideline Pass - $34.95 a Year

We wanted to give a quick thank you to everyone who has signed up for our new TechSideline Pass subscription service. TSL Pass includes premium articles, premium recruiting content, and subscriber-only message boards (including a much-requested recruiting board for subscribers only).

For more info on TechSideline Pass, and to subscribe, click here. To give TSL Pass as a gift (one-year subscriptions only), click here.

-- Will Stewart

Hokie Hotline Notes
by Will Stewart, TechSideline.com, 1/16/03, 2:40 pm
Monday night's show originated from Hartford, Connecticut, where the men's basketball team was preparing to play against Connecticut the next night. The show featured Virginia Tech Athletic Director Jim Weaver, and a brief appearance via phone by women's basketball coach Bonnie Henrickson.
in Hotline Notes

Grades for the 2002 Football Season: The Offense
by Will Stewart, TechSideline.com, 1/13/03, 11:30 pm
It was a rocky year for the Virginia Tech offense. Guided by a first-year starting QB and a novice offensive coordinator, and plagued by inconsistent offensive line play and turnovers, the offense put in some dominating performances but often came up a minute late and a touchdown short in critical situations.
in TSL Pass