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2011 Recruiting is Winding Down by Chris Coleman, TechSideline.com, TSLMail #466, January 7, 2011 Recruiting is winding down, and the Hokies picked up their 18th commitment on Friday afternoon when Lynchburg Christian Academy wide receiver Demetri Knowles pulled the trigger. Knowles is a track standout who is rated as the #1 sprinter in the mid-Atlantic. He is a raw football player who the Hokies are hoping to develop into a big-time deep threat. As of right now, the Hokies have three more major targets for the 2011 recruiting class: North Carolina linebacker Stephone Anthony, Georgia athlete Demontevious Smith and Florida running back Kevin Grooms. All three players are schedule to visit on January 21.
Harris is also the most versatile linebacker the Hokies have been involved with. He could potentially play any of the three linebacker positions in the Tech defense, though he is mostly viewed as either a backer or a whip. However, he plays middle linebacker for Anson High School, and he could play the mike position for Tech as well. Anthony is also considering Florida, NC State and Clemson. He is visiting Florida this week, Clemson next week, Virginia Tech on January 21, and NC State on January 28. His primary recruiter is Kevin Sherman. Kevin Grooms is a 5-10, 165-lbs running back from Hollywood, FL. He is rated the #53 player in the state of Florida, and he has offers from Florida State, Louisville, Kansas and Tennessee. Grooms rushed for over 1,400 yards in 2010, and accounted for 29 touchdowns, six of which came on punt returns. Grooms relies more on speed, cutbacks and reversing field to pile up yardage in high school. He will have to put on weight and speed when he gets to college, and he will also have to change into more of a north-south runner. However, Grooms is an excellent athlete and would be a good pickup for Virginia Tech. He is scheduled to visit Virginia Tech on January 21, after visiting Florida State on January 14. He is being recruited by Charley Wiles. The final recruit is Monroe, Georgia athlete Demontevious Smith, who also holds offers from Air Force, Navy, Louisiana-Monroe and Buffalo. Smith, at 6-1, 185-lbs, is being recruited to play option quarterback by Air Force and Navy, which shows that his leadership skills are well thought of. He threw for 700 yards as a senior, while rushing for 1,800 yards and 27 touchdowns. Smith seems like he would be a good fit for the Georgia Tech offense, though the Yellow Jackets and head coach Paul Johnson have yet to extend a scholarship offer. He is being recruited to Virginia Tech as an athlete, and would probably play defensive back for the Hokies. January 21 is setting up to be an important recruiting weekend for the Hokies. Besides the three uncommitted prospects listed above, Tech commitments Jake Goins, Demetri Knowles, Darius Redman, Matt Roth and Kyshoen Jarrett are tentatively scheduled to visit.
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Demitri
Knowles is scheduled to make an official visit to Virginia Tech
the weekend of January 21. The 6-1, 175-pound wide receiver prospect
was going to enter the weekend as one of Tech's top remaining
targets in the 2011 class, but now he'll do so as a commitment
according to Liberty Christian Academy (Lynchburg, VA) head coach
Frank Rocco.
Back
at the beginning of the Beamer Bowl Era, Virginia Tech was always
the toughest team on the field, even when they lost. When they lost
a game, it was because they were out-talented, not out-toughed.
Lately, it seems like the Hokies have lost that edge they had
throughout the mid-to-late 1990's, and even through most of this
decade. Tech just doesn't seem as tough as they once were.
ACC
basketball will start heating up on Saturday when the Florida State
Seminoles come to Blacksburg to take on the Hokies in a 3pm game on
ESPN2. With a road trip to UNC looming, the Hokies can't afford to
start 0-2 in the ACC, which makes tomorrow's contest a huge game.
Virginia
Tech r-junior tailback Darren Evans has elected to forgo his senior
season and enter the 2011 NFL Draft, according to an official
release by Tech.
I
prepped for this article the same way I prep for every column after
a game: I transferred the game from DVR to DVD, stuck it in my
computer, opened up a separate MS Word document, and started taking
notes on the action while the game played in a different window. I
admired Jack Tyler's early tackle for loss, and the way John Graves
dominated the line of scrimmage in the Stanford possession that
resulted in a first-quarter safety. It was just about time to view
Virginia Tech's ensuing (and only) TD drive ... but I stopped. I
ejected the DVD and haven't watched another minute of the game.
Well,
that certainly wasn't expected. Tech was hammered at the line of
scrimmage on both sides of the ball in the second half, and lost to
Stanford 40-12 in a game that wasn't nearly as entertaining as
everyone thought it would be.
Virginia
Tech was dominated between the tackles by Stanford and lost the
Orange Bowl 40-12 on Monday night. This was a 13-12 game at
halftime, but the Cardinal opened it up on the Hokies over the final
30 minutes to win this one easily. Tech finished their season with
an 11-3 record, while Stanford finished 12-1.