November 30, 2003 through January 31, 2004 [except for (1) though (5)  below] - Six in-person off-campus contacts per prospective student-athlete shall be permitted during this time period with not more than one permitted in any one calendar week (Sunday through Saturday) or partial calendar week:

1. December 21, 2003 (The Sunday after the third Saturday in December): Quiet Period
2. December 22, 2003 through January 1, 2004: Dead Period
3. January 2 through January 4, 2004: Quiet Period
4. January 5, 2004 through January 8, 2004: Dead Period
5. January 9, 2004 and January 10, 2004: Quiet Period

The definitions of the above periods are…

Contact period - permissible for authorized athletic department staff members to make in-person, off-campus recruiting contacts and evaluations.

Dead period - not permissible to make in-person recruiting contacts or evaluations on- or off-campus or permit official or unofficial visits.

Evaluation period - permissible for authorized athletics department staff to be involved in off-campus activities to assess academic qualifications and playing abilities. No in-person, off-campus recruiting contacts with a prospect are permitted.

Quiet period - permissible to make in-person recruiting contacts only on the member institution's campus.

One more week until the recruiting biz starts heating up. The big date?...December 1^st, which is the date schools can start making in-home visits. Recruits will start narrowing down their lists and making decisions following official visits over the next two months until Signing day.

This week, Virginia Tech hosts Conestoga Valley (PA) quarterback Jordan Steffy. He is the lone official visitor this weekend. The 6-1, 205 pound Steffy is an excellent dual-threat quarterback who would be a great addition to the recruiting class. Look for his decision to come down to MD and VT.

The weekend following the big Virginia Tech/Virginia game, Virginia Tech will host the Hargrave players for official visits. Justin Harper is a top receiving target who will be on campus. Another Hargrave receiver, Armand Cauthen, just received an offer from Tech and may visit on that date.

With the remaining scholarships, landing several quality receivers is an important task. Landing two or three quality wideouts to join David Clowney and Josh Hyman (among others) would go a long way towards opening up the pass offense for the next few years. Running back is still a priority, with Antwain Carey and Brandon Ore remaining on the board. Ore could move to receiver in college. Tech is recruiting a true fullback this year in Deptford’s (NJ) Mike Green, although they are also looking at him as a linebacker. Green favors the Hokies right now and has set an official visit for December 13^th.

Tech is involved with several good O-Line prospects as well. They appear to be in the best shape with Fork Union’s Ryan Shuman, who will likely commit to Tech after making a few official visits.

The top remaining offensive targets – with written offers – look like this …

• QB’s – Jordan Steffy
• RB’s – Antwain Carey, Brandon Ore
• WR’s – Armand Cauthen, Justin Harper, Eddie Royal, Derrick McPhearson, Hilton Pitts
• OL – Ryan Shuman, Phil Trautwein, Jeremy Zuttah

The official visits that have been set by offensive targets include…

• November 22^nd: Quarterback Jordan Steffy
• December 6^th: Wide Receiver Justin Harper
• January 23^rd: Wide Receiver Eddie Royal

The Hokies have a great shot at both running backs, two receivers (Harper and Royal), and one offensive lineman (Shuman) from the above list. They have a good shot with both Steffy and McPhearson. That being said, Virginia Tech is in very good position to land some excellent offensive talent in this year’s class.

Sean Glennon, 6-4, 190 Westfield HS (Chantilly, VA)

At a Glance: Westfield is 11-0 on the year, and now faces Robinson in the second round of the playoffs. Glennon has had another outstanding year, completing 84 of 142 passes for 1,516 yards and 23 touchdowns with only two interceptions in eleven games. He has four rushing touchdowns on the year as well.

Jordan Steffy, 6-1, 210 Conestoga Valley HS (Conestoga Valley, PA)
Schools: MD (OFFER, OV 12/06/03), MSU (OFFER, OV 10/03/03), PSU (OFFER, OV 11/15/03), VT (OFFER, OV 11/22/03) lead CLEM (OFFER, OV 11/08/03)

At a Glance: Steffy will announce his collegiate decision during a December 11^th press conference.

Virginia Tech is still heavily recruiting both Antwain Carey and Brandon Ore. Carey is out for the season after re-injuring his foot, but figures to be back to 100% by the time he gets to college. Ore is a wiry tailback who could move to wide receiver or even defensive back if needed. He’s a smooth, fluid runner. Look for the Hokies to take both players if they want to commit.

George Bell, 5-11, 225, 4.45 Jack Britt HS (Fayetteville, NC)

Antwain Carey, 6-2, 200, 4.4 Deep Creek HS (Chesapeake, VA)
Schools: NCSU (OFFER), UNC (no offer), UVA (no offer), VT (OFFER)

At a glance: In a recent update, Antwain says he will likely decide between the above four. I still feel Virginia Tech has the edge here, however Carey does want to make several official visits before deciding.

Brandon Ore, 6-2, 195 4.4 Indian River HS (Chesapeake, VA)

VT (OFFER) leads PSU (No Offer), TN (No Offer), UNC (No Offer), UVA (No Offer)

Michael Green, 6-1, 235, 4.7 Deptford (Deptford, NJ)
Schools: VT (OFFER, OV 12/13/03) leads IND (OFFER), MD (OFFER, OV), MIA (no offer), UVA (no offer)

Latest: In a Nov 18^th update, Mike mentioned he has set up one official visit. It will be to VT, which is his top school.

"I set my first visit, to Virginia Tech on December 12th," said Green. "I'm also going to Maryland. It depends on how those first two visits go, but I might take three or four visits. I'm considering Miami, Virginia, and Indiana for those.

"Virginia Tech is still my leader."

 

Armand Cauthen, 6-1, 200, 4.5 Hargrave Military Academy

Schools: ECU (OFFER), UNC (OFFER), VT (OFFER), WF (OFFER)

At a glance: Armand decided to head to Hargrave after his senior year at Douglasville High School in Douglasville, GA. The move has paid off for him, as he is starting to receive heavy interest from Division I-A programs. Virginia Tech recently offered Cauthen, who possesses outstanding hands and route-running ability.

Latest: Armand has been offered by Virginia Tech. Coach Prunty of Hargrave said Armand has not set any official visits to date. A likely possibility if he visits VT is December 6^th. Several Hargrave teammates will be making official visits to Tech on that date.

Jeremy Gilchrist, 5-11, 185, 4.55 Landstown (Virginia Beach, VA)
Schools: COLO (OFFER), CONN (OFFER), KENT ST (No Offer), MAR (No Offer), VT (No Offer), WVU (No Offer)

Carl Grimes, 5-9, 185, 4.4 St. Martin Deporres (Detroit, MI)
Schools: FSU (OFFER, OV 12/05/03), MSU (OFFER) heavily lead VT (OFFER)

Justin Harper, 6-4, 190, 4.5 Hargrave Military Academy
Schools: VT (OFFER, OV 12/06/03) leads NCSU (OFFER), TN (no offer), UNC (OFFER), WF (OFFER)

Derrick McPhearson, 6-0, 185, 4.38 DeMatha Catholic (Hyattsville, MD)
Schools: FL (OFFER, OV 12/20/03), MD (OFFER, OV 12/13/03), MIA (No Offer), MICH (OFFER), OSU (OFFER), PITT (OFFER, OV 12/06/03), VT (OFFER, OV)

Hilton Pitts, 6-3, 215, 4.5 John I Leonard (Greenacres, FL)
Schools: CINC (OFFER), ISU (OFFER), VT (OFFER)

At a Glance: Haven’t heard too much on the Pitts front. I haven’t been able to reach him or his coach this fall, but I hope to soon.

Eddie Royal, 5-10, 170, 4.4 Westfield HS (Chantilly, VA)
Schools: MAR (OFFER, OV), TN (OFFER, OV 12/13/03), VT (OFFER, OV 01/23/04) lead BC (OFFER), SYR (OFFER), UNC (No offer), UVA (OFFER)

Latest Info: Royal received an offer from Virginia this week. The Cavaliers may get an official visit, however he will speak with his mother and head coach before making the decision.

Here is what Royal had to say about the Cavaliers…

"They (Virginia) were one of my favorites and maybe #1 early on," said Royal. "I felt comfortable with their coaching staff. I had been to the campus and liked it, and I could see myself playing there. I guess all of that stuff is still true, but they are going to have to work hard to get back up there. It hurt them in the long run that they didn't offer. I really like Virginia Tech, Tennessee, and Marshall now so it will take some good recruiting for them to get back up there."

 

Ryan Shuman, 6-3, 257 Fork Union Military Academy (Zion Crossroads, VA)
Schools: VT (OFFER) leads CMICH (OFFER), TOL (OFFER), VMI (OFFER), WMICH (OFFER)

At a Glance: Virginia Tech is recruiting Ryan Shuman as a center prospect. The Hokies remain the leader for the son of FUMA Post Grad Head Football Coach John Shuman. With his football season over, look for Ryan to make a few official visits (as he stated he would) and then make his decision. Tech is the likely choice.

Phil Trautwein, 6-7, 300 Eastern Regional (Voorhees, NJ)
Schools: BC (OFFER, OV 11/08/03), MSU (OFFER, OV 09/27/03), RUT (OFFER), TN (OFFER, OV), UVA (OFFER), VT (OFFER)

Latest Info: Trautwein enjoyed his November 8^th Boston College visit, which was the second of his recruiting process.

"It went good," said Trautwein of his visit to BC. "I liked it. I'd never been before, so I learned a lot about the school. Boston is a wonderful place. There are so many students in the city because you have so many colleges in the area. I had a chance to meet the offensive line coach Don Horton and [Head] Coach [Tom] O'Brien and the players. Everything went great."

Trautwein had scheduled an official visit to Tennessee for this weekend, however his team moved on to the second round of the playoffs. Eastern plays the second round game this Friday at 7:00 pm, so Trautwein will likely reschedule his official visit to Tennessee. Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Rutgers are the candidates for the final two visit spots.

Jeremy Zuttah, 6-4, 285 JP Stevens (Edison, NJ)
Schools: IOWA (OFFER), MD (OFFER), NCSU (OFFER), OSU (OFFER), PITT (OFFER), RUT (OFFER), SYR (OFFER), VT (OFFER)

At a glance: Zuttah should be narrowing his list down to five very soon. JP Stevens lost in the first round of the North 2, Group 4 playoffs to Bridgewater-Raritan. The final regular season match-up (some NJ teams play the final regular season game on Thanksgiving, which coincides with the playoffs) takes place on November 27^th versus Edison.

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