News of the week…Hargrave receiver Justin Harper committing to Virginia Tech.

This weekend is going to be a huge one for Virginia Tech’s defensive targets. They host a number of them, including in-state stars LB Andrew Bowman and DE Olu Hall and out-of-state targets DT Carl Howard, DE Mike Mangold, ATH John Dunlap, and CB Rod Council is visiting Thursday and leaving Friday. Offensively, the only target is Michael Green, a fullback/linebacker from Deptford HS in New Jersey.

Tech fans received great news this week, when talented Hargrave wide receiver Justin Harper committed to Virginia Tech. Harper is a big receiver with great athletic ability, in the mold of current senior wideout Ernest Wilford. Harper is a great addition to the wide receiver corps, and remaining targets at the position now include Eddie Royal, Derrick McPhearson, and Armand Cauthen. If they land two of the remaining targets, the wide receiving corps would be significantly upgraded, in my opinion.

Conestoga Valley quarterback Jordan Steffy announced his choice yesterday, picking the Maryland Terrapins over the Hokies. Steffy has a tremendous amount of respect for VT QB coach Kevin Rogers, but that wasn't enough to get the Hokies over the hump and into first place.

Following this weekend, look for Virginia Tech to almost certainly receive official visits from the following offensive targets: Carey, Ore, Royal, McPhearson, Shuman, and Zuttah. They have the best chance right now, in my opinion, with Carey, Ore, Royal, and Shuman, and are certainly in the mix for Zuttah and McPhearson.

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

• QB’s – Jordan Steffy
• RB’s – Antwain Carey, Brandon Ore
• FB’s – Michael Green
• WR’s – Armand Cauthen, Eddie Royal, Derrick McPhearson, Hilton Pitts
• OL – Ryan Shuman, Jeremy Zuttah

With four (possibly five, if you count Holland on offense) commitments on the offensive side of the ball, look for Tech to go for maybe five or six more commitments on offense. I expect Virginia Tech to take 18-22 commitments for this year's class.

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

Senior Stats: 94 completions in 161 attempts, 1,738 yards and 25 touchdowns. He has thrown only three interceptions.

The Skinny: Sean has led Westfield to the Virginia AAA Division 6 championship game. They face Landstown High School (Virginia Beach, VA) at the University of Richmond Stadium this Saturday. Glennon completed 7 of 12 passes for 199 yards, one touchdown and one interception in the 24-14 win over Hylton earlier this week.

None.

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

The Skinny: When George Bell committed to Virginia Tech on the "Countdown to Signing Day" show on October 22^nd, the Hokies got a big lift at the running back position. Bell hopes to enroll at Virginia Tech in January of 2004, which helps in a few ways: 1) He can learn the offense earlier and be mentally ready for next season, and, 2) If any further action is needed physically on this rehabbed knee, he can have that done hopefully before the start of next season. If Bell returns to 100%, the Hokies landed one of the top running backs in the class of 2004.

Antwain Carey, 6-2, 200, 4.4 Deep Creek HS (Chesapeake, VA)
Schools: NCSU (OFFER, OV 12/13/03), UNC (OFFER, OV 01/10/04), VT (OFFER, OV)

The Skinny: Virginia Tech is still recruiting Carey very heavily. He wants to make an official visit to Virginia Tech and just needs to set the date. He likes NC State and UNC (who recently offered), however I think Virginia Tech is looking strong at this point.

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

MD (OFFER), TN (OFFER), UNC (OFFER), VT (OFFER)

The Skinny: Brandon has visited both Virginia Tech and UNC unofficially so far and seemed to like both programs. He wants to visit all four of these schools. Virginia Tech was his early leader however Brandon seems to want to take an open approach heading into his visits. I think VT and UNC are strong here, with Tennessee lurking. Brandon is a very talented tailback who is being recruited as a running back, but could easily switch to receiver on the next level.

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)

The Skinny: Mike really likes Virginia Tech, and has named the Hokies as his favorite consistently over the past few months. He makes an official visit this weekend. I don’t expect him to commit right away, because he has indicated he would at least like to make another official visit to compare.

Tech is recruiting him as a fullback or linebacker.

Justin Harper, 6-4, 190, 4.5 Hargrave Military Academy

The Skinny: Harper chose the Hokies over offers from NC State, UNC, and Wake Forest. Justin is a big receiver with good speed, great leaping ability, and good hands. He may need some time to develop, but he certainly has the physical tools to become an excellent player on the next level. He will enroll at Virginia Tech in January 2004.

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

Schools: CONN (no offer), NCSU (no offer), UNC (no offer), VT (OFFER, OV 12/06/03), WF (no offer)

The Skinny: Armand is a receiver that runs great routes, has great hands, and has improved his speed since high school. He has an offer from Virginia Tech (his only written offer), but wants to keep his options open for as long as possible. He would like to enroll in January 2004 but first needs to achieve a qualifying test score.

Derrick McPhearson, 6-0, 185, 4.38 DeMatha Catholic (Hyattsville, MD)
Schools: FL (OFFER, OV 01/24/04), KENT ST (OFFER), MD (OFFER, OV 12/06/03), MIA (OFFER), MICH (OFFER), NCSU (OFFER), ND (OFFER), OSU (OFFER), PITT (OFFER, OV 12/13/03), VT (OFFER)

The Skinny: Derrick took his first official visit last weekend, to Maryland. He goes to Pitt this weekend, and has scheduled Florida for the January 24^th. Virginia Tech and Michigan will likely receive the final two official visit spots. He likes Marcus Vick a lot, however has never seen Virginia Tech. Maryland is still the likely favorite. His brother plays there, and he originally committed to the Terrapins the summer before his junior year.

Eddie Royal, 5-10, 170, 4.4 Westfield HS (Chantilly, VA)
Schools: VT (OFFER, OV 01/23/04) leads MAR (OFFER, OV 01/31/04), OSU (no offer), TN (OFFER, OV), UVA (OFFER, OV 01/17/04)

The Skinny: Virginia Tech is the leader right now. Eddie likes Marshall a lot as well, so those two are above the rest. I wouldn’t be surprised if Virginia made their way back to the top, however Virginia Tech is the favorite right now and they sounded strong when I spoke to Eddie earlier this week.

Hilton Pitts, 6-3, 215, 4.5 John I Leonard (Greenacres, FL)
Schools: CINC (OFFER), ECU (OFFER, OV 12/06/03), ISU (OFFER), VT (OFFER)

The Skinny: According to JIL Head Coach Terry Gough, Virginia Tech offered Pitts contingent upon him improving his academic standing. He did not seem confident that Pitts would make an official visit to Virginia Tech, and with the commitment from Justin Harper, the Hokies may not pursue him as heavily.

Note that previous target Phil Trautwein has decided not to take a visit to VT, so we have dropped him from our list.

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

The Skinny: I’m trying to reach Ryan this week to get an update on his official visits. If everything remains the same in terms of offers, I would look for him to commit to Virginia Tech after making a few official visits.

Jeremy Zuttah, 6-4, 285 JP Stevens (Edison, NJ)
Schools: BC (OFFER), IOWA (OFFER, 12/13/03), MD (OFFER), OSU (OFFER, OV 12/06/03), PITT (OFFER), RUT (OFFER), VT (OFFER)

The Skinny: Jeremy seems genuinely wide open heading into his official visits, which began last weekend with a trip to Ohio State. He’s never been to Virginia Tech before, and hopes to schedule an official visit very soon. He is down to the seven schools mentioned above.

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