It’s my favorite day of the year: National Signing Day! The day when high-school kids across the nation fax in their letters of intent to their dream schools. I fantasized of signing on the dotted line to play football at UVA or perhaps the University of Texas. But I realized that I threw way too many interceptions and actually had more concussions than I did touchdown passes.
There are several magazines out that cover nothing more than high school football recruiting, and while I do follow it I don’t consider a religion. I guess it might have something to do with the fact that all the 4-star and 5-star recruits don’t usually make their way to Charlottesville. (Besides, if you go back and look at that list from 10 years ago, most of the names on the Rivals Top-100 you have still never heard of.) But there is something magical about signing day.
Virginia fired Al Groh at the end of the season, but next-man-up Mike London was able to get every single one of Groh’s recruits to sign on the dotted line. London also added four recruits of his own at the last minute. The class that signed today is not loaded with much nationally-recognized star power, but sure has some gems.
I rate this signing class a 70 out of 100. We needed a few more linebackers, and a big-play wide-out/return guy. A couple of things pop out at me as I look down this list. 1. No guys from Pennsylvania or Ohio, two major hotbeds of high school football talent. 2. Not one guy from Northern Virginia and that’s quite unusual for the Hoos to only have two guys from Maryland, none from DC and none from NOVA. 3. Four QB’s signed! There is no chance they all stay at quarterback on this roster. Here is the complete list with some comments on several of them:
1- Morgan Moses OT 6-6 340 Richmond, VA. The big fella could have played anywhere in the USA. He is still waiting on grades and SAT scores, and is still enrolled at FUMA, but I cannot wait to see him in orange and blue. Thanks John Schuman. You can pencil him in a four-year starter on the offensive line.
2- Kevin Parks RB 5-8 185 Mount Ulla, NC. Lighting-fast tailback that broke all the records in the state of North Carolina. Never wavered on his commitment. Runs like he’s angry and has something to prove.
3- Michael Strauss QB 6-3 215 Miami, FL. He’s already on grounds and in school early. I like kids from Florida at the QB position. This was all London’s doing. His high school coach (Earl Sims) played for Groh’s first UVA team and we would love to open a pipeline to his HS.
4- Zach Swanson TE 6-6 225 Katy, TX. A last-minute pick-up from the great football state of Texas. Needs to get a little bigger, but you gotta love guys from football-crazy Texas.
5- Henry Coley LB 6-2 220 Va Beach, VA. Had 120 tackles in 2009 as his HS team won the district. Had 93 tackles in 2008. We can always use a good linebacker in our new 4-3 scheme that London is instituting.
6- Pablo Alverez S 6-3 190 Miami, FL. He runs a 4.4 40 and is also a standout on the track team. Love big safeties from Florida.
7- Jake McGee QB/ATH 6-5 210 Richmond, VA. He’s a gamer and was added to the team by Mike London. He might get a shot at QB, but he can also play TE. He’s a winner, and that sure as hell counts for something.
8- Rijo Walker CB 5-10 170 Hampton, VA. We needed to mend some fences in the 757, and coach London actually graduated from the same high school (Bethel). Lightning fast corner that could return kicks at UVA as well.
9- Ryan Cobb LB/FB 6-1 220 Wykoff, NJ.
10- E.J. Scott WR 5-11 170 Ellicott City, MD.
11- Conner Davis OL 6-5 255 Glen Allen, VA.
12- Khalek Shepherd WR 5-8 170 Brandywine, MD.
13- Mike Rocco QB 6-3 208 Lynchburg, VA.
14- Stephen Lawe OL 6-5 286 Norfolk, VA.
15- Miles Gooch QB 6-3 210 Decatur, GA .
16- Chris Brathwaite DE 6-1 250 Flushing, NY.
17- Cody Wallace OL 6-4 265 Moorestown, NY.
And of course Hoos fans, it’s still basketball season!
It wasn’t a thing of beauty, but the Wahoos won another key ACC game this
evening over NC State at the John Paul Jones Arena, 59-47. Virginia was down
as many as 8 to the Wolfies in the first stanza, but NC State shot poorly in the second half as the Hoos continued to play stifling defense to key the win. NC State shot an incredibly bad 18 % from three-point land, and only had two players in double figures this evening.
Virginia’s Sylven Landesberg played a sparking game on defense for the Hoos,
but finished the game without scoring in double figures for the only time this season. The Hoos were led by Mike Scott’s 15, Farrakahn’s 11, and the ever-improving Tri-Captain Jerome Meyinsse’s 10. Jerome played an excellent
game defensively as well for Virginia.
The JPJ was completely listless tonight as perhaps the fans are so ready for
winter to be over that their hands and mouths are frozen or something. Virginia remains tied for first place with Duke and is starting to make some noise nationally and possibly ready to join the ranks of the Top 25!
Virginia’s Will Sherrill also played great defensively, but looked as he tweaked his right ankle in the first half. If you had told me that Landesberg would only score 7 in this game I would have said the we lose by at least 10. This team is growing and becoming a complete winner right before my own eyes!
Can Virginia make a run and get in the NCAA Tournament? The Hoos return to
action Saturday at the JPJ against Wake Forest. Virginia lost to Wake earlier this season in Winston-Salem in a dreadful game. Unless, of course, we get 100 inches of snow like folks are worrying about and then our next game will be Wednesday in College Park against the dreaded Terrapins! I had a chance to talk to new football coach London for about five minutes about his recruiting haul at the game and man his energy is awesome. Go Hoos!
