Friday, May 29, 2009
Hokies working another Redskins tie
Cavs developing pipeline to DeMatha
Doug Doughty
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Not too long ago, somebody made the prediction that Midlothian High School offensive lineman Matt Arkema would be the next football prospect to commit to Virginia Tech.
The prediction came with one caveat – that the Hokies had to offer him.
Well, the prediction turned out to be wrong. The next player to commit to Virginia Tech was Rochester, N.Y., tight end Jerome Lewis.
However, I did read this week on one of the rivals.com sites that Arkema has received a scholarship offer from the Hokies.
Another piece indicated that Tech has made an offer to Chase Williams, a 6-3, 215-pound linebacker from Loudoun County High School in Leesburg.
It would make sense for the Hokies to be interested in Williams, whose father, Gregg, is a former Washington Redskins defensive coordinator.
Tech has enjoyed a fair degree of success with Washington Redskins legacies. Three of Donnie Warren’s sons have played for Tech. So have two of Russ Grimm’s sons, as well as Jeron Gouveia-Winslow, who was redshirted by Tech as a freshman this past season.
Winslow, listed as a linebacker despite playing quarterback and other skilled positions at Oakton High School, is the son of former Redskins linebacker Kurt Gouveia.
The fathers – Warren, Grimm and Gouveia – all played for Joe Gibbs during his first stint as Redskins coach. Williams coached with the Redskins during Gibbs’ second stint and was hired as the New Orleans Saints’ defensive coordinator this January after serving in that same position last year for Jacksonville.
Chase Williams put up monster numbers as a junior at Loudoun County, where he was credited with 163 tackles, 33 of them for loss. Miami and West Virginia had made earlier offers to Williams, whose other bids had come from the likes of Tulane, New Mexico and SMU.
There were questions about size with Williams and Arkema, both listed at 6-3, but the Hokies do not have a history of quibbling over heights. Arkema has reminded them of former Tech linemen Matt Lehr and Will Montgomery, the latter a walk-on who made All-ACC.
Maryland, East Carolina, Marshall and Buffalo are other Division I-AA schools with offers out to Arkema, also a University of Richmond target.
MY EFFORTS TO get in touch with the above-mentioned Jerome Lewis were in vain, but he was quoted in Thursday’s issue of Sporting News Today.
Lewis’ most impressive numbers have come as a defensive end, but he wants to play offense in college and the Hokies’ commitment to try him on offense was a deal-maker.
“My strength is my size, and my size for my speed,” said Lewis, credited with a 4.8 clocking for 40 yards. “I started playing football really late, so I’m still sort of learning the game.”
IT HAD OCCURRED to me that the three months that have transpired since the last football commitment to Virginia was an unusually long break and Jamie Oakes of CavsCorner.com must have had the same impression.
Oakes wrote in his Friday War Room that the three months’ break was the longest commitment “drought” of coach Al Groh’s nine-year tenure. That would require a lot of research, so I’ll take his word on it.
Oakes also gave one of his “fearless predictions” and said that he believes 5-11 wide receiver E.J. Scott of Good Counsel High School is the uncommitted player most likely to pick the Cavaliers. That doesn’t mean Scott will be next, just that he’s the most likely.
Another player I would put in the close-to-committing category is Kyrrel Latimer, a cornerback from DeMatha High School in Hyattsville, Md. As a freshman, Latimer played at St. Albans School in D.C., where Shawn Moore serves as a lower-school headmaster and has been a varsity assistant football coach.
Moore, in my opinion the best UVa football player over 40 years that I have observed the program, has a son who plays at DeMatha. In fact, Moore has cut back his coaching responsibilities in order to be able to watch his son, Michael, who will be a sophomore for the Stags next year.
Moore is a regular guest on Virginia’s pre-game football show and clearly would not be opposed to Latimer matriculating at his alma mater. Plus, there have been DeMatha players in each of the past two recruiting classes, defensive back Rodney McLeod in 2008 and outside linebacker Jeremiah “Jay” Mathis this season.
Mathis played in nine games after Virginia elected to remove his redshirt early in the season and had 17 tackles, 15 unassisted. After moving to safety in the spring, he quickly earned a starting job and would be near the top of a list of young UVa players with a bright future.
THE WORD AT the SEC Roundtable today was that the recruiting of Justin Hunter, a wide receiver and world-class track athlete from Ocean Lakes High School in Virginia Beach, may not be over.
Hunter committed to LSU earlier this month, at least partly for track. The Tigers finished second to Florida State in last year’s outdoor men’s track-and-field national championship.
Virginia Tech and others are certain to keep Hunter (6-4, 172) on their radar. Hunter was rated the No. 1 prospect in the state by virginiapreps.com, although editor Zirkle Blakey said that could change in future updates.
Following is a list of Division I-A programs that have taken commitments from Virginia players for 2010:
- VIRGINIA TECH (5) – Nick Acree, Caleb Farris, Derrick Hopkins, Tahrick Peak, Mark Shuman
- WEST VIRGINIA (3) – Tre Johnson, Marquis Wallace, Quintin Spain
- ALABAMA (1) – Phillip Sims
- DUKE (1) – Aramide Olaniyan
- LSU (1) – Justin Hunter
- MARYLAND (1) – Jeremiah Wilson
- WAKE FOREST (1) – Duke Mosby
