Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, February 7, 1991 TAG: 9102070185
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Coffey's statement has been regarded with some amusement over the years, particularly when North Carolina and other neighboring schools were making their annual recruiting raids. More often than not, the visitors were welcomed with open arms.
Nobody has built a fence yet, at least not one that's impenetrable, but there's some barbed wire out there. Outsiders may be able to get on the property, but they won't be able to come and go without a scratch.
This year, for the first time in anybody's memory, North Carolina did not sign a single player from Virginia. The Tar Heels did get tight end Oscar Sturgis from Fork Union Military Academy, but Sturgis is a Rockingham, N.C., product who signed with North Carolina in 1990 but did not meet Proposition 48 guidelines for freshman eligibility.
This is not to demean Carolina's recruiting. The Tar Heels fared well in their state and showed strength throughout the East. It may be that Carolina felt it could do better elsewhere - the Tar Heels only recruited a handful of Virginia players - but it won't bother the coaches at Virginia Tech and Virginia if they never come back.
The Hokies signed nine players rated among the top 25 in Virginia by the Roanoke Times & World-News, and the Cavaliers signed seven, including three in the top five. In addition, UVa signed Mike Wardlaw, a defensive back from Valley Forge (Pa.) Military Academy, who was rated in the top 25 last year.
The previous one-season high for one school was the eight Top 25 prospects, including record-setting quarterback Shawn Moore, who signed with UVa in 1985. The total of 16 signees for both schools far exceeds the previous record of 12 in 1984 and '85.
The statistics become even more impressive when you consider that five players on the top 25 were not offered scholarships by Tech or Virginia. In other words, of the 20 Top 25 players recruited by either program, only four got away.
Virginia Tech followed the same pattern that has brought the Hokies success in the past. No one has done a better job of identifying in-state players who are not being recruited nationally but can play Division I-A football. Coach Frank Beamer's philosophy has been to recruit players who can run and worry about beefing them up once they get on campus.
The pleasant surprise for the Hokies this year was their success out of state. Tech got the lineman of the year in West Virginia (Joel Chapman), the leading rusher in Florida (Dwayne Thomas) and a receiver ranked on some lists of the top 25 prospects in Florida (Jermaine Holmes).
Virginia has had higher visibility nationally with its three bowl trips in the past four years, as well as its appearance in the season-opening Kickoff Classic in 1989. The Cavaliers signed five players who have been ranked in the top 25 in their respective states - two from New Jersey, two from Pennsylvania and one from North Carolina.
From all indications, it was the fastest group of players ever recruited by Virginia, and the Cavaliers were able to sign players from three state high schools - Green Run, Potomac and Sussex Central - where they had been unproductive in the past.
When UVa lost four of five games to end the season, there was much speculation that national co-champion Georgia Tech had replaced the Cavaliers as the "hot" school in recruiting. The Yellow Jackets did recruit well, getting top players from North Carolina and Virginia; but, incredibly, they signed only one of the top 30 prospects in Georgia.
Most of the time, recruiting rhetoric is just talk. You would think that Virginia Tech's membership in the new Big East football conference would help the Hokies' recruiting. In conversations with more than 20 coaches who had players commit to Tech, I never once heard the Big East mentioned.
Remember when Florida State was admitted to the ACC? Virginia coach George Welsh predicted that the other eight ACC schools would benefit from an easier entry into talent-rich Florida. Want to know how many players Virginia signed from Florida? Zip. And, only one visited.
In my opinion, the most important factor in any recruiting battle is the assistant coach doing the recruiting. Virginia fans can breathe a sigh of relief that defensive-line coach Danny Wilmer did not get the head coaching job at James Madison because Wilmer recruited seven of the Cavaliers' 21 signees.
If there was a common reaction from Virginia Tech recruits, it was that they enjoyed their visits. At least two Tech recruits - Chapman and John Bishock - signed with Tech after it was reported they had committed to other schools. Obviously, Tech does a good job of planning visits, but the Hokies' players also deserve credit for wholeheartedly selling the program.
Tech will play more games on television once the Big East gets rolling, and, if the Hokies are good, it should help recruiting. They will have a better chance of getting bowl bids at 7-4 as a conference member than they did as an independent, but conference affiliation alone doesn't ensure great recruiting. Just ask Wake Forest.
It's not unreasonable to mention the Tech and Virginia recruiting years among the best the two schools have had, but one note of caution is necessary. Two of UVa's top recruits, including franchise quarterback Aaron Sparrow, have not yet qualified for a scholarship under Proposition 48. Tech has four players in that category, including the state's No. 2-rated quarterback, Fred Lassiter.
Until those scores come up, no evaluations can be final.
AUTHOR NOTE: Doug Doughty has picked Virginia's Top 25 for this newspaper since 1984.
by CNB