Football Recruiting Update: 8/20/21

We are mid-way into Virginia Tech fall camp and it is also heading towards the beginning of the official start of the recruiting period for the Class of 2023. As the new season approaches and a new wave of potential Hokies coming into play, we need to cover some important news in the Hokies recruiting area. Here are the top topics heading into late August:

Corners and Kickers - August saw the addition of 2022 Cornerbacks Mansoor Delane and Cam Johnson, both coming out of Maryland. This duo of corners have been in each others graces for a while now. The two play of the same 7v7 football team in PG County, Maryland called Team Flexx. This newly added Hokie duo should become a big threat for opposing offenses come their time to shine in Blacksburg.

On the special teams side of the ball, the Hokies added in Kicker John Love out of Spartanburg, South Carolina. John is rated as a 5-Star kicker, according to Kohl's Kicking Camp Site, and plans to make an early impact at Virginia Tech. Coach James Shibest reached out the scholarship offer to the 2022 kicker and Love decided to become a Hokie soon after.

Movin' to Mizzou - Last week we saw former LB Commit Xavier Simmons flip his commitment from the Hokies to the Missouri Tigers. Simmons, a North Carolina native, made his flip to the Tigers official through a Twitter post. He thanked Coach Fuente and Coach Tyler in his announcement, with no clear reasoning behind the flip. However, we wish Xavier the best in his tenure at Missouri.

Now attention falls on the Hokies to secure in-state linebacker Tyler Banks. Not only does Banks bring the Virginia native narrative in his recruitment, but he also is cousins with former Hokies linebacker Rayshard Ashby. Seeing another possible family pair come to life in Blacksburg would be a very hard possibility for the Hokies to pass up this class.

Keep an Eye Out - With the Hokie's 2022 Class filling up, the recruiting staff is looking at potential recruits to possibly flip over to the Hokies. Some names of early have been Darren Agu (Vanderbilt EDGE commit), BJ Diakite (Vanderbilt ATH commit), and Benji Gosnell (former Ohio State TE commit) for possible flips.

Starting off, Darren Agu is high school teammates with Hokies WR commit Tucker Holloway. To think that two of the most highlighted players on the Rabun Gap team aren't discussing commitments and upcoming fall visits is ludicrous. And also with Vanderbilt having some issues keeping commits, it wouldn't be surprising to see the Hokies try here.

Next, BJ Diakite is a very versatile athlete for the Pinson Valley High School football team down in Alabama. This so happened to be the high school of now Hokie, Kenji Christian who has been quite well early on for the Hokies. There was word that the pair may have been discussing a potential team-up in Blacksburg, but nothing has came into motion quite yet.

And lastly, Benji Gosnell, a former Ohio State commit, now finds himself in the state of Virginia for his final year of high school. The Virginia Tech staff has been contact with the new Virginian, who has been looking at schools like Virginia Tech and North Carolina for a new home. However, it is important to note that Benji's brother, Stephen Gosnell, is a current Tight End for the Tarheels of North Carolina. This could make an eventual decision to come to Blacksburg over Chapel Hill a hard one for the 2022 TE.