Should Virginia Tech reconsider Florida?

By Nate Crossman  |   Thursday, June 15, 2006  |  Comments( 1 )

Virginia Tech Hokies
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When Virginia Tech Hokies head coach Frank Beamer said a couple of years ago that he was pulling his full-time recruiter out Florida and assigning him to the Carolinas, it turned some heads.

Florida is a football factory, along with Texas and California. There is seemingly enough talent in the Sunshine State for everyone. Virginia Tech had done OK there, recruiting some talented linemen and current wide receiver David Clowney of Delray Beach.

Beamer, however, had his reasons. In recent years, he has become increasingly frustrated with the recruiting process, in particular recruits apparent willingness to back out of verbal commitments. Beamer is one of the most honorable coaches in football, someone who runs a clean program and gives players who might have been overlooked by other programs a chance. He expects the same respect in return, and lately he has not received it. Although the Hokies only had one Florida recruit back out of a verbal two years ago, several others appeared interested only to sign with Miami, Florida State or Florida.

Also, since Virginia Tech is now a member of the ACC, the Hokies have more of a presence in the Carolinas. Beamer used to say it was hard to recruit North Carolina players because they'd drive by four ACC schools before they arrived at Virginia Tech, which was then in the Big East.

Beamer taking a stand and choosing not to actively recruit Florida is honorable, but is it practical?

The Hokies did better in North Carolina in 2006, signing four players. But they didn't do as well in their own backyard, signing only six players from Virginia, and only three from the Virginia Beach-Norfolk region, which has some of the best high school football talent outside of Florida, Texas and California. Virginia Tech's best recruit, offensive lineman Aaron Brown, is from Cincinnati, Ohio.

Beamer correctly predicted that moving to the ACC would open up some recruiting doors for the Hokies, but it also opened up Virginia to the rest of the ACC. Virginia Tech targeted five in-state receivers, and all five went out of state. The best one, Percy Harvin, went to the Florida Gators.

With recruiting all over the internet, players know exactly what's going on. They know who's recruiting who and who's offering what. The recruiting process has become more about status and who can stage the most anticipated announcement than about finding the right fit. Therefore, Tech might have to go back to Florida just to keep up with everybody else.

They're already doing it to an extent. Although they didn't sign any Florida players last year, they are recruiting two: offensive lineman Clyde Yandell and cornerback Doug Wiggins.

When Beamer decided to focus less on Florida and more on his own backyard, he had his reasons. But for reasons he can't necessarily control, he might have to focus more on the Sunshine State in the coming years.

Get more Virginia Tech Hokies insight at Realfootball365.com
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