Just Like That, Problem Solved
May 8th, 2009 by Will Stewart
In the last few recruiting classes, the Hokies have done an outstanding job stockpiling offensive talent, with one exception: quarterback, the position that matters most. In the space of just a few hours yesterday, Tech did something they haven’t done in years: secure commitments from multiple QBs high on their target board.
In 2001 the Hokies signed Bryan Randall, and in 2002 they landed Marcus Vick. Both of those players were highly rated QBs, sought after by many, and they had successful careers on the field. A stroll through TSL’s Past Recruiting Classes page reveals an alarming lack of quarterback signees, and many of those signees were never really slated to play QB at Tech.
That’s a solid record of signing desired QBs. Sign one kid like that per year, and you won’t likely have many problems at the position. But since then, quarterback recruiting hasn’t been anything to crow about, and the 2009 recruiting class hit bottom, with no QBs signed at all.
| VT QB Recruits, 2003-2009 | ||
| Year | Signee | Position at VT |
| 2003 | Cory Holt | QB |
| 2004 | Sean Glennon | QB |
| 2005 | Greg Boone | TE |
| 2005 | Ike Whitaker | QB |
| 2006 | Kam Chancellor | DB |
| 2007 | Tyrod Taylor | QB |
| 2008 | Ju-Ju Clayton | QB |
| 2008 | Marcus Davis | WR |
After signing two highly-rated QBs back to back in 2001 and 2002, the Hokies signed just three highly-rated quarterbacks in the next seven recruiting classes: Sean Glennon, Ike Whitaker, and Tyrod Taylor.
As the offensive talent filtering into the program has ramped up considerably, with the likes of Ryan Williams, David Wilson, Dyrell Roberts, and Logan Thomas coming to Blacksburg (among others), the depth and quality at the quarterback position has declined, and the position is an area of concern. If Tyrod Taylor turns out to be as bullet proof in 2009 and 2010 as Bryan Randall was — unlikely, considering Taylor’s injury history — then the lack of depth at the position will never hurt the Hokies.
Why? Because yesterday, VT earned commitments from H.D. Woodson (Washington, DC) QB Ricardo Young and Atlantic Community (Delray Beach, FL) QB Mark Leal, within just a few hours of each other. Both players still have to sign with the Hokies next February (in the case of Young, he plans to graduate early and could be at Tech in January of 2010), but assuming they do, the Hokies will hopefully be able to groom at least one starting-quality quarterback for 2011, Tech’s first season without Tyrod Taylor.
A quick look at YouTube highlights for Mark Leal and Ricardo Young show two quarterbacks whose size is similar but whose skills vary. Leal is the more polished passer, though his mechanics could use refinement. He’s got a strong arm and is a decent runner, and I couldn’t help but notice that the large majority of his snaps were taken in the shotgun. He’ll need to work on taking the snap from center and dropping back into the pocket.
Young’s mechanics are rougher than Leal’s, but Young appears to be a better runner, and he takes more snaps — though not all — from under center. Young is an outstanding student, carrying a 4.0 GPA and planning on graduating early.
And their stats are pretty darn good, most noticeably their TD-INT ratios. Combined, the two quarterbacks threw for 52 touchdowns and just 12 interceptions as juniors. That’s an average 26:6 ratio for the two QBs. For comparison’s sake, Tyrod Taylor’s TD:INT ratio was 15:4 his senior year.
Young and Leal’s commitments are exciting news for Hokie fans, and they remove a black cloud that has been hanging over recent Virginia Tech recruiting classes. As good as the influx of offensive talent has been in the last couple of years, the lack of QBs has been alarming.
Problem solved.
(Scroll down for comments on this blog entry)
May 8th, 2009 at 10:40 am
Man…I sure wish you wouldn’t have posted this blog until they had signed on the dotted line…
CH
May 8th, 2009 at 11:00 am
I hear you, but you can’t NOT talk about recruits until they sign.
May 8th, 2009 at 2:25 pm
Very true…they both just look like GREAT prospects, I hope we can keep them both and let them battle it out. We definitely need the QBs in the pipeline…
CH