2015 Commitments

EvoShield Canes OF, Stephen Polansky (Hickory 15), committed to Va Tech. Congrats, Po!

I remember when my 2008 son went through the recruiting pipeline. The very first offers made to even the most elite players in his class, nationwide, started in November of his junior year (2006), or less than 1 1/2 years before graduation.

Now you have guys committing 15 months ahead of that time table.

That rates a "WOW".

Congrats to Stephen and his family. What intrigues me is not that he received an "early" offer, but that is was Virginia Tech. Wonder if Hughes is tired of playing second fiddle to some of the other ACC schools who recruit early?

Congrats to PO and family. Great kid, great parents, should be a Great fit at Tech!

So I guess we need to sit down with 2016 joemktgson and start targeting schools. Think it will be safe to wait until February to do this, when he has 6 months of HS under his belt?

Congrats to the family on the work, foresight, and dedication. There's a blueprint in here somewhere.

quote:

So I guess we need to sit down with 2016 joemktgson and start targeting schools.

I know you were tongue in cheek on this, but indications are that perhaps you should not be -- not if your son has legit D1 ability. Apparently he could well be committed by this time next year!

In Polansky's case, he is a very talented player...lots of fast twitch. The talent is evident. Also, Coach Hughes' son plays for the EvoCanes so he was able to watch Stephen all summer. Finally, VT has gotten more verbals from underclassmen this year than in the past, which tells me they are trying to lock up kids earlier to compete with the rest of the ACC. Either you adapt or become irrelevant. Congrats to VT for adapting.

quote:

Originally posted by joemktg:
So I guess we need to sit down with 2016 joemktgson and start targeting schools. Think it will be safe to wait until February to do this, when he has 6 months of HS under his belt?

Joemktg, you may already be years behind. Berryberrygoodson2017 has already been talking to several ACC and SEC programs. (Won't be long before this is thought to be the "new norm," the way things are going!)

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Originally posted by berryberrygood:
Won't be long before this is thought to be the "new norm," the way things are going!

Or the AAU Basketball paradigm.

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Finally, VT has gotten more verbals from underclassmen this year than in the past, which tells me they are trying to lock up kids earlier to compete with the rest of the ACC. Either you adapt or become irrelevant. Congrats to VT for adapting.

Well, it is about time. It sounds like VT may have finally figured it out. I don't think there has been a lack of interest by recruits over the last bunch of years and there has not been a lack of talent in the state over the last bunch of years. VT does recruit some talented players, but they've lacked depth that better ACC teams have. Hopefully the idea of competing for younger talented recruits to keep pace with competition will stick with the program.

I don't think there's been any lack of effort in the past. I do think the team's steady improvement in quality of play, players getting drafted into the pros, new investments in facilities, etc., are all turning heads with kids.

The fact of the matter is, Va. Tech is a school a lot of kids grow up dreaming about attending. Maybe their parents went there, maybe they love the idea of being in a stadium with 70,000 of their closest fans 6 times each fall for the rest of their lives, but the reality is that VT has a lot of advantages in recruiting. Now that they are consistently competitive in the ACC, it's only natural that players respond accordingly.

I can also tell you, with each passing year the number of players and former players who are out there singing the praises of Coach Hughes grows. That makes an impression. Everyone likes the head guy when they are being romanced during recruiting. When the players still love and respect him after 4 years of working with him daily, it means a lot.

The 2015 list will continue to grow, a number of prospects are making unofficial visits this fall. We will track their decisions here!

Baseball Commitment Tracker

Pete Hughes is a class act, an outstanding coach and a good friend. He had 50 years of catching up to do against other ACC schools -- or as long as the Hokies should have been in the ACC but were not. It is no surprise he is making progress. Midlo is right. Hokie roots run deep in the Commonwealth and there are lots of talented players and their families who want to be part of the Virginia Tech baseball rebirth. Pete is making that very possible.

Another EvoCane to the SEC:

Kaleb Bowman, Woodgrove, RHP to South Carolina

I've got a son 2017... and am very curious what the likelihood of these schools altering their commitments - as in how much, etc??

Surely there will be pitchers who develop surprisingly between their Sophomore and Senior year who these teams wish they would be able to offer the scholarship to, vs the kid they offered before hie sophomore season?

Wish and hope someone tracks this and can provide facts that should be available to all families with an interest.

Early commits need to remember GPA and SAT/ACT scores matter when it comes to actually getting the scholarship.

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Originally posted by zrxkuma:
Early commits need to remember GPA and SAT/ACT scores matter when it comes to actually getting the scholarship.

We discuss this with our kids all the time.

I understand from a college coach that Connor Eason of Great Bridge committed to UVA last night.

Yes.... was on Twitter. Posted by Dynamic Baseball. However, Connor is a Hickory product.