That thumping you heard last week? Right around 1 in the afternoon? That was the collective jumping for joy of Wahoo football fans across the globe.
One week ago was national signing day, and we have plenty of reason to celebrate.
Various recruiting rankings put our class between fourth and sixth in the ACC and in the low 30s nationally. Compare that to the 2008 class, which was rated the conference’s 11th best — ahead of only Duke.
As I’ve said in this space before, this class has the potential to be one of our best in years. No, it doesn’t vie with Alabama or Florida or USC for the best in the country, but it got us what we needed. And say what you will about game-planning or play-calling — Groh et al. have proven their ability to take middling talent and build it into pro-level performers.
So just what are these goodies? What man-beasts will grace Grounds in the coming years? Well, come with me on what I’ll call Wiley’s Wild Recruiting Recap:
MORGAN MOSES (Offensive Tackle; Meadowbrook High School; Richmond)
The crown jewel, the coup de grace, the whipped cream and the cherry on Virginia’s recruiting sundae.
Some numbers: No. 2 recruit in Virginia; No. 5 offensive tackle in the country; 6 feet 7 inches tall; 347 pounds; benches 380; squats 460.
Moses turned down offers from Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Tennessee and that other ACC “school” in Blacksburg. On signing day, his commitment was an 11th-hour decision to come to Charlottesville instead of Knoxville or Chapel Hill.
To watch his highlight films is to watch near perfection. His pass blocking is airtight, and he’s de-cleated more than his fair share of defenders on running plays. His knee and backbend — crucial to a lineman’s ability to get low and win the leverage game — could improve, but that will come with coaching.
Picking up Moses is almost certainly attributable to the hiring of Latrell Scott. Scott was the lead recruiter at Tennessee before coming to Charlottesville, and it’s hard to imagine Scott’s change of scenery not influencing Moses to follow him along for the ride. If this is what he’s done in two months, get excited for the next few years.
Moses is the latest installment to O-Line U. Seeing as how we’ve produced Elton Brown, D’Brickashaw Ferguson, Branden Albert and Eugene Monroe — all in the last five years — hopefully the nation’s elite linemen are taking notice. We stand on the verge of becoming what Penn State is to linebackers or what USC of the 1970s and 1980s was to running backs.
ODAY ABOUSHI (Offensive Tackle; Xaverian High School; Brooklyn, N.Y.)Another wicked impressive commitment to the line. While not as overwhelming as Moses is on film, Aboushi has more than enough clips to drool over. Standing 6-foot-6 and tipping the scales at 300 pounds, he and Moses could make for a devastating bookend combo. Aboushi turned down offers from Boston College, Iowa, Rutgers and Maryland, committing to the Cavaliers in early January. He also boasted a 3.4 grade point average in high school.
The No. 3 recruit in New York and the No. 23 tackle nationally, Aboushi will augment a line that saw several departures, and he could push players in front of him for playing time as the season gets underway. Like Moses, he needs some work on getting lower in his stance, but given what he’s done even with subpar technique, Orange Nation should get used to seeing wide-open running lanes behind Aboushi’s wide frame.
QUINTIN HUNTER (Quarterback, though his position next year is still undecided; Orange High School; Orange, Va.)
Like Aboushi, Hunter committed early to Virginia — all the way back in March 2008. Ranked No. 12 in the state and the No. 22 best athlete in the class of 2009, Hunter is a 6-foot-2 scrambling quarterback. Other schools that vied for his arm were West Virginia, Maryland, Stanford and Tech.
Hunter is the only player in the incoming recruiting class I’ve seen with my own two eyes, and trust me: He’s worth every one of the four stars in his Rivals rating. Playing for coach John Kayajanian, he’s well-versed in the particulars of the spread offense and is an extremely capable runner with what would be fairly assessed as below average throwing ability. As much as I wish he hadn’t, when he played Charlottesville, my alma mater, Hunter made opposing defenses look like they had forgotten to come in off the sidelines.
Hunter’s predecessor at Orange, Bradley Starks, is now a wide receiver and quarterback at West Virginia and could vie for the spot the electric Pat White currently occupies. Hunter fits well in that style of game and should enjoy quite a bit of playing time in Gregg Brandon’s offensive scheme. Whether as a quarterback or more a Percy Harvin-style playmaker, this is a kid that needs to be on the field.
TIM SMITH (Wide Receiver, Oscar Smith High School; Chesapeake, Va.)
Smith is another example of Groh’s coaching staff conducting a well-targeted recruitment drive. Losing Kevin Ogletree, Maurice Covington and Cary Koch put a sizeable dent in the Cavaliers’ receiving corps, and Smith should help fill that void. The No. 10 recruit in Virginia and No. 38 national receiver, the 6-foot, 180-pound Smith turned down a number of pass-first offenses, including Steve Spurrier’s South Carolina squad, to come to Virginia. Like Aboushi, Smith sported a respectable 3.5 GPA in high school.
DOMINIQUE WALLACE (Running Back, Fullback; Chancellor High School; Fredericksburg, Va.) Wallace is a freak. No two ways about it — just a freak of nature in football pads. Despite a frame more than 6-feet tall and 230-pounds heavy, Wallace runs a 4.48 forty, the fourth fastest of any 2009 Virginia commitment. Oh, and he squats 500 pounds. His highlight reel was clip after clip after clip of hapless defenders catching a knee or arm to the face mask and slipping harmlessly to the turf. Wallace is rated the No. 1 fullback in the country and the No. 8 recruit in the Commonwealth.
Beyond the five studs profiled here, the class includes a 6-foot-6 wide receiver, a running back with 4.4 forty speed and even a Canadian defensive end.
Time will be the ultimate test of the Class of 2009, but for now at least — in this, our winter of athletic discontent — the future looks bright.
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