Virginia Tech football recruiting: Analysis on Cam Johnson, Ramon Brown and the Hokies’ entire 2022 class (2024)

BLACKSBURG, Va. — It’s an important recruiting class for Virginia Tech’s Justin Fuente, with the coaching staff he revamped after the 2019 season finally getting a chance to meet with and evaluate recruits in person. The Hokies are coming off classes ranked 76th and 43rd the past two years, though it looks like they have a chance to be more around their historical norm in the top 30 in the 2022 cycle.

After landing cornerback Cam Johnson and kicker John Love on Aug. 14 and but watching linebacker Xavier Simmons flip to Missouri at the same time, the Hokies have 22 verbal commitments in the Class of 2022..

This recruiting tracker will be updated as Virginia Tech’s class grows. Below is a rundown of where the group stands currently. All rankings are from the 247Sports Composite, and the most recent commitments are listed first.

John Love, PK

Hometown: Spartanburg, S.C.
High school: Spartanburg
Ranking: N/A
Date of commitment: Aug. 14, 2021

Notable: Tech added a rare scholarship kicker to the mix with the addition of Love. The last kicker to earn a scholarship when he signed was punter Oscar Bradburn out of Australia. It rarely happened before Justin Fuente, too, with Michael Santamaria the last place-kicker to get one straight out of high school in 2014. (Santamaria was beaten out by walk-on Joey Slye, who became the school’s all-time leading scorer.) Love is a 5-foot-11, 155-pounder who is the No. 53 kicker nationally on Kohl’s Kicking in the 2022 class. A blurb on Love by the kicking service said he has one of the best legs in this year’s class.

Cam Johnson, CB

Hometown: Baltimore, Md.
High school: St. Frances Academy
Ranking: No. 324 overall, No. 33 CB
Date of commitment: Aug. 11, 2021

Notable: The Hokies landed their second cornerback commitment in four days, with Johnson joining Mansoor Delane, another Maryland product, in the class. The 6-foot, 165-pounder became the third-highest-ranked commitment in Tech’s 2022 group, a four-star prospect in the 247Sports Composite who’s behind only Gunner Givens and Ramon Brown in the national rankings among the Hokies’ commitments. Though Virginia Tech was his only official visit, he made trips to Boston College and West Virginia and had Texas A&M, Tennessee, Maryland and Penn State among his seven finalists. At 165-170 pounds, he’ll need to add some size at the college level, though his evaluators praise his coverage skills and speed. He’s the No. 6 prospect in Maryland and would be in the top 12 if he were in Virginia.

Mansoor Delane, DB

Hometown: Severn, Md.
High school: Archbishop Spalding
Ranking: No. 1,075 overall, No .96 CB
Date of commitment: Aug. 11, 2021

Notable: Maryland, the local school just 20 miles down the road, was long considered the favorite to land Delane’s commitment, but he ended up picking the Hokies, becoming the second defensive back pledge in the class along with safety Malcolm Jones. The 6-foot-1, 178-pounder only played two games and one scrimmage as a junior due to COVID-19 restrictions, but he’s a good-sized defensive back, particularly if he sticks at corner, where Tech always prizes length. The Hokies offered him during the winter and hosted him on a visit in early June. The three-star prospect is ranked as the No. 28 player in Maryland.

D’Andre Martin, DL

Hometown: Durham, N.C.
High school: Life Christian Academy
Ranking: N/A; No. 36 edge rusher on 247Sports’ site-specific rankings
Date of commitment: Aug. 1, 2021

Notable: The Hokies went head to head with South Carolina’s Shane Beamer to land Martin, a 6-foot-3.5, 293-pound defensive lineman who’s a three-star prospect. He visited both schools during the week before his announcement. Martin is from North Carolina but attends Life Christian Academy in Chester, Va. He reclassified after originally being a 2021 recruit. Martin’s a late-riser, a one-time wide receiver whose body grew into a defensive lineman. He didn’t earn his first offer until early June. Tech extended him his first Power 5 offer after prospect camp. He’s a defensive end/tight end in high school and rated as an edge rusher by 247Sports, though at his size, he’s more likely a tackle at Virginia Tech. He fits the mold of defensive lineman the Hokies have been seeking, pushing 6-4 and 300 pounds already and adds to a big D-line haul this class that includes Rashaud Pernell, Kyree Moyston and Lemar Law. All of them are 6-3 or taller.

Gunner Givens, OL

Hometown: Daleville, Va.
High school: Lord Botetourt
Ranking: No. 134 overall, No. 4 IOL
Date of commitment: July 16, 2021

Notable: The Hokies kept the most-touted recruit from Southwest Virginia in a long time at home. The 6-foot-6, 270-pound Givens is the highest-ranked player from the area in the internet recruiting era (post-2001) and Southwest Virginia’s most-acclaimed recruit since Big Stone Gap’s Julius Jones picked Notre Dame in the 1999 class. A lean but strong athlete, Givens plays a blocking tight end position in Lord Botetourt’s run-heavy offense in addition to defensive end. He has an athletic build that looks like it’ll be suited to playing offensive tackle at the next level, and he could be a big part of the Hokies’ expected retooling there after this season, one of now six O-line commitments in the class. The four-star prospect is an aggressive player, which should bode well in the trenches. “His best attribute is he really gets after it on the field, plays with a real high level of intensity,” his high school coach, Jamie Harless, said. “To me, that’s the most important thing is the kid can be 6-6, strong and athletic, but if he won’t bite a biscuit with honey on it, he probably ain’t going to get really far.”

Ramon Brown, RB

Hometown: Midlothian, Va.
High school: Manchester
Ranking: No. 191 overall, No. 18 RB
Date of commitment: July 9, 2021

Notable: This Hokies’ staff at last has broken through and landed a highly ranked running back under Fuente. In Brown, who became the highest-ranked commitment in Virginia Tech’s class, the Hokies are poised to welcome their most-touted running back commitment since David Wilson in 2009. (Technically, Drew Harris had a higher rating than Brown out of high school in 2012, though, after a few academic entanglements, he never enrolled.) The 5-foot-11, 202-pound Brown goes by the nickname “Razor Ramon,” which ’90s-era pro wrestling fans will enjoy. He has offers from all sorts of major schools, with the Hokies coming out on top after he made visits to West Virginia, South Carolina, Penn State and Maryland. He has a good blend of speed and power (he was timed at 4.53 seconds in the 40-yard dash at a regional event of The Opening) and ran for 871 yards and 14 touchdowns in seven games during his junior season in the spring. Tech already had a 2022 commitment from Bryce Duke, a well-rounded, physically-impressive back as well, so these two could be an interesting 1-2 punch down the line.

Xavier Chaplin, OL

Hometown: Seabrook, S.C.
High school: Whale Branch
Ranking: No. 1,102 overall, No. 109 OT
Date of commitment: July 5, 2021

Notable: The Hokies added to their large offensive line haul with the massive Chaplin, a 6-foot-6, 370-pound prospect from south of Charleston. He was an off-the-radar prospect when he committed, unranked at the time by the major scouting services and with only an offer from Georgia State, though word is some bigger schools were poking around. He’s now listed as the No. 18 recruit in South Carolina. To tell you how different Chaplin is in this day and age, he didn’t attend any general camps in June and still hasn’t announced his commitment on Twitter. He did visit Virginia Tech, however, and had a good relationship with offensive line coach Vance Vice. Chaplin, who also wrestles and throws the shot put in high school, is the fifth offensive lineman in the class.

Rashaud Pernell, DL

Hometown: Highland Springs, Va.
High school: Highland Springs
Ranking: No. 637 overall, No. 91 DL
Date of commitment: July 4, 2021

Notable: After watching highly sought-after Highland Springs recruits like Kevin Gilliam (Oklahoma), Damond Harmon (Oklahoma), Jamareeh Jones (Boston College) and Malcolm Greene (Clemson) head out of state, the Hokies finally have a scholarship player foothold at the perennial state power that’s coached by former Tech standout cornerback Loren Johnson. (Former Highland Springs teammate Jabari Parker will join Virginia Tech as a walk-on this season.) The 6-foot-4, 250-pound Pernell, who is the No. 20 player in Virginia, had six sacks for a Springers team that played in the state championship game for the fifth time in the past six years during an abbreviated spring season. He had the Hokies, Coastal Carolina, Minnesota, Wake Forest and Boston College as his finalists, though Tech is the only school he visited officially (in early June). He played end at 250 pounds last season, though the history of players that size would suggest he’ll grow into a defensive tackle once he gets into a college weight room.

Tucker Holloway, WR

Hometown: Andrews, N.C.
High school: Rabun Gap-Nacoochee School
Ranking: No. 1,072 overall, No. 144 WR
Date of commitment: July 3, 2021

Notable: The Hokies’ first strictly receiver commitment in the 2022 class is the 6-foot-3, 178-pound Holloway, who visited Blacksburg in mid-June. He was an option quarterback in North Carolina before transferring an hour away to Rabun Gap-Nacoochee, a private school in Northeast Georgia. The Hokies were his first Power 5 offer, though Iowa State had shown strong interest. He also had offers from a couple of military academies, Army and Air Force. He has track speed, twice running a 4.40 in the 40-yard dash at a camp at Auburn in June, and he was part of his high school’s 4×100 relay team that won a state title. He also ran a 10.79 in the 100 meters this spring. He also finished second in the long jump. He figures to be an outside receiver at Virginia Tech.

Kyree Moyston, DE

Hometown: Suffolk, Va.
High school: King’s Fork
Ranking: No. 776 overall, No. 107 DL
Date of commitment: July 1, 2021

Notable: Moyston joins his cousin, Lemar Law Jr., in committing to Virginia Tech. The King’s Fork product, who’s the No. 20 player in Virginia, had 57 tackles, 20 tackles for a loss and 11 sacks as a sophom*ore in 2019. He had more than 16 offers but chose the in-state Hokies, not long after making an official visit on the weekend of June 18. He fits the long, lean mold of defensive end Virginia Tech has been pursuing lately, listed at 6-foot-4 on his 247Sports profile but saying he’s 6-foot-5, 225 pounds on his Twitter account. Moyston, who plays at the same high school as former Hokies safety and current NFL player Chuck Clark, is the second 757 commitment in this class, joining Law. They’re Tech’s first Tidewater-area signees since now-linebacker Lakeem Rudolph signed in 2020.

Daequan Wright, TE

Hometown: Perry, Ga.
High school: Perry
Ranking: No. 750 overall, No. 41 TE
Date of commitment: June 28, 2021

Notable: The recruiting sites list Wright as a tight end, but at 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, he has the size to have some positional versatility in college as a big-bodied pass-catcher. Though unranked at the time of his commitment, he’s since been given a three-star rating. He’s an interesting athlete who can move pretty well at that size, posting a 4.6-second time in the 40 at a recent camp in Atlanta. He’s also a pretty good basketball player, a guard who averaged 16.4 points and 8.8 rebounds as a junior, earning all-region honors. He had more than 1,000 receiving yards and nine touchdowns the past two seasons. Georgia Tech had also offered.

Bryce Duke, RB

Hometown:Leesburg, Va.
High school:Tuscarora
Ranking: No. 956 overall, No. 79 RB
Date of commitment:June 22, 2021

Notable:The 5-foot-11, 196-pound Duke is the first running back in the class, this after the Hokies took three running backs to add to an already overstocked room last cycle. Duke committed to Tech after earning an offer during a workout with coaches in Blacksburg in early June. He also had offers from Rutgers, Cincinnati and Duke. He’s a productive back, the Region 4C offensive player of the year and a first-team all-state selection after finishing with 1,772 all-purpose yards and 25 touchdowns as a junior in an eight-game season this spring. Duke’san impressive athletewho has good speed (he was timed at 4.6 seconds in the 40 in November), decent size and capable hands as a pass-catcher out of the backfield, making him a potential three-down back. He’s the No. 26 player in Virginia and the third in-state commitment in the Hokies’ 2022 class, joining tight end Harrison Saint Germain (Chantilly) and Lemar Law (Virginia Beach).

Johnny Garrett, OT

Hometown:Scituate, Mass.
High school:Boston College
Ranking: No. 1,147 overall, No. 114 OT
Date of commitment:June 21, 2021

Notable:The Hokies added their fourth offensive line commitment in the class by landing Garrett, a 6-foot-5, 265-pound three-star prospect who earned an offer during a camp visit on June 3. He came back for an official visit, which sealed the deal. Garrett’s junior season was his first at tackle after playing tight end. He also plays on the defensive line. Boston College was his only other Power 5 offer, though Duke had shown interest, and he had offers from UMass, UConn, Army and Air Force. He’s the No. 9 player in Massachusetts. He’s the third offensive line recruit from Boston College High who’s gone to an ACC school in the past three years, joining Erik Russell at Wake Forest in the 2021 class and Ozzy Trapilo at Boston College in 2020.

Malcolm Jones, S

Hometown:Leesburg, Ga.
High school:Lee County
Ranking: No. 726 overall, No. 50 S
Date of commitment:June 20, 2021

Notable:The 6-foot-1, 185-pound safety/athlete had an offer from the Hokies since March, his only Power 5 offer among a group that includes Liberty, Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky. Jones, who committed after taking an official visit the weekend of June 18, is a big-hitter at safety who also has shown an ability to high point the ball as a receiver at Lee County High, which is north of Albany. He’s the second commitment in the class from Georgia, joining quarterback Devin Farrell. Tech signed four players from the Peach State last year. He’s the first DB in the class. After Virginia Tech signed nine defensive backs last year, it might be a limited number this cycle.

Matt Hoffman, TE

Hometown:Wyncote, Pa.
High school:Cheltenham
Ranking: No. 1,270 overall, No. 78 TE
Date of commitment:June 19, 2021

Notable: The tight end turned an unofficial visit into an offer from the Hokies, then committed on an official visit. The 6-foot-4, 215-pounder from Cheltenham High in the Philadelphia suburbs also had a Temple offer, with Tech being the first Power 5 school to extend a scholarship. The Hokies had plenty of tight ends in town on visits in June, with Charlie Kenrich (who committed to Purdue on Saturday) and Jack Nickel coming to Blacksburg. Hoffman becomes tight end No. 2 in the class, joining Harrison Saint Germain, meaning the Hokies are probably done at the position in this cycle — though they need to replenish that spot with James Mitchell likely off to the NFL after this season and Drake DeIuliis in his fifth year. Hoffman, who also plays defensive end, played in New Jersey last year after Cheltenham didn’t have a fall season.

Jakson LaHue, OL

Hometown:Azle, Texas
High school:Azle
Ranking:No. 1,021 overall, No. 103 OT
Date of commitment:June 17, 2021

Notable:The Hokies dipped into Texas for a third time in the ’22 class to grab what’s also their third offensive lineman, joining Johnny Dickson and Braelin Moore, a wise strategy considering Tech’s low offensive line numbers and the good possibility three or four linemen go pro after this season. LaHue, who visited Tech the weekend of June 11, is a tall, lean prospect out of Azle High who has started at left tackle since his sophom*ore season and has been identified as anunderrated Texas prospect. He’d camped at hometown TCU several times, though he never garnered a Horned Frogs offer, instead having a scholarship list of Ivy League schools like Columbia, Dartmouth, Penn and Yale. He has a 4.0 grade point average and competes in track and field as a shot put and discus thrower. He joins Dickson and quarterback Alex Orji as Texas prospects in this class. Tech signed three Texas prospects in 2020 and ’21 combined (defensive ends Alec Bryant and Robert Wooten and receiver Da’Wain Lofton).

Lemar Law, DL

Hometown:Virginia Beach, Va.
High school:Bayside
Ranking:No. 1,240 overall, No. 156 DL
Date of commitment:June 2, 2021

Notable:Law became the first commitment after the June reopening of in-person recruiting, doing so after visiting Virginia Tech’s campus. Law is 6-foot-5 and has a listed weight of anywhere from 265 to 280 on various recruiting sites. If it’s toward the latter, he’ll almost certainly play on the interior at defensive tackle with the Hokies, though they’ve tried to get bigger at their end position in recent years. Wherever he ends up, that’s a big body with which Virginia Tech can work. At 6-foot-5, he’s taller than any defensive linemen on campus for spring practice other than Amare Barno (though some tall, lean athletes arrive this summer). In addition to playing on the defensive line for Bayside, he’s a tight end, earning second-team All-Beach District honors at both this spring.

Johnny Dickson, OG

Hometown:Corpus Christi, Texas
High school:Flour Bluff
Ranking:No. 508 overall, No. 19 IOL
Date of commitment:April 21, 2021

Notable:Dickson is technically a Texas recruit, but he has deep ties to the Virginia area. He’s originally from Virginia Beach but moved to Texas when he was in the eighth grade, so this isn’t some far-flung commitment (his mother is in the U.S. Navy). The 6-foot-3, 285-pounder is a three-year-starter at Flour Bluff and was the anchor for the Hornets’ offensive line during the team’s run to the Class 5A Division I state quarterfinals last season. He was a first-team selection on the All-South Texas football team.

Alex Orji, QB

Hometown:Sachse, Texas
High school:Sachse
Ranking:No. 421 overall, No. 26 QB
Date of commitment:April 8, 2021

Notable:A physically impressive dual-threat quarterback at 6-foot-2, 226 pounds, Orji could be the latest Texas quarterback to come to Virginia Tech. In the past decade, the Hokies have had Michael Brewer, Jerod Evans and Connor Blumrick, though touted 2021 prospect Dematrius Davis, a Houston product, flipped his commitment and signed with Auburn. Once listed as an athlete, Orji’s built like a linebacker, which is no surprise, considering his two older brothers, Alston and Anfernee, are linebackers at Vanderbilt. He’s bounced around in high school, playing at three places, but he settled at Sachse High last year, where as a junior he threw for 1,647 yards and 11 touchdowns and ran for 980 yards and 16 touchdowns for a team that went 3-6. Orji was one of the top testers at an Elite 11 regional camp in April, running a 4.73-second 40-yard dash and posting a 37-inch vertical, so he’s an impressive athlete.

Braelin Moore, OG

Hometown:Bethlehem, Pa.
High school:Freedom
Ranking:No. 654 overall, No. 28 IOL
Date of commitment:Feb. 27, 2021

Notable:Recruiting younger brothers of Hokies players was a hallmark of the Frank Beamer era and it’s continued under Justin Fuente, who’s landed three younger brothers of former Tech players: Nick Gallo (Eric), Jalen Stroman (Greg) and Jack Hollifield (Dax). Braelin is No. 4, the younger brother of Kaden, a freshman offensive lineman for the Hokies who has a promising future. Tech was one of the first to offer Braelin.. He’s the same height (6-3) as his brother, and given time, you’d imagine the 290-pound Braelin will fill out like the 317-pound Kaden. They were high school teammates in 2019 when Kaden was a senior and will be again in Blacksburg next year.

Harrison Saint Germain, TE

Hometown:Chantilly, Va.
High school:Westfield
Ranking:No. 1,125 overall, No. 64 TE
Date of commitment:Feb. 22, 2021

Notable:The 6-foot-4, 230-pound Saint Germain was an early commitment for the Hokies, who he chose over an offer from Wake Forest. He comes from a top program in Northern Virginia in Westfield. (The Hokies briefly had a commitment from former Bulldogs QB Noah Kim, who flipped to Michigan State in the 2020 class.) WithJames Mitchelllikely off to the NFL after the 2021 season, Tech will need to replenish the ranks at the position. Saint Germain spent time both with a hand in the ground and split out wide during Westfield’s spring season, showing blocking ability and soft hands, versatility that Virginia Tech likes at what’s one of the most demanding positions in the Hokies’ offense.

Devin Farrell, QB

Hometown:Alpharetta, Ga.
High school:Milton
Ranking:No. 719 overall, No. 47 QB
Date of commitment:Feb. 11, 2021

Notable:The first pledge in the Hokies’ 2022 class is a versatile athlete who committed just a few weeks after getting an offer this winter. As a junior for Milton High, Farrell, who also had offers from Georgia Tech, Wake Forest and Duke, completed 63 percent of his passes for 1,812 yards and 13 touchdowns, adding 553 yards and five more touchdowns on the ground. He’s listed at 6 feet, 192 pounds, which is smaller than the type of quarterback Tech has recruited over the years, and with Orji’s commitment in the class, one wonders if he’ll stick at the position in college. Farrell has also played cornerback in high school, which might be a path for him in college too.

(Photo: Michael Shroyer / Getty Images)