Independent Analysis and Commentary

Football

Football Recruiting – 2022 Class & Transfer Additions

ByKarl Hess

Jan 19, 2022 , , ,

The football early signing period ran from December 15, 2021 – December 17, 2021 for the 2022 football recruiting class cycle.

Since the conclusion of the Virginia Tech game to end the regular season, the Virginia football program entered a state of flux with Bronco Mendenhall’s surprise resignation, the cancelation of the Fenway Bowl, and the transition to the new coaching regime under new head coach Tony Elliott.

That state of flux was well represented in the recruiting space and had a large impact on the Hoos’ recruiting class as the early signing period began and concluded.

Class Composition

The Hoos signed a total of 10 players during the early signing period. Nine of those players were high school recruits. One was a transfer wide receiver from the University of Wisconsin.

Let’s take a closer look at the geographic and position distribution of the class.

Geographic Distribution

The Hoos signed players from 8 states. Wisconsin transfer WR Devin Chandler will be grouped based on his home state of North Carolina.

LOCALITY RECRUITS SIGNED
North Carolina 2
Tennessee 2
California 1
Florida 1
Georgia 1
Kentucky 1
New York 1
Virginia 1

Position Distribution

POSITION RECRUITS SIGNED
Wide Receiver 3
Linebacker 2
Quarterback 2
Kicker 1
Running Back 1
Tight End 1

Recruiting Losses and the Transfer Portal

Before jumping into the profiles of the players that did sign with the Hoos, it’s worth noting that UVA’s recruiting class was hit heavily by decommitments as a result of Bronco Mendenhall’s resignation.

By my count, UVA experienced 8 decommitments after the Mendenhall resignation.

Note that one, Colorado OL Andrew Gentry, was a 2020 signee who is currently on a mission for the LDS Church. Gentry, a 247 Sports composite 4 Star and second highest rated recruit signed by UVA during the Mendenhall era, would have enrolled at UVA in 2022. He’s now off to Michigan.

Three of the decommitments were also slated to take missions for the LDS Church and enroll in 2024. Those losses will be easier to replace in the future. All three of those recruits were Utah natives. One recruit, Joe Brown, played on the offensive line. The other two, twins Marcus and Dominique McKenzie, were expected to play cornerback and wide receiver respectively. The trio signed with BYU.

Other decommitments included OL Brody Meadows (signed with VT), edge rusher Keyshawn Burgos (signed with VT), safety Will Hardy (signed with UNC), and defensive lineman Anthony Holmes (signed with Houston).

The transfer portal, now a staple of every college sports offseason, is fluid and always heavily populated. Currently, the Hoos have numerous players in the transfer portal. A large majority of those players entered the portal after the Mendenhall resignation.

Now that the table is set, lets check out the crop of newest Hoos.

Player Profiles

Will Bettridge – Kicker

Gulliver Prep – Miami, Florida – 5-10 156

247 Composite Rating: 3 Stars (.8115)

Power Five Offers: Virginia, Georgia Tech, LSU, Michigan

Other FBS Offers: Air Force, Army, Florida International, Navy

FCS Offers: Morgan State

Expectation: Early Career Impact

Schools do not typically offer scholarships to kicking specialists that they expect to keep on ice for years. And that’s probably the case here for Bettridge.

During the 2021 season, the Hoos rostered four kicking specialists: punters Jacob Finn and Brendan Farrell and kickers Justin Duenkel and Hunter Pearson. Finn is out of eligibility. So it would not surprise if Farrell took over those duties after admirably filling in at kicker for an injured Justin Duenkel this past season. Pearson, who’s never made much of an impact at UVA while often battling injury, is towards the end of his career. He may have completed his tenure in Charlottesville as well.

The depth chart at kicker, then, sets up nicely for Bettridge to assume the kicking duties early in his career as Duenkel will enter his fourth year in the program in 2022.

As you can see from his senior season Hudl highlights below, and the practice kick shared by Bettridge, he possesses plenty of leg. The key, for him, will be to refine his technique and make the most of his practice reps while adding additional range as he waits for his opportunity to kick for the Hoos. It also appears that Bettridge could punt for UVA in a pinch.

Stevie Bracey – Linebacker (January Enrollee)

Lovett School – Atlanta, Georgia – 6-0 219

247 Composite Rating: 3 Stars (.8560)

Power Five Offers: Virginia, Indiana, Minnesota, Syracuse

Other FBS Offers: Army, Buffalo, Coastal Carolina, East Carolina, Eastern Michigan, Georgia State, Kent State, Liberty, Tulane, UCF, South Florida

FCS Offers: Eastern Kentucky, Penn, Princeton

Expectation: Mid-Career Impact

Bracey gets a lot of Nick Jackson comparisons. It’s a natural because they both play inside/middle linebacker and both attended Lovett School in Atlanta. They’ll enter UVA at similar sizes too.

Based on his UVA provided and Hudl highlights, you see a good run supporter who’s sticky in his tackling.  And to be honest, he gave me some vibes similar to another current UVA linebacker Hunter Stewart in the way he moves.

There’s one Hudl highlight against Putnam County High School where Bracey hits his gap while the QB keeps the ball on the read option and bounces outside for a long gain. Bracey could have easily quit on the play, but he showed maximum effort to run down the QB 50 yards down the field to force him out of bounds. That type of effort certainly attracted UVA recruiters. But I also liked the burst once he got up to top speed and the football intelligence showed by taking an excellent angle needed to make the play in the first place.

The crowded depth chart at linebacker will be the biggest detriment to Bracey making an early career impact at UVA. He’ll need to bide his time while first making his way on special teams. But by the middle of his career, he should be expected to compete for the top spot on the inside linebacker depth chart.

Xavier Brown – Running Back

Lexington Christian – Lexington, Kentucky – 5-11 175

247 Composite Rating: 3 Stars (.8580)

Power Five Offers: Virginia, Boston College, Maryland, West Virginia, Wisconsin

Other FBS Offers: Air Force, Liberty, Western Kentucky

FCS Offers: Eastern Kentucky, Princeton, Yale

Expectation: Early Career Impact

There’s no other recruit that may be better served by the coaching change than Xavier Brown. His benefits are two-fold. First, the roster turnover since encountered by UVA leaves a running back room with a lot of carries to go around. And, the offensive system change seems to be one that favors a more balanced attack.

Brown is a talented back and he should be able to step into the void at running back for the Hoos to earn early playing time. The Elliott offense, assumed to be very similar to Clemson’s should be one that utilizes his talents well.

For those reasons,  I nearly upgraded his expectation from Early Career Impact to Instant Impact.

Brown’s UVA highlight package above and his Hudl highlights show a versatile, all around back. He displays good vision and patience. And I like that he’s a tougher runner than you’d expect for his size. He shows good hands out of the backfield so it’s no surprise that the Hoos were selling him on the Olamide Zaccheaus role at one point.

Brown looks to have adequate speed, but isn’t elite. He appears to have a long stride which will make his speed deceptive. You’ll note that in most of his highlights, Brown was in little to no danger of being run down from behind.

In any event, I think Brown looks to be an excellent fit for the Tony Elliott offense. For now, consider him a Travis Etienne-lite type back.

Devin Chandler – Wide Receiver – Wisconsin Transfer (January Enrollee)

William Amos Hough High School – Huntersville, North Carolina – 6-0 178

247 Composite Rating: 3 Stars (.8316)

Power Five Offers: Wisconsin, Virginia, Maryland, Duke, Illinois, NC State

Other FBS Offers: Akron, Kent State

FCS Offers: North Alabama, North Carolina Central

Note that above is based on Chandler’s high school recruiting profile.

Expectation: Instant Impact

I’ve got Chandler pegged as an Instant Impact addition. The Hoos heavily pursued him out of high school. And UVA moved quickly to secure his commitment once Chandler hit the transfer portal. Coaching staff continuity with Marques Hagans remaining on Tony Elliott’s staff should go a long way towards fast tracking Chandler’s role in the UVA offense.

Chandler should also make a nice impact on the UVA return game. In fact, that’s likely where he’ll make his mark first. Of the three highlights provided above by UVA, one is a long kick return against Wake Forest in the 2020 Duke’s May Bowl. Chandler’s lone kick return in the game went for 59 yards. During his short career at Wisconsin, Chandler returned 10 kicks for 241 total yards.

The other two highlights from UVA show a 16 yard catch on a deep out against Iowa during the 2020 season and an 18 yard rush off of a reverse against Wake Forest in the 2020 Duke’s May Bowl. Both represent his career long plays in the passing and running game at Wisconsin.

Looking at his senior season high school highlights from Hudl, you get some sense of the raw talent Chandler brings to the table. Speed is his calling card. And he’ll give the Hoos another option to pair with Demick Starling that has the ability to blow the top off of a defense. It’s not something the Hoos often have, so it’s a valuable trait to bring to the offense. You also see that Chandler has plus leaping ability, making several leaping catches when covered in the red zone. His ability to attack and secure the ball in the air will get him noticed quickly.

Chandler was looking for a change of scenery and a more wide open offense when departing Wisconsin. He should find both at UVA. He didn’t get many opportunities at Wisconsin as a true freshman in 2020. And he entered the transfer portal in mid October 2021, further limiting his opportunities this past season with the Badgers. As a result, he’ll need some refinement to his craft. But there’s no better place to come for that than Charlottesville.

Still, Chandler’s speed and return ability likely get him on the field right away at UVA.

Delaney Crawford – Quarterback

Corona Senior High School – Corona, California – 6-3 180

247 Composite Rating: 3 Stars (.8204)

Power Five Offers: Virginia

FCS Offers: Morgan State, Missouri State, Sam Houston

Expectation: Late Career Impact

Crawford was a late addition to the UVA recruiting class. The signal caller from California is likely due for a position switch after a courtesy look at QB.

Instead, while watching his UVA highlights above or his senior year Hudl highlights, focus on Crawford’s speed and athleticism. There’s been some talk about Crawford moving to defensive back. But that kind of speed also plays really well on offense. In the old regime, he’d also be an obvious candidate to carry on the legacy at the Football Player position.

As the Hoos transition from Bronco Mendenhall to Tony Elliott, an increase in athleticism across the board is needed. In that vein, Crawford is a worthy roll of the dice. Just have a little patience while his best position on the field is found and allow for a learning curve there.

Karson Gay – Tight End

Boyd-Buchanan School – Chattanooga, Tennessee – 6-6.5 226

247 Composite Rating: 3 Stars (.8626)

Power Five Offers: Virginia, Arkansas, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Ole Miss, Pitt, Purdue, Tennessee, USC, Virginia Tech

Other FBS Offers: BYU, Florida Atlantic, Tulane

FCS Offers: Eastern Kentucky

Expectation: Mid Career Impact

Gay signed at UVA as a tight end. Chances are he’ll stay on offense at UVA under Tony Elliott. However, it’s more than likely that Elliott will use the tight end position in a manner similar to Clemson’s H-Back. The position often lines up in the backfield or just behind the line of scrimmage to function as a lead blocker in the running game. They’re often used in motion in the offense too.

Gay should have no problem adapting to those responsibilities. His highlights, especially those on Hudl, show the requisite athleticism for the position. It’s also nice to see some highlights of him blocking and playing defense. They reveal some tenacity and toughness. As a pass catcher, Gay looks to have nice hands and does a nice job tracking the ball in flight.

There’s no tight end / H-Back of the future currently on UVA’s roster. That gives Gay a chance to compete for playing time earlier in his career. However, there will be several options with at least a year, if not more, in a college level strength and conditioning program. Gay definitely needs to add mass and strength for the college game. As a result, expect Gay to bide his time before he takes his shot at rising to the top of the depth chart.

Davis Lane – Quarterback (January Enrollee)

Liberty Christian Academy – Lynchburg, Virginia – 6-1 184

247 Composite Rating: 3 Stars (.8560)

Power Five Offers: Virginia

Other FBS Offers: Army, UMass, Navy, Old Dominion, Utah State

FCS Offers: Columbia, Dartmouth, Georgetown, Harvard, Penn

Expectation: Late Career Impact

Of the two quarterbacks signed by the Hoos in December, Lane is the most likely to stick at the position. And to be honest, he looked better than I anticipated in his highlights.

Lane’s Hudl highlights (I recommend the 2021 Season – First Three Games clips), do a nice job of showcasing his skills. He’s got plus athleticism for the position and outstanding speed as evidenced by his track and field exploits (VA 2021 55 meters state champion, for example). He also shows some comfort throwing the ball on the move.

Lane’s high school offense looks to do a nice job getting him experience both under center and in the shotgun. He’ll be in shotgun most of the time in the UVA offense, but any quarterback needs to be comfortable taking snaps under center for short yardage situations. It’s an overlooked skill with the advent of spread offenses where quarterbacks are rarely under center.

Like nearly all high school quarterbacks transitioning to college, Lane will need to adjust to the speed of the college game. That’s a given for all but the most exceptional prospects. But I’d like to see Lane work hard on improving both his arm strength and accuracy. He’s likely a project at the college level and those look to be the two areas where he can improve his skillset the most.

The future of the quarterback position beyond Brennan Armstrong will be in a state of flux. Currently, only Jay Woolfolk has any sort of experience on the field. There’s no one on scholarship behind Armstrong and Woolfolk currently. The Hoos do have a quarterback committed in the 2023 recruiting class currently in South Carolina native LaNorris Sellers. But look for the Hoos to try to add a multi-year transfer to the roster as well for the added security and competition.

Davis does have starting quarterback potential if his talents continue to progress. But that’s likely to come later in his career in my estimation.

Trey McDonald – Linebacker

Baylor School – Chattanooga, Tennessee – 6-4 212

247 Composite Rating: 3 Stars (.8410)

Power Five Offers: Virginia

Other FBS Offers: Navy

FCS Offers: Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn, William & Mary, Austin Peay

Expectation: Early Career Impact

The Hoos found a hard-nosed linebacker that clearly loves to play the game in McDonald. His senior season Hudl highlights are well worth the watch. McDonald is physical and hits like a ton of bricks.

He should arrive at UVA physically ready to play. He often looks like a man among boys in his highlights with his motor and physicality.

And his transition to the college game will be aided by the fact the he actually played linebacker in high school instead of having to play with his hand in the dirt because of his size and physical skills.

McDonald will have to adjust to the speed of the college game and the athleticism possessed by the players on college offenses. But once he finds his spot in the yet to be revealed Tony Elliott / John Rudzinski defense, he should catch up quickly. McDonald is likely to be an asset in the run defense and special teams pretty quickly.

Dakota (Dak) Twitty – Wide Receiver

Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy – Columbus, North Carolina – 6-5 213

247 Composite Rating: 4 Stars (.9011)

Power Five Offers: Virginia, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisville, North Carolina, NC State, Ole Miss, Pitt, Wake Forest, West Virginia

Other FBS Offers: Appalachian State, Liberty, Old Dominion

FCS Offers: Alabama A&M, East Tennessee State, Towson, Yale

Expectation: Instant Impact

Smooth and effortless are the words that come to mind when viewing Twitty’s performance in his senior season Hudl highlights. It’s clear that he’s ready for the next level of football as high school is too easy for him now.

Twitty shows impressive hands, both on offense and as a defender. There are highlights where he tips passes to himself for an interception or jumps in the throwing lane at the line of scrimmage for the pick. And as a wide receiver, his hands are reliable and confident.

He’ll be physically ready to play from day one at UVA. Picking up the nuances of the offense will be his biggest challenge. But a talented and crowded wide receiver room at UVA will also be something to watch. The Hoos, however, have shown the ability and willingness to fast track talented receivers as soon as they arrive on Grounds.

Don’t look for Twitty to be a starter out the gate. But he’ll find his way into the rotation while giving Brennan Armstrong another talented weapon to work with in the passing game.

Sean Wilson – Wide Receiver

Canarsie High School – Brooklyn, New York – 6-5 214

247 Composite Rating: 3 Stars (.8365)

Power Five Offers: Virginia, Arizona State, Kentucky, Miami, Oregon, Tennessee, Virginia Tech

Other FBS Offers: UMass

Expectation: Mid Career Impact

Wilson sustained a knee injury that required surgery during his senior season of high school football. That will likely set him back as a first year at UVA.

For his football development, that may not be the worst thing in the world. As mentioned above with Dak Twitty, the UVA wide receiver room is deep and talented. In Twitty and returning players Lavel Davis and Malachi Fields, the Hoos have several players with similar but more advanced skills at this point in their respective careers.

Wilson, however, shows in his Hudl highlights that he’s fairly proficient already at using his size to his advantage in the passing game. Working through the different highlight clips, it was encouraging to see Wilson running more routes than just fly patterns, fades, and catching jump balls.

While completing his knee rehab, the Hoos will likely look for Wilson to add some additional weight and definitely additional strength. Without the added pressure of having to prepare to play in games this season, assuming a redshirt, Wilson has a real opportunity to shape himself into an early contributor for the 2023 season.

UVA and Coach Hagans have turned unheralded receivers with large frames like Lavel Davis and Malachi Fields into quick contributors in the passing game. Because of that, I wouldn’t bet against the same eventuality for Wilson. But the expectation, due to his injury, rawness, and need for more size and strength is that he’ll do a little marinating out of the spotlight before appearing on the scene.

Bonus Transfer Addition

The Hoos hit the transfer portal to land a commitment from Michigan State defensive lineman Jack Camper just days before school restarts at the conclusion of winter break. Like Devin Chandler above, the recruiting info on Camper is as a high school prospect. The physical attributes are those listed on his roster profile at Michigan State.

Jack Camper – Defensive Line – Michigan State Transfer (January Enrollee)

IMG Academy – Bradenton, FL – 6-5 250

247 Composite Rating: 3 Stars (.8529)

Power Five Offers: Michigan State, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisville, Nebraska, Purdue

Other FBS Offers: Florida Atlantic, Southern Miss, UCF

Note that above is based on Camper’s high school recruiting profile.

Expectation: Instant Impact

Camper enters UVA with two seasons of eligibility per reports. The Virginia Beach native (Cox High School) transferred to IMG Academy in Florida for the last two seasons of his high school career before signing with Michigan State as a tight end. A position change and missed season due to injury later, Camper entered the transfer portal with the thought of finishing his college career closer to home.

With a clear need for defensive lineman due to graduation and their own transfer issues, the Hoos were a logical landing place for Camper. Due to the need and his game ready frame, Camper will be in the defensive line rotation immediately.

The newest Hoo played in 27 career games for Michigan State. He totaled 29 career tackles (9 solo, 20 assisted) while recovering a fumble. Camper made 4.5 tackles for loss including 1 sack during his time in East Lansing.

 

 

 

 

 

By Karl Hess

UVA sports fan since the mid 80s. Graduated from UVA in 2000. Currently residing in Virginia Beach. Also not the hoops ref.

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