WHO WON THE STATE?

Coaches around the Commonwealth weren’t shy last week about that same, familiar sentiment often remembered annually when National Signing Day rolls around.

“It’s been a point of emphasis since I arrived,” Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall said, “even though the numbers haven’t always reflected it. We start every single year – and have since I’ve been the coach – in state.”

James Madison coach Curt Cignetti said: “This is a great recruiting state, a great FCS recruiting state and a great FBS recruiting state. There are a lot of players here and we could probably fill our entire class with players from the state of Virginia, so we don’t want to overlook a single prospect in Virginia.”

Cliché, maybe, but there’s a need for Mendenhall, Cignetti or any of the other eight coaches leading Division I programs in Virginia to remark regarding their staff’s interest for prospects within the state’s borders. They compete with each other for players and their schools have various attractive selling points.

The Cavaliers are improved under Mendenhall, with last year’s Atlantic Coast Conference Coastal Division crown and an appearance in the Orange Bowl to prove it. Virginia Tech beat UVa to wrap up the pandemic-impacted campaign and Hokies coach Justin Fuente has some security following athletic director Whit Babcock’s decision last week to keep Fuente in place for at least another year.

Beyond the pair of Power Five schools, Liberty, led by former Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze, had its most successful campaign since jumping from the FCS to FBS independence. The Flames were 9-1 this fall, beat Virginia Tech and Syracuse in the process, and earned a berth to the Cure Bowl this Saturday.

JMU didn’t play this fall, but its brand is well received throughout the state because of its three FCS national championship game appearances in the last four years, plus memorable victories against FBS foes over the last decade.

Old Dominion, like JMU, wasn’t a fall participant, but it has a fresh feel with former Penn State offensive coordinator Ricky Rahne at the helm of the Monarchs. And second-year William & Mary coach Mike London maintains strong relationships with prep coaches in different parts of Virginia from his six seasons leading UVa and winning the 2008 FCS championship while at Richmond.

So, any battle won for one of the state’s high school stars in this 2021 recruiting cycle didn’t come easy.

Of the classes inked and announced this past Wednesday, UVa’s nine signees from Virginia were the most for any school in the state. JMU added the highest percentage of signees from Virginia in its class. Eight of the Dukes’ 12 (67 percent) are Virginia natives.

Here’s a closer look at how the state’s programs fared while recruiting their own backyard:

Signees From Va.: 9

Percentage Of Class From Va.: 37% (9/24)

Synopsis: Mendenhall and his staff broke through in Virginia, signing more players from the Commonwealth in the 2021 class than the their three previous classes combined.

“What we are finding is that with the consistency of the program,” Mendenhall said, “the consistency of the direction, it just is over time, and trust is built with time, that’s one of the components. The needle is moving, the tipping point is arriving, and the swing is starting.”

The Cavaliers landed five of Rivals' top 25 rated players in Virginia including Life Christian Academy defensive end Bryce Carter, a four-star prospect and No. 7-rated player in the state, who had other offers from Florida, Liberty, Maryland, Penn State and Virginia Tech. Mendenhall’s staff also found value in Charlottesville, signing Monticello wide receiver Malachi Fields and The Covenant School defensive back Jonas Sanker.

Signees From Va.: 8

Percentage Of Class From Va.: 67% (8/12)

Synopsis: JMU tries to separate itself from the other schools in the state with one fact.

“There are very few schools in the country that can win the national championship year in and year out,” Cignetti said. “Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, North Dakota State and JMU … that’s definitely in our pitch.”

Signees of the Dukes always mention that, too, and they can recall watching JMU’s meetings with North Dakota State on TV. It’s familiar to prospects and some want to be part of it.

Cignetti and company did extremely well in northern Virginia during this cycle. They corralled Stone Bridge linebacker Skylar Martin and Battlefield linebacker Matt Binkowski, each three-star prospects. Martin had notable offers from UVa, Vanderbilt and Louisville, and Binkowski netted 25 total offers. Also from northern Virginia, JMU signed Lake Braddock wide receiver Maxwell James and Tuscarora defensive end Matei Fitz.

Signees From Va.: 6

Percentage Of Class From Va.: 24% (6/25)

Synopsis: Fuente kept a familiar name for Hokies fans with Virginia Tech by signing Patriot defensive back Jalen Stroman, the younger brother of ex-Tech standout Greg Stroman who is now with the Washington Football Team.

“Jalen and that family, they’re incredible now,” Fuente said. “Obviously Greg was a great player here and loves this place, but we are so honored the Stroman family trusts us for Jalen to come here and blaze his own path.”

Just within the state, Stroman had other opportunities from UVa, JMU, ODU and Richmond. Beyond Stroman, Virginia Tech signed highly sought Christchurch School wide receiver DJ Sims.

Signees From Va.: 5

Percentage Of Class From Va.: 56% (5/9)

Synopsis: VMI coach Scott Wachenheim thrived during the early signing period, with more than half of his team’s signees coming from Virginia.

Spotsylvania’s Ty-Shaun Colbert headlines the group after rushing for 1,356 yards and 18 touchdowns as a junior last fall. Colbert is one of two Keydets signees from Fredericksburg along with Colonial Forge defensive back Noel Innocent.

Signees From Va.: 5

Percentage Of Class From Va.: 28% (5/18)

Synopsis: Old Dominion actually did better in Maryland than it did in Virginia, signing six from Maryland and five from Virginia. In ODU’s haul from within the state’s borders, the Monarchs landed two-star offensive lineman Stephon Dubose of Indian River High School. His other suitors were East Carolina, Georgia Tech, JMU, Marshall, North Carolina A&T and Tennessee.

Signees From Va.: 2

Percentage Of Class From Va.: 67% (2/3)

Synopsis: Like some FCS programs, Norfolk State will be waiting until February’s traditional signing date to officially put together the bulk of its recruiting class. But of the three prospects coach Latrell Scott signed last week, two were offensive linemen from Virginia – Ocean Lakes’ Shawn Fahey and Chancellor’s Andrew Nickens.

Signees From Va.: 2

Percentage Of Class From Va.: 29% (2/7)

Synopsis: London nabbed a pair of players from the state during the early signing period, inking Abingdon running back Martin Lucas and Ocean Lakes defensive back David Roulley. Lucas was previously committed to Arizona State, is ranked the 36th best player in Virginia and is a three-star prospect.

Signees From Va.: 2

Percentage Of Class From Va.: 11% (2/18)

Synopsis: Perhaps Liberty begins to see its on-field success translate to recruiting wins in Virginia during the next cycle, because Freeze was only able to land two Virginia natives in this class. He signed Princess Anne defensive lineman Marquise Brunson and Kettle Run offensive lineman Andrew Adair.

Signees From Va.: 1

Percentage Of Class From Va.: 12% (1/8)

Synopsis: Richmond traditionally has done better in the state than it did in the early part of this cycle. The Spiders’ lone signee from the state in this class currently is Sherando’s Keith Gouvevia, an offensive lineman.

Signees From Va.: 0

Percentage Of Class From Va.: 0%

Synopsis: The Pirates didn’t announce any signees on Wednesday.

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As a side note, the schools outside Virginia that did well in the state include Pittsburgh, Oklahoma, Louisiana-Monroe, Towson and Delaware. Pittsburgh signed four of Rivals’ top 20 players within the state and Oklahoma inked two of the top six prospects from Virginia. More than 20 percent of the early signing date classes for Louisiana-Monroe, Towson and Delaware came from Virginia.

The recruiting winners within the state through the early signing period are clear, though. UVa performed best of the FBS programs and JMU did a better job recruiting in the state than the rest of its fellow FCS schools in addition to most of the FBS teams.