Mother's Day was quite good for the Virginia Tech Hokies as they added a commitment from four-star WR Darryle Simmons out of Philadelphia. Simmons was a big get for the Hokies as a four-star recruit by ESPN and Rivals with 247 Sports and the 247 Sports Composite having him as a high three-star recruit as well. Simmons became the Hokies' second WR commit along with the second commit from the state of Pennsylvania alongside three-star DB commit Nasir Peoples.
Simmons flew largely under-the-radar among all covering Virginia Tech, but is undoubtedly a big get for the Hokies and becomes face of a class that is off to a strong start with a great foundation early on including guys like QB Quincy Patterson, athlete DeJuan Ellis, and WR Bryce Thompson.
Simmons is a very intriguing talent as a big receiver at 6'2'' and over 200 pounds while there is no doubt that Simmons is an outside receiver, something that seems to be a high priority in this class for the Hokies. Simmons definitely has the strength to jump up to the next level of competition and deal with the physicality that any college football player must be able to handle to have success.
Simmons isn't afraid of contact and is definitely a willing blocker that isn't afraid to get into it with cornerbacks when trying to create space on the outside for his tailback. Simmons is also a plenty capable blocker that is definitely effective at clearing defensive backs out-of-the-way and get that final block that can turn a long run into a touchdown.
Simmons is a smooth route runner that does quite well at changing directions when running post or flag routes and does great at getting the inside position on a DB when running routes over the middle of the field. Simmons also knows how to use his good footwork to create some space whether that be on deep routes or on curl routes while using his body to help screen defenders and give the quarterback an easy throw for a gain of at least several yards on those shorter curl and slant routes. Simmons's ability to change directions with relative ease and make solid quick cuts on sharper routes make him a player that should have a fairly high floor and make him hard to be a bust at the collegiate level.
Darryle Simmons has decent speed on the outside, but he is far from being a burner that will be able to blow the top off defenses with his speed. However, Simmons does have the route-running skills to create space on opposing DBs but he will need to get a little faster to make his solid route-running skills more effective at the next level and make it harder for DBs to get back in the play when a DB gets beat by Simmons.
Simmons seems to have solid hands while being able to make some catches on balls that are above his head. Judging a recruit's hands are hard to judge based on a high school highlight tape but there are no red flags we see with Simmons's ability o catch the ball with the catches that you want to see along with being able to win some 50-50 balls.
Simmons could definitely be a guy that breaks into the Hokies' WR rotation on the outside with a year or two of his arrival on campus as a physical outside receiver that should be able to produce in some capacity throughout his career in Blacksburg. Speed is the biggest weak spot with Simmons but the Philadelphia native is definitely quite talented with a fairly high football IQ and a great ability at making cuts or changing directions that will allow him to create space and make plays.
Darryle Simmons is a strong addition for a Virginia Tech class that is looking quite strong with 7 commits so far including a pair of Pennsylvania recruits.
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