Photo Credit: Harley Taylor
Virginia Tech extended a pair of offers to 2022 defensive ends in Indiana last week including one to 2022 four-star DE Joe Strickland.
Blessed to receive an offer Virgina Tech! thanks to @BillTeerlinck and staff. #hokies @RobertMathis98 @gridiron_gang_ @SWiltfong247 @JoshHelmholdt pic.twitter.com/GMDKLgcuXs
— Joe Strickland. (@J3stripe) July 23, 2020
Strickland had this to say about his reaction after receiving a Virginia Tech offer from defensive line coach Bill Teerlinck.
"It was pretty nice honestly. It came out of nowhere and I am glad to have such a high status defensive line coach give me the opportunity to play there!" Strickland said.
His conversation last Thursday went well with Teerlinck as a whole with a conversation happening the day before and two days later as Strickland told us last Friday.
"It was a pretty good conversation and I’m calling coach back tomorrow (7/25) so that’ll be the third time we’ve spoken this week. I’m looking forward to getting a connection with him. They focus highly on my major school wise and that would be a nice thing to do. They’re improving as a program and I look forward to visiting as soon as possible," Strickland said.
Strickland fits the mold of larger defensive ends that Virginia Tech has been targeting at 6'4'' and 245 pounds according to 247 Sports. The fact that he's that size already is tremendous with Strickland likely having some room to grow even more. He also has spent some time playing at defensive tackle as well for his high school team with his combination of versatility and size being similar to Kelvin Gilliam.
Additionally, Joe Strickland was quite productive for a sophomore in high school last season as he told us that he "had around 12 sacks" and 30 total tackles this past fall. Unsurprisingly, that has Strickland not only earning four-star ratings but also plenty of quality offers from Michigan, Penn State, Michigan State, Kentucky, Minnesota, and others in addition to the Hokies.
Overall, the Tech offer has made an impact on Strickland's recruitment with him telling us that he is looking forward to learning more about Virginia Tech.
"This affects my recruitment just by adding another one I’m definitely interested in. Looking forward to connecting with the staff and researching the school as a whole."
