Photo Credit: Harley Taylor
Three-star CB Ryan Barnes out of Gaithersburg, Maryland has emerged as not only a top cornerback target for Virginia Tech, but also for many schools across the country. That shows in the long list of schools that Barnes tells us are in contact with him often from all parts of the country, all of which have offered him.
"USC, Notre Dame, Michigan, Penn State, Clemson, Tennessee, South Carolina, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Duke, Oklahoma, Florida State, Louisville, Texas Tech, Kentucky... it’s tough leaving anyone off because I’m receiving a lot of mail and either text/call, Twitter message from most of the schools almost everyday," Barnes said.
Barnes is currently hearing often from a trio of Virginia Tech coaches and clearly sees that the Hokies are prioritizing him based on the interest they're showing him.
"I hear from them consistently. Coach (Justin) Fuente, Coach (Ryan) Smith & Coach (Jafar) Williams are doing a great job recruiting me," Barnes said.
Those three coaches make sense for being in regular contact with a priority like Barnes as you have the head coach (Fuente), his potential college position coach (Smith), and his area recruiter (Williams).
Barnes told us that he has good relationships with all three coaches. That includes his area recruiter, WRs coach Jafar Williams, who he talks with the most, conversations which go beyond football.
"It’s great, I talk with him the most and we talk about family, ball, and school," Barnes said about his relationship with Williams.
Overall, Virginia Tech is currently in a good position in Barnes' recruitment as he described to us on where VT stands in his recruitment.
"I have interest in Virginia Tech. The coaching staff has done a great job connecting me to the program & I definitely want to visit campus," Barnes said.
Ryan Barnes was previously scheduled to take a mid-March unofficial visit to Blacksburg which would have been his first trip to Virginia Tech. Looking ahead, it'll be important to get Barnes on campus in order for them to continue to improve their chances.
Barnes also has an idea of when he wants to have a decision at the latest, but also feels that a decision could come earlier based on his current recruiting timeline
"I’m in the process of going through my offer list with what information I have now, but I’m hoping to get the chance to visits schools soon. Because I’m thankfully dealing with this process daily, a decision could come at any point. Goal is by August," Barnes said on his timeline for making a decision.
Overall, Virginia Tech has plenty of work ahead in their pursuit of Ryan Barnes and will likely need to get him on campus for a visit should that opportunity be available this summer (though Latrell Neville and Tyas Martin prove that isn't always necessary). Regardless, it's clear that the Hokies are contenders for a cornerback with a loaded offer list that suggests recruiting sites and rankings are overlooking him.
