Virginia Tech Football Recruiting Notes 6/9/22

Things have been picking up on the recruiting trail with Virginia Tech hosting numerous visits and getting ready for their biggest visit weekend of the year outside of maybe the Spring Game to date, and a whole lot more happening surrounding Hokies recruiting.

So with that said, here are our latest Virginia Tech football recruiting notes.

3* OL Layth Ghannam

Three-star OL Layth Ghannam out of West Virginia has been one of Joe Rudolph's top OL targets ever since his arrival in Blacksburg and early 2022 offer to Ghannam. Since then, Rudolph has put the Hokies in a strong position for Ghannam, but there's been plenty of competition from West Virginia and North Carolina who have both hosted Ghannam on officials with his trip to Tech looming later this month.

The good news for the Hokies is that they seem to have all the momentum with many being potentially caught by surprised as numerous analysts have put in predictions for Ghannam to land at Virginia Tech especially via the 247 Sports' Crystal Ball.

So is it just hype or is there deep substance to the Ghannam to Virginia Tech talk?

From what I've been hearing from a source connected well in that part of the country, there is absolutely substance to it with plenty of talk that the Hokies are the favorites to land Ghannam. If I had one of those recruiting sites' prediction votes, I would be casting it for the Hokies currently.

There also appears to be a possibility that Ghannam may make a trip to Tech next week before his official visit currently scheduled on the fourth weekend of June.

If that isn't simply a reschedule of his official visit up a week, then that's another strong sign that the Hokies are the favorites to land him. Additionally, Ghannam was supposed to take an official to N.C. State that weekend according to 247 Sports so if he's visiting Blacksburg that weekend, it would seem to be a strong indication of the Hokies' standing relative to the rest of the competition for Ghannam.

If he does choose Tech, this will in part be another example of Joe Rudolph's recruiting prowess especially for offensive linemen he prioritizes like Ghannam which showed during his Spring Game visit just a couple months ago.

Plenty of things can change, and you know that both West Virginia and North Carolina will keep pushing hard for someone who all three schools are very interested in. But the Hokies are definitely the frontrunners at the moment.

3* DT Ayobami Tifase

Virginia Tech hosted three-star DT Ayobami Tifase on campus for an official visit during the first part of the weekend with Tifase telling us midway through that he was having an "awesome" visit with his tweet after it confirming that further.

Tech previously made the top 4 for Tifase though and clearly made a strong impression on him as he gets his official visits going. He is taking his officials in quick succession as he is currently visiting Arkansas before taking an official to Florida State this weekend. UCONN also made his top 4 though it's unclear if he has plans to visit Storrs or not.

One of the interesting things with Tifase is the fact that he apparently could reclassify into the 2022 class and enroll this summer. He definitely has the size to do so at 6'4'' and 300 pounds which is a plus for schools who may want to bring him in as part of their 2022 class.

That could be an option for Tifase with the Hokies given the recent decommitment of Rashaud Pernell that left a likely DT opening along the defensive line relative to what Tech had signed this past cycle.

Tifase is definitely one of Tech's top defensive line but the Hokies have plenty of stiff competition for the Towson, MD standout. However, if Tech can beat out the Razorbacks, Seminoles, and Huskies for him; it would be a quality recruiting victory for Tech and especially DL coach J.C. Price.

RB Kyron Jones

Elsewhere, Virginia Tech is continuing to evaluate prospects to make sure they don't miss an underrated gem even if they have higher targets that still may remain the priority regardless of whether the Hokies or not.

However, Charlotte, NC RB Kyron Jones is ready to visit Virginia Tech with plans to camp for the Hokies on June 17th after having a conversation recently with offensive graduate assistant Austin Fields.

This comes as Jones has seen a surge of interest recently with numerous new offers headlined by Iowa State plus Colorado State, Old Dominion, Army, Kent State, and Middle Tennessee among FBS schools since mid May. That corresponds with right after he ran an insane 10.6 100 meter dash time showing that he has the type of speed that you want at the highest levels of college football.

Jones may not only have a future as a college football player, but also as a track & field sprinter if he so chooses. Regardless, Jones has the type of speed that definitely will get coaches and will have some considering offering and trying to land him first, and then figure out where they can use that speed later.

Keep an eye on Jones as one of the most intriguing talents who will be looking to earn an offer from the Hokies later this month.