I think the social media campaign against VT football did more damage than many realize, in part because other coaches have used it against us. Throw in the fact that we have performed fairly poorly over the past decade. Many of these recruits were 7 years old the last time VT was a serious threat in college football. We are just not viewed by recruits the same way our football program is viewed by us fans. People are questioning what Fuente can accomplish at VT, and the recruits are being encouraged to question it as well. When Beamer was here, up until the last few down years as he approached retirement, no one questioned what he could accomplish, because he had a track record of success. The jury is still out on Fuente, and the top recruits aren't sure he is a good bet. A little success would go a long way to fixing this perception. The other thing that would help is some one on one time between the coaches and recruits. Unfortunately that is not going to happen with the virus. Just win. This is a big season coming up. Seven wins this year would be disaster, nine okay, ten needed to start righting the ship, and convince people we have the potential to be for real. A big win or two would help a lot. We need recruiters who are great salesmen. I like what I am seeing from Tapp. We also need some key wins on the recruiting trail to start some momentum, high profile wins, highly regarded recruits that can help change perception. There is still a long way to signing day, so I am still willing to wait and see. Not panicking yet, but I have to say I am pretty concerned. We cannot afford to have two down recruiting years in a row.

[Post edited by wwhokie1 at 06/08/2020 11:20AM]