Class Of 2015 TE Chris Cunningham Commits to Virginia Tech
By Tim Thomas
Dec 31, 2013; El Paso, TX, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies tight end Kalvin Cline (93) makes a catch and gets away from UCLA Bruins safety Randall Goforth (3) during the first quarter in the 2013 Sun Bowl at Sun Bowl Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
The Virginia Tech Hokies entered the month of August with a solid recruiting class with a lot of solid committed on the defensive side of the ball. However, the Hokies have struggled recruiting offensive players with only one offensive commit for the Class of 2015 in RB Deshawn McClease entering the month of August. The Hokies have now doubled their number of offensive commits and this is the tweet from the Hokies’ newest commit.
Of course, there might be some fans that are annoyed by how Cunningham calls Virginia Tech “Virginia Tech University” but what matters is that Cunningham is now committed to attend Virginia Tech and teaching him how it’s Virginia Tech won’t take long. However, the main thing is that the Hokies have found another solid tight end.
Chris Cunningham is a three-star tight end from Atlantic Coast High School in Jacksonville, Florida so it is very appropriate that Cunningham has chosen to play in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Cunningham is ranked as the 38th best tight end by the 247 Sports Composite and the 54th best by 247 Sports’ traditional rankings. Cunningham is also ranked as the 151st best player in the state of Florida by the 247 Sports Composite, 191st by the 247 Sports traditional rankings, and 93rd by ESPN.
The comeback the Hokies made to get Cunningham is quite impressive as Cunningham declared Louisville the leader in his recruiting on July 25th. However, the Hokies must have had one great visit when Cunningham came to Blacksburg on July 27th before choosing the Hokies over the Cardinals yesterday.
His tape shows that as a blocker, Cunningham is a very scrappy player that has good technique and is an above-average blocker most of the time. However, Cunningham pushes it too far and has some holds that will be called at the collegiate level and need to be fixed.
Cunningham also has average speed and seems to be a good route runner that can do some damage on short passes. Cunningham also seems like a player that can be relied on as someone that the quarterback can dump the ball off to when the pressure is just about to get to him.
Chris Cunningham is a solid addition but the 6-3, 225 pound tight end doesn’t seem to have great upside due to how many top tight ends are around 6-5 to 6-7. However, Cunningham has the skills to be a good blocking tight end and a decent receiver for the Hokies.