The Virginia Tech Hokies’ Battle for Kevin Bronson

Nov 30, 2013; Charlottesville, VA, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies defensive coordinator Bud Foster (left) talks to his players against the Virginia Cavaliers in the third quarter at Scott Stadium. The Hokies won 16-6. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Derrick Nnadi and the numerous amount of current Virginia Tech commits for the Class of 2014 may have headlined this weekend for the Virginia Tech football program but the Hokies had three players, including Nnadi, that are currently uncommitted visiting this weekend. Kevin Bronson did not have an offer from the Hokies less than a week ago but now, Virginia Tech will be hoping that his official visit this past weekend will seal the deal and bring him from Florida to Blacksburg. Frank Beamer has a history of getting a lot of the players that he wants from Florida to come from Virginia Tech and Bronson is the latest recruit the Hokies are targeting from the Sunshine State.

Kevin Bronson is a three-star athlete by Rivals, 247 Sports, and ESPN that seems likely to be a defensive end for the Hokies or whatever he ends up committing to. The Hokies have already Class of 2014 defensive end Vincent Mihota enroll early while Melvin Keihn is likely to be a linebacker which is where he really should be. Bronson was not always a top target for the Hokies but the scholarship offer he received shows that the Hokies have him as one of their top targets. Bronson is also a quality student that should easily qualify, especially since Vanderbilt is willing to offer him a scholarship despite their tough academic restrictions that includes no exceptions.

Virginia Tech entered the weekend in the lead for Bronson and the scholarship offer along with the visit has probably boosted that lead by a decent amount but it hasn’t been enough to get him to commit just yet. Vanderbilt just recently put a scholarship offer on the table and is a team to watch as they will clearly have a lot of momentum as they try to get him, especially with new head coach Derek Mason. South Carolina and Florida both do not have official visits scheduled like Vanderbilt and while all three SEC schools are potential threats, none of them seem to be very likely to be where Bronson plays his college football.

Rutgers had Bronson make his official visit back in December and while Rutgers might see him as one of their top targets, the fact that Rutgers already has two defensive ends committed, Bronson’s likely position, makes it unlikely that Rutgers will end up with him. Before Bronson made his official visit to Virginia Tech, Bronson went to South Florida and the proximity to home may really help South Florida but the Bulls already have two defensive end commits. The Bulls do not have a great chance at getting Bronson but they could be the school that pulls a surprise and gets Bronson due to the proximity to home for Bronson.

The number one threat to the Hokies is Nebraska who only have one defensive end committed and a program that has a lot of history like Virginia Tech. The Cornhuskers will have Bronson come to Lincoln this upcoming weekend and the fact that Nebraska has been chasing the Hokies for a while along with how the Cornhuskers have the last visit has to concern some Virginia Tech fans. The Hokies are still the frontrunners for Bronson but Nebraska has a chance to shrink the Hokies’ lead or eliminate it completely in what should be a very interesting and tight recruiting battle.