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With 10 days left until Virginia Tech takes the field against Appalachian State, we turn our attention to one of our new true freshmen on roster, Mr. Darius Redman. Through two scrimmages, I have to admit that I’m impressed with the two tight ends the Hokies added in the 2011 class. Both Ryan Malleck and Redman have bright futures ahead of them and could even play this year if needed. Right now, Redman is a much more capable blocker than receiver. He has a huge frame and seems to have enough strength to play this fall. He still needs to work on his route running and quickness but that will come in time. With a likely redshirt year approaching, Redman should be able to return next spring with a little more bulk and challenge for the starting tight end job that will be up for grabs.
Stats
Height: 6’5”
Weight: 248 lbs
Position: Tight End
Year: Freshman
High School: HD Woodson High School
How Did He Get Here
Despite having two teammates headed to Virginia Tech, Redman verballed to UVA last spring. After some persuasion by his teammates though, Redman finally realized that UVA sucks at football and decided to come play for a winning team instead. Smart move kid.
2010 Season
Redman caught 25 passes for 337 yards and five touchdowns last season at HD Woodson.
2011 Prospectus
The Hokies seem to have a solid three at tight end this season with George George seeing some playing time as well in certain packages. That depth should allow Malleck and Redman to redshirt this season. One of those two might travel with the team as an emergency backup but odds are both will sit out their first season here in Blacksburg.
From a physical standpoint, it’s hard not to like what Redman brings to the table. In a few years, he should be up to 270 pounds and still have enough speed to be a receiving tight end. While I don’t expect him to be the next Antonio Gates, Redman could end up being a three year starter here at Virginia Tech if the chips fall right. He does need to work on his pass catching abilities. He’s not the swiftest guy in and out of his breaks but possesses enough quickness and athletic ability to not get moved inside to tackle in the future. After a semester in Coach Gentry’s “I will yell at you until you lift this thing above your head” weight system, I’m looking forward to seeing how Redman develops over the next eight months.
Career Highlight
Switching from UVA to VT. Seriously, just from a “bling” perspective, this was a good move. Think of how many bowl and ACC Championship rings you’ll have now that you signed with VT.
Career Lowlight
Having to redshirt his first year on campus.
Look A-Like
Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson
Completely made up fact
Washington D.C. is a tough area to grow up in. Dave Chappelle explains it the best.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
What exactly is Wes Brown’s plan? I thought he was a Miami lean from the start. I wonder if the Miami investigations are turning some of these recruits away. Where exactly do we stand with Wes Brown? And should we start to look at some of these recruits? I mean if they accepted money from booster to join Miami and things are going sour and they decide to consider other schools, should we look at some of these kids? It would bring down our program as a whole.
You are assuming a lot there. Shapiro has been in jail for 3 years and none of the freshmen or sophomores at Miami have been questioned, so this was something that ended with Shapiro going to jail. Brown hasn’t accepted any money and he’s not going to Miami. I really don’t know where he’ll end up, just have to wait and see where he takes officials.
Where do we stand with Yuri Wright? And is he interested in us? Is he taking a official visit to us?
There’s no interest in either party on this one. Hasn’t been for quite some time.