Tahj Capehart commits to the Hokies

Good news, Hokie Fans, it’s time to gain a consensus four-star recruit! That’s right, the somewhat enigmatic recruitment of Tahj Capehart, wide receiver for Bishop Sullivan (Formerly of Ocean Lakes and Lakeland) ended today…hopefully not just for now…with him committing to Virginia Tech. Capehart has a LOT of solid offers. Maryland, Alabama, Georgia, Nebraska, North Carolina, Penn State, Tennessee, West Virginia, South Carolina- Basically, everyone worth anything on the East Coast or South (and some elsewhere) wanted Capehart. And we landed him. Capehart now joins Sean Savoy, Hezekiah Grimsley, Kalil Pimpleton, and either Caleb Farley or Malik Willis as the members of the receiving corps of 2017. As I said, he’s the first (Well, second, if you count Tyjuan Garbutt prior to his decommitment) consensus four star of the class. He’s also another addition from the newly formed superpower of Bishop Sullivan in a three year period (Tayvion Land in the class of 2019 is the other). This is big, guys, let’s not beat around the bush. Not just because Capehart is a talented wide receiver, but he’s a strike at trying to break the poor streak of Virginia Tech in the 757 area when it comes to major talent. I’m not going to be overly rosy, there’s still work to be done, but between Land and Capehart (and hopefully 2017 safety recruit Devon Hunter and others down the line), Tech is starting to get back into the headspace of the Beach area crowd, especially at the upper echelons. He’s also another Thoroughbred, which, again, would not have happened in recent years. Some of the rifts are beginning to close, which can only mean good things.

Anyhow, to the tape, then!

Tahj Capehart (Virginia Beach, VA. 178lbs, 5’-10”. Wide Receiver)

Capehart plays both corner and wide receiver, but I’m going to concentrate on his tape as the latter, because that’s where he’s supposed to end up- though his defensive tape isn’t that bad. Rivals has him rated as an athlete for this reason instead of as a wide receiver. Capehart brings very good athleticism to the position, in both speed and agility. He’s very shifty and hard to tackle, not to mention that he’s pretty fast, too. He’s good at anticipating the ball, both on offense and on defense, and runs a variety of route packages already, which is good prep for the college level. He does a little too much body catching for my liking, but that can be taught away. You can’t teach his high level speed, agility, and especially balance. With him you’re buying on a bit of a project, but one with obvious upside- if you can get him to not body catch as much, you’re getting a very contribution ready level player as a freshman.

Welcome to the #Statement17, Tahj!