Kite has strong ties to in-state school
Roanoke (Va.) Hidden Valley junior safety Jake Kite has major ties to one in-state school. The 6-foot-1, 180-pounder is receiving interest from that program as well as a few others early in the recruiting process.
"I bumped into a few coaches, Division I coaches recently, but I think coaches are going to start coming in more in the New Year," he said. "The schools I've talked to have been Old Dominion, VMI and Virginia. Maryland's coaches plan to come by sometime soon."
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One school, Kite has ties to is Virginia as his father played wide receiver and cornerback there in the 80's.
"My dad is Chris Kite, he played at Virginia," he said. "I'd say I like Virginia a lot. I have some background there since my dad played there and my brother is there now. He plays rugby."
There is more to Virginia than that though.
"It's a great school," he said. "My brother tells me it's tough academically, but I know Coach London is a nice guy and I'd like to go up and see a game."
As college interest begins to grow, Kite is looking for a few things in a school.
"I definitely would not pick a school just for the athletic part," he said. "I'd like to know there is a good school where I can make sure the coaches are the right fit for me. I know academics are important, but I don't know what I want to be later on."
On the field, Kite posted 149 tackles, 16 for loss and five interceptions as a junior while earning first team all-state and player of the year for the region.
"I did pretty well this season," he said. "I got a lot bigger in the offseason and my speed went up.
"I'm still trying to improve. I'm trying to get faster and bigger once wrestling season ends."
Kite is a top wrestler too in the 170-pound weight class as he finished last season ranked No. 6 in the state.
"I've talked to some coaches about wrestling, but I'd much rather play football."