McDaniel talks Hokies

After kicking off practices in preparation for the season, Virginia Tech brought in some big-time in-state recruits for visits this past weekend including Virginia Beach (Va.) Landstown receivers Damon McDaniel and Percy Harvin. At this point of the recruiting process, McDaniel appears to be more interested in the Hokies after already setting an official visit with them. What did he think about his unofficial visit to Blacksburg?

"It was nice, we didn't get to stay as long as I wanted to, but I had a good time when I was up there," he said. "I got to talk to a lot of the players including Jimmy Williams, Marcus Vick, Jeremy Gilchrist and James Anderson. We talked about football and regular stuff, they didn't hassle me about coming to the school. They sat down and told me to just stay focused and don't hang out with the wrong crowd.

"I also sat down with the coaches for one-on-ones as well. I sat down with coach Stinespring and talked about football and he talked about our relationship and how he sees me as a person and a football player. He also told me that he really wants me at Tech. I then sat down with coach Beamer and Stinespring and we had a good discussion, although it was kind of long."

The 6-foot-0, 192-pounder took in the defending ACC champions practice.

"They practice hard, but they just started and it seemed pretty relaxed still," he said. "They are really competitive in one-on-one drills though."

The No. 65 player in the country also got to see the campus for the first time.

"It was a nice campus and much bigger than I thought it would be," he said. "I thought it was a lot smaller, but everything on campus is a good traveling distance from classes, not too far and not too close. They also told us about how they have a good business program there too which is what I'm looking at majoring in."

Where does the visit put the Hokies in the race for the Rivals 100 star?

"They've never been off my list, so they are still in there with me."

McDaniel went on to discuss which two teams may get his final official visit.

"I'd say it's either Miami or Ohio State," he said. "I like them just by the level of competition at both schools. Of course I grew up a fan of Miami and I'd love to go to a Miami game, while the coaches at Ohio State seem really pumped up. We have good chemistry and they keep in touch a lot. They want me to come up for a visit."

The No. 3 player in Virginia is getting ready to start two-a-day practices tomorrow.

"I'm just trying to get back to a state championship this year," he said. "We need our new guys to come in and learn and then we just have to maintain our focus and we'll be fine."

McDaniel accounted for over 1,300 yards of offense and 21 touchdowns as he was named first team all-tidewater and first team all-district as a junior.