Porch chooses Virginia Tech

Calhoun (Ga.) Gordon Central athlete Dorian Porch gave a verbal commitment to the Virginia Tech Hokies on Wednesday morning. Porch plays both quarterback and cornerback for his high school as well as returning kicks. A 5-foot-10, 183-pound speedster, Porch’s future with the Hokies more than likely lies in the secondary where he figures to be a shut down corner for Virginia Tech.

As a junior, Porch threw for over 1,000 yards and ran for another 500 from behind center. A solid contributor on defense, he intercepted four passes, returning two for touchdowns. He also returned two punts for scores in a junior campaign that earned him all area honors on defense and second team all-area honors as a quarterback.

“He leaves it all on the field,” explained Central Coach Bill Long. “He comes off the field for kickoffs, and that’s about it. He’s got tremendous speed and he’s a great decision maker on the field.”

At the Nike combine in Atlanta earlier this summer, Porch recorded times of 4.49 in the 40-yard dash and 4.32 in the shuttle. Long noted that in a stretch of eight games last year, Porch failed to throw one interception in a pro-style offense.

Rated the 36th best prospect in the state of Georgia by Rivals100.com, Porch chose the Hokies over offers from Kentucky, Vanderbilt, and Wisconsin and strong interest from Georgia, Georgia Tech and Wake Forest.

“He was torn between Virginia Tech and Georgia for about the last month and a half coming off his visit to Blacksburg,” admitted Long. “Georgia is tight on scholarships this year, so they really wanted to wait a while before they offered. Dorian felt really good about the visit to Tech, and when he had his mind made up that that is where he wanted to play his college ball, he made the call.”

Coach Long, a former assistant briefly at Florida State, likened Porch’s abilities to that of a young Anquan Boldin, and would rate him on par with some of the talent he saw in his years at Tallahassee.

“He’s a leader and a play-maker, and he deal well with adversity,” Long said. “There’s no telling how good he can be in college once he is focused on playing only one position instead of three.”

Coach Long spoke highly of Porch’s character off the field as well.

“He’s committed to success in whatever he does,” admitted Long. “You’ll be hard-pressed to find anyone in this school or in the community that has a negative thing to say about him. He’s a smart kid and a leader.”