Defensive tackle Jonathan Lewis, a key recruiting target for the 2002 recruiting class, will hold a press conference today at Varina High School in Richmond to announce his college choice. The press conference will be at 1:30 p.m., and Lewis, the brother of redshirt freshman defensive tackle Kevin Lewis, is expected to announce his intention to attend Virginia Tech.

Lewis (6-2, 290, 4.8 forty) is the #4-ranked player in the state of Virginia according to Doug Doughty of the Roanoke Times, and he is ranked the #6 player in the state in SuperPrep's just-released "All-America" issue (Jan. 15, 2002). Lewis is a four-star player in the Rivals.com ranking system, on a scale of 1-5 stars (as of January 22nd, there are only 37 five-star players in the country), and Rivals has also ranked him as the #10 defensive tackle in the nation.

Lewis has visited Penn State, Miami, Florida State, Virginia, and Virginia Tech, but he has steadfastly maintained throughout the entire process that he favors the Hokies. His opinion never changed after each and every visit. Lewis is stoic and a man of few words, and no matter what he saw and did during his recruiting trips, nothing seemed to sway him from his status as a Virginia Tech lean.

If and when Lewis commits to Virginia Tech, he will be the Hokies' highest-rated commitment to date. His announcement will get the ball rolling for a series of big announcements in the coming weeks, as the most highly sought-after and highest-rated players in the state start announcing their decisions.

In the state of Virginia, 7 of the top 9 players in the state (per Doughty) have not verbaled yet. #6 Thomas Clayton, a running back from Mount Vernon, verbaled to Florida State, and #7 Levi Brown, a DL from Granby in Norfolk verbaled to Penn State, but the remaining top 9 players are uncommitted (Virginia received a verbal from #10 Stefan Orange, a DB from Culpeper).

Of the 7 uncommitted players left in the top 9, the Hokies and the Virginia Cavaliers are going head-to-head for three of them. To this point, the Hokies and Hoos have have landed a large number of the players ranked #10 and beyond, but the top 9 are wide-open, with the exception of Clayton and Brown. Take a look (players being recruited by both schools are shown in yellow):

Vick and (of course) Lewis are perceived as Tech leans at this point. Ahmad Brooks, meanwhile, is harder to read than a James Joyce novel. Aloof, quiet, and reserved, Brooks is a closed book, even to many of those who know him.

Straight from the rumor mill on Brooks is a rumor that he favors Tennessee and Tech, with UVa running behind (that would be interesting, given that Brooks hasn't even visited Tennessee yet). Also from the rumor mill comes word that Kai Parham was not impressed with UVa and is starting to look like he's Tennessee-bound. While that makes anti-Hoos giggle, it should give you pause that Parham might be UT-bound, because he might sweep Brooks up with him, although Brooks appears to be an independent thinker. But again, that's all strictly rumor-mill stuff.

From better sources comes a modified Virginia Tech recruiting list. See below. Please note:

• Corrections and additions are welcome, but we believe this list to be complete -- if you have comments, email Will Stewart at will@techsideline.com.
• Visit dates as reported by Rivals.com and TSL sources are included on the list. Please note that visit dates are volatile and change often, but the dates listed here are assumed to be fairly accurate.
• Each player's name is a link to their TSL recruiting database entry.
• The list does not include current VT verbals.

Added since last week: WR Fred Lee (accidental omission last week), LB Donte Newsome, WR Josh Hyman.

Notes on Individual Players Still on the List

QB Marcus Vick: Vick received an in-home visit from Tech coaches Tuesday night, including, we believe, QB coach Kevin Rogers, head coach Frank Beamer, and perhaps recruiting coordinator and LB coach Jim Cavanaugh.

RB Mike Imoh: We spoke with a member of Mike's family briefly Tuesday night (Mike was at a basketball game), and we were told that Mike has now visited VT, Wake Forest, and Pitt. He probably will not take any other visits. We'll try to get in touch with him again later.

DL Brian Mattes: Although there has been no confirmation from anywhere, Mattes has been reported as a Notre Dame verbal on a Notre Dame message board. The source attributed for the information was Rick Schutt, a sports anchor in South Bend, Indiana. If true, Mattes will be off Tech's list, but we left him on the list shown here. We attempted to reach Brian at home Tuesday night and were unsuccessful.

DL Darryl Tapp: may visit Florida on 2/1.

DL John Wood: we're not sure of Woods' status, so we're leaving him on the list for now, but the Hokies have never been one of Woods' top teams, and he is not a priority for the Hokies at this point. He visited Tech on 1/18/02.

LB Justin London: London is considering Maryland, Tennessee, UCLA, and Tech. One source told us that London will narrow it down to UCLA and Tech, and then he'll pick Tech because of the distance issue. Time will tell.

WR Fred Lee: Lee was a Tech signee last year who failed to qualify. He went to Milford Academy, a Connecticut prep school, and has been giving strong consideration to Michigan State. It is believed that Lee will stay with his Tech commitment and resign with the Hokies.

LB Donte Newsome and WR Josh Hyman: these two Deep Creek players, who currently don't have TSL recruiting database entries, will visit the Hokies on February 1 with VT verbal Noland Burchette, but it's unclear whether or not Tech has offered them scholarships (Rivals.com is reporting that Hyman does have an offer from Tech). We'll keep you apprised as we find out more and as they possibly move to the forefront.

Notes on Individual Players Dropped from the List

QB James Banks: Banks' father told Rivals.com recently that he was pretty certain Banks' last visit (after Purdue on 1/25) would be Florida on 2/1. Sources tell us that Banks has been dropped from VT's list, and the implication is clear: Marcus Vick is VT's last remaining quarterback target.

WR Santonio Holmes: the Hokies could not get a visit from Holmes, and we are told that Holmes has been dropped.

WR Justin Miller: one source tells us that Justin Miller has been dropped from the Hokies' recruiting list, but another tells us that Coach Beamer might make a visit to Miller this week, so the Hokies might not entirely be out of it yet.

ATH LaMarr Watkins: With ATH Jimmy Williams' commitment to Tech this past weekend, Watkins is no longer being recruited by the Hokies.

ATH Montavis Pitts: After all this time, we are told the Hokies are no longer recruiting Montae Pitts. Once a VT verbal, Pitts waffled, reportedly committed to Tennessee, and then committed to Auburn.

Be sure to keep an eye on Hokie football recruiting here at TechSideline.com in the coming weeks by using the resources we provide for free:

• Recruiting message board -- stay logged on here for up-to-the-minute breaking news, commitments, rumors, and discussion;
• Recruiting home page -- click here to see the latest Flash updates and access our other great resources;
• Recruiting database -- go here to search for prospects, view prospect lists, and sort prospects by different parameters to get a feel for what's going on in Hokie recruiting.
• TSLMail -- if you're not a TSLMail subscriber, sign up today! (click the link) TSLMail is sent out every week and includes weekly recruiting updates, plus we send you a breaking news email when a recruit commits to the Hokies. On signing day, we'll send you a complete list of recruits via TSLMail.

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