Eddie Whitley flashes a grin as he wears |
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Butler (Matthews, N.C.) senior defensive back Eddie Whitley , a Virginia Tech commit, may have to sit out his senior season due to a torn ACL he suffered in June, but that doesn't mean he is staying away from football. In fact, he is hoping to be around the game as much as possible to compensate for the lost season.
One way the 6-1, 175-pound prospect is staying around the game is by volunteering as a coach in a youth football league. Another way is to get to as many Virginia Tech home games as possible. He'll start with this weekend's contest versus East Carolina.
"I'm probably scheduled to go to all of Virginia Tech's home games," Whitley said. "I want to get around as much football as possible since I won't be able to play."
Whitley looks forward to catching up with head coach Frank Beamer, who was instrumental in landing the talented recruit.
"When coach Frank Beamer told me that he knew about my injury and that even if I got in a car accident on the way home he would hold up my offer, that stuck with me," Whitley recalled. "I was going back and forth on my decision. He told me that on my second trip to Virginia Tech (which occurred in July), which was with my parents. My parents were impressed, too. When it came time to make a decision, all I could think about was what coach Beamer said."
The Tar Heel state star admits that he almost committed to N.C. State. At the time, he had visited Virginia Tech for its June 9th camp and had made a trip to N.C. State later that month. He was all set to make a decision without making a return trip to Virginia Tech before his mother convinced him otherwise.
"I was real close to picking N.C. State, but my mom talked me into making another visit to Virginia Tech to make an informed decision," Whitley said. "I said, 'what the heck?'. When I went there, I had a chance to really see the campus. I hadn't seen it before, but I thought the campus was real cool. After talking to the academic advisors, I realized Virginia Tech had a lot to offer me. I had to take it."
The Virginia Tech coaches have been in consistent contact with its standout recruit, e-mailing and writing to check up on the injury. Whitley also calls the coaches once a week to check up on the team's progress. He is being recruited to play cornerback and is excited to be a part of Tech's standout defense.
"They are going to try me at corner and see how it goes," Whitley said. "If I don't do good, then they might move me to safety. I have no doubt that I can play corner, though. I played safety all of my years in high school, so I want to try something different."
Whitley had surgery to repair his ACL injury and he said the procedure "went well. The rehab is going well, too. I'm a little bit above schedule."
In addition to focusing on his future team, Whitley is certainly focused on his current team as well.
"I'm one of the team captains," said Whitley, whose Butler teammates won their first regular season game by a score of 48-14. "Since I'm out, it is up to other safeties to make the calls out on the field. I sit down with them to watch film to get them to look at things the way I look at it. I'm trying to get them in the right mindset."
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Recruiting
Eddie has been doing some recruiting for Virginia Tech, although his teammate, fellow defensive back Spencer Adams, may not be in Tech's plans.
"Coach Gray told me they were kind of done recruiting defensive backs," Whitley said. "I am trying to recruit [RB] Ryan Williams and [OL] Vinston Painter. If I get a hold of [ATH] A.J. Alexander, I'll try to recruit him too.
"Me and Ryan have a real cool relationship. I also have one with Painter. We are all trying to meet up this Saturday. They are talking to their coaches about getting a ride down there."