Decision Day for Zahir Rainer
The Hokies will find out their fate with in-state safety Zahir Rainer this evening. The three-star will make the call at 5 p.m. on Youtube.
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The 5-10, 180-pound Rainer is the No. 15 rising senior in the Commonwealth and Rivals.com's No. 52 safety nationally. Duke, Minnesota, North Carolina, Stanford, Virginia, and Wake Forest join VT on the list of finalists he'll be choosing between.
Rainer, whose father Wali played in the NFL as a linebacker from 1999-2007 (and who is also the recruiting coordinator at Trinity Episcopal School) has taken numerous visits to Blacksburg, both by himself as a recruit and with large groups of teammates from TES. The Hokies landed defensive back Cameren Fleming out of the program in the 2023 class, and have emphasized top talent at one of the Richmond area's top producers of talent.
However, Rainer has also made the trip up to Minneapolis on multiple occasions, and previously named the Golden Gophers his favorite. While he's been to Blacksburg as recently as three weeks ago, there may well be work to do to convince him that staying closer to home is the move - and little time to do that convincing before the end of his recruitment.
If the Hokies do miss out on landing him, they may be able to turn the tide in the long run with a strong on-field performance in 2023 (which would be the first strong season since 2017, but could serve as a springboard to a brighter future for the Brent Pry era). The short- to medium-term blow to the Hokies' burgeoning reputation as a power in the Richmond area for the first time in years could be on the line this evening, though.
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