What can Brown do for you: Top 300 running back Ramon Brown stays home with commitment to VT
MIDLOTHIAN, Va. (BVM) — One of the most highly touted offensive football weapons from the Midlothian area has made his long awaited decision. Manchester High School rising senior and Class of 2022 top 300 prospect Ramon Brown announced his commitment to in-state Virginia Tech on July 9 via a live press conference on CBS Sports. Brown is ranked as the No. 128 overall recruit in the Class of 2022, the No. 11 running back and the No. 6 prospect in Virginia according to ESPN’s recruiting rankings making his commitment a huge win for the Hokies.
“It felt really good just being on national tv and having my family, most teammates and friends and experiencing it with them,” Brown said. “I just enjoyed the experience with them and it was a really long process and I’m glad it’s come to an end now and I picked my school. I’m happy with my decision.”
#gohokies🦃 pic.twitter.com/QPwRaJdZbt
— Ramon Brown (@Ramon_x7) July 9, 2021
The decision came after a busy month for Brown. The coveted running back made five official visits in a three week span with trips to Maryland, Penn State, South Carolina, West Virginia and of course Virginia Tech. At the end of the day, Virginia Tech impressed the rising senior enough to get his commitment.
“All my official visits I loved and enjoyed, it was great throughout the whole process,” Brown said. “Really every school that hosted me, Penn State, West Virginia South Carolina, Maryland and Tech was nice. But two weeks or a week and a half after my visits I made the decision. I was thinking overnight and I woke up the next morning with my decision. Tech feels like it’s home. I’ve got a lot of teammates and friends there. They have a great coaching staff. I love how I fit in their system.”
The reaction by family members and many of his confidants only solidified Brown’s feelings towards his decision.
“People loved [the decision],” Brown said. “My family loves it because it’s in-state so they can come to the games since it’s only three and a half hours away. Pretty much everyone loved my decision because they wanted me to go to somewhere where I best fit, where I’m happy and that’s why I chose VT because I feel like I can be happy for the next three or four years.”
For the Hokies, Brown immediately becomes the highest-ranked recruit for the team in the Class of 2022. In total, Virginia Tech now has 17 commitments with three four-star recruits and two ESPN 300 players, including Brown. In addition to Brown, the Hokies also got a commitment from top 300 recruit Alex Orji, an athlete from Sachse High School in Texas, in April. Brown also becomes the sixth in-state recruit in the class for Virginia Tech joining Highland Springs High School defensive end Rashaud Pernell, King Fork’s High School Kyree Moyston, Tuscarora High School running back Bryce Duke, Westfield High School tight end Harrison Saint German and Bayside High School defensive end Lemar Law, bringing a lot of Virginia support for the program.
“It means a lot,” Brown said. “Hopefully by me joining the class we get more athletes from the state of Virginia coming through or even anywhere just by me being the highest recruit and we just have to see how things go from there.”
During the past spring season, the 6-foot, 205-pound running back led the Lancers to a 6-1 record while rushing for 871 yards and scoring 14 total touchdowns, including back-to-back 180 rushing yard performances to start the season and five total 100+ rushing yard games. Unfortunately for the Lancers, their season would end abruptly with a positive COVID-19 test forcing the team to forfeit its final game in the regional semifinals.
“I’m feeling great,” Brown said about the upcoming season. “It ended in a bad way last year for us, but this year we’re playing Highland Springs since we were supposed to play them [in that cancelled game]. I feel like we’re going to have a great team, a state championship team. It’s time to get to business.”
While the past season didn’t end the way Manchester hoped it would, with the return of Brown for one more season, the Lancers are certainly eying a state championship run. With his college decision now complete, Brown can return his focus on the football field. As Hokies fans anticipate the arrival of their newest weapon, Brown will set out to prove he’s worth all the hype and more for the Virginia Tech faithful.
“I’m just going to bring that dawg and come in ready to work and be fired up that first day,” Brown said.
