According to this Roanoke Times article, Jeff Allen has been granted approval to enroll at Virginia Tech for this coming season.  This was a MUST in terms of filling at least a portion of the big hole in the Hokies’ low post created by the graduation of Coleman Collins and Chris Tucker, and by the departure of Robert Krabbendam. 

Now the Hokies are just waiting for Dorenzo Hudson (guard) and J.T. Thompson (forward) to get approval.  Thompson requires an appeal because of his academic situation (he was a fourth-year junior that is now trying to graduate in the summer).  Hudson was on Hargrave’s postgraduate team with Allen this past season.

The Hokies have five signees approved to enroll at Tech for this coming year, with five scholarship players returning.

August 2, 2007
Greenberg recalls Prosser fondly | Roanoke Times

August 1, 2007
Coach Greenberg on the Recruiting Season | ESPN.com

July 30, 2007
Hokies hoping 2 players get clearance | Roanoke Times

ACC Nation Special Feature
Column by Chris Graham

Not a lot of people knew that Skip Prosser got his start in coaching the proverbial hard way - teaching history and coaching the JV team at a West Virginia high school.

Prosser himself never forgot his roots.

“Skip was a guy who understood that one of the things that you do as a basketball coach when you’re first starting out is you mop the gym floor - that the PE classes are over for the day, and you’ve got to go over there, and you get out the mop, and you run the mop over the floor before practice,� said Dan Bonner, a ACC basketball broadcast analyst who got to know Prosser well during the coach’s time at wake forest.

Prosser, 56, died on Thursday after suffering a heart attack. Prosser was found unresponsive in his office at around 12:45 p.m. yesterday. He had gone back to his office after having gone out for a jog on the track at Kentner Stadium on the campus of wake forest.

He was transported to the Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center - where he was later pronounced dead at 1:41 p.m.

Read more »

Skip Prosser, head coach of the Wake Forest basketball team, passed away this morning. According to reports, Prosser died of a heart attack while jogging.

For more info, read Chris Graham’s column from ACC Nation.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Coach Prosser’s family, friends, and the Wake Forest community.

**********Niemo’s 2 Cents***********

I am stunned and saddened to hear this news. Skip Prosser was a guy with a personality very similar to our own Seth Greenberg. Outgoing, sarcastic, a real character that wore his emotions on his sleeve. He was able to make the NCAA’s in each of his first four seasons at Wake after a successful stint at xavier, the breeding ground for acc basketball coaches. In the last two seasons, however, the team really struggled since the loss of chris paul and struggled to hit the .500 mark. There were quite loud rumblings for his departure after last season (and even the one before) from Wake fans. But Skip kept his optimistic attitude and continued to push on. So far this offseason, he had gotten verbals from the #1, #3, and #13 recruits in the country (according to scout.com)!!! The future looked bright for him and Wake Forest.

He will be greatly missed as a coach and a man in the acc circles.

The Roundball Club, founded in 2000, has a special association with Virginia Tech basketball and the Hokie Club. The club is made up of hardcore Hokie basketball fans who get together several times during the season before and after games. Many of these events include members of the Men’s basketball team, giving Roundball Club members exclusive access to the players and coaches.

We had a chance to catch up with the President of the Roundball Club, Steve Castle. Steve provided TechHoops.com with a history of the club, its current state, its future plans, and some of his own opinions and experiences.

Steve answered the questions below on Monday, July 23, 2007.

TechHoops: What is the purpose of the Roundball Club?

Steve: I will give you two answers to this one… the official one, and the one that I use to answer that question.

Official - The Mission of the Roundball Club is to:
1. Promote public awareness of our Virginia Tech Men’s Basketball Program
2. Foster the goals and policies of the Virginia Tech Athletic Department
3. Provide the level of spirited support and resources required for our program to achieve national prominence

Now, my answer… The Roundball Club was created at a time when the Men’s Basketball program was not doing so well (2000), and Football reigned king on campus. This group was created to show the Men’s team that there were people out there who cared about basketball and not just football. Over the years, this relatively small group of people has been able to create a family atmosphere with the Men’s team that shows them the support the football team receives from 65,000+ at each game. Now, with the team doing better and better in the ACC and on the national stage, it gives the team a chance to visit with that same group of people who were there during the “not-so-good� times and enjoy the successful moments.

Also, we are in existence to “pull� in some funds specifically for Men’s basketball. When people make their donations to the Hokie Club… most times they do not specify where those funds should be directed. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with that… at a football school, you can “assume� where a majority of funds might go. When a person becomes a member of the Roundball Club, they designate their money to go to men’s basketball. Membership benefits you because of access to the players, while using part of your Hokie Club contributions for membership.

Read more »

ACC Nation Special Feature
Posted by Patrick Hite

Members of the media covering the 2007 ACC Football Kickoff in Pinehurst, N.C. over the weekend have cast their pre-season ballots. The results of the 83 ballots follow, with first-place votes in parentheses:

Atlantic Division

1. florida state (37)
2. boston college (25)
3. clemson (8)
4. wake forest (13)
5. maryland
6. north carolina state

Coastal Division

1. Virginia Tech (77)
2. georgia tech (4)
3. miami (2)
4. virginia
5. north carolina
6. duke

ACC Championship Game Winner: Virginia Tech (69)

For the most ACC coverage, visit ACCNation.com.
ACCNation.com is a collaborative partner with TechHoops.com.

ACC Nation Special Feature
Posted by Patrick Hite

ACC Nation’s special podcast from the ACC Football Kickoff in Pinehurst, N.C. is now available.

Just click here and play the latest episode or click view all shows and play ACC Nation - Special ACC Football Kickoff Edition.

Patrick and Chris talked to players from all 12 schools and a sample of those interviews - including players from Wake Forest, Virginia Tech and Miami - is available on the special podcast.

Also, be sure to check out ACC Nation Tuesday. We will have interviews with all 12 coaches available by early Tuesday afternoon.

More coach and player interviews will be available on ACC Nation’s weekly show (available at ACCNation.com late Thursday nights) this week through the start of the season.

For the most ACC coverage, visit ACCNation.com.
ACCNation.com is a collaborative partner with TechHoops.com.

July 25, 2007
Munson to transfer from Virginia Tech | AP

Tech point guard Munson to transfer | Richmond Times-Dispatch

OK kids, let’s play trivia: Name five current Hokie men’s basketball players that have played more than 40 total minutes (ie: one game’s worth) of college basketball for Virginia Tech. [Jeopardy theme……….] Give up? That’s because it is a trick question. Next season, when the Hokies take to the hardwood they will only have only four players (Deron Washington, A.D. Vassallo, Cheick Diakite, and Lewis Witcher) that have played more than 40 total minutes of basketball for Tech. One game’s worth! Only four guys! Not even a full lineup’s worth! For most fans this coming season, it will be Deron and A.D. and, “Who the heck is that?” Program sales should go up 500%.

The number of main returnees dropped to four with the news that nigel munson (yes, I’m giving him the lower case moniker now) was moving to be closer to me (ie: the DC area), joining wynton witherspoon in the VT-to-DC pipeline (wynton is at g-dub-u). I do wish nigel the best, though. I’ve heard through the grapevine, as many of you have, that nigel had some things to take care of closer to home. I wish he could have done those things at VT, but at least he is being a man about it. All the best… just expect to be in lower case from now on.

So… let’s look at potential lineups for next year, ASSUMING everyone else makes it to campus. This assumes all recruits from this class make it to the ‘burg, which is no guarantee. My projected starter by mid-season is in BOLD.

GUARDS

Point: Malcolm Delaney (Fr) or Hank Thorns (Fr) - Personally, I like Delaney. I have seen him play and read a ton about him. The guy is magic, you want the ball in his hands — extremely clutch. The thing is, though, Thorns is ONLY a PG, while Delaney can also play 2. So if both are on the court, expect Delaney to move to SG.

Read more »

It’s been in the rumor mill for a while now, but the Roanoke Times reported today that PG Nigel Munson has been released from his Tech scholarship. It appears that Munson wants to play closer to his Washington D.C. home.