Monday Motivation: Fisher's choice a big deal for the Hoos
The Cavaliers got a boost from the recruiting trail last week when three-star in-state offensive lineman Cole Surber became the first junior to announce his commitment to UVa. And while the board in 2023 continues to take shape, with several quality targets on the defensive side of the ball standing out of late, the Wahoos got another boost as well. And that second one gives an additional reason, joining a host of others, as to why you should be pumped about the class of 2022.
Varina defensive back Anthony Fisher, who began his career at Benedictine, announced on Wednesday that he would be continuing his football career at Virginia. In so doing, the Richmond native gave UVa’s 2022 recruiting class a late bump in that way only PWO kids can.
Though he won’t be listed as a commit in our database, it’s easy to see why the coaching staff might be so excited about bringing him to Charlottesville.
Tabbed as the VHSL Class 4 Offensive Player of the Year, Fisher was All-State on both sides of the ball for the Blue Devils and led them to state titles in both football and basketball. As a two-sport guy, he’s the exact kind of athlete you want on your team and just the type of player that coaches across multiple sports are looking for these days.
In short: There’s plenty to be excited about.
Watching his film, be that his football or hoops highlights, it’s very apparent how much clay there is to work with. And the artists in question, in this case UVa’s coaching staff, clearly are looking forward to having the opportunity to work with him. It should be noted that Fisher’s lone offer in the database came from Air Force, a school with which some of UVa's new coaches have ties.
As it is with all players, mindset matters. If Fisher’s outward sentiments echo his internal ones, then the Cavaliers are going to benefit greatly.
You can’t have a successful program at a place like UVa without walk-ons who make contributions, be that on the practice field or on Saturday afternoons or both. You want to find guys like Fisher who earn their chance to join the team and then earn their way onto the field on the path to potentially earning a scholarship.
Maybe I’m naive but in a college football landscape flooded by NIL stories and the like, it’s not a bad thing to see a guy who is taking hold of a different kind of opportunity, one that allows him to stay home and go make some things happen for himself. On another front, it's definitely naive to think that this couldn’t work out extremely well for UVa, given Fisher’s experience at Varina and the other playmakers in the 804 that may potentially be more inclined to give the Wahoos a look now.
It’s a win-win for everyone. The kind of small detail that might get lost these days.
Fisher is a player we’re really excited to see rocking the orange and blue. And you should be too.
For a host of reasons.
