At this point in his recruitment, Armel Mukam has been to Charlottesville twice: First for a practice and then for Junior Day in January. The weekend of June 13, however, he will be back on Grounds for his first official visit. And it’s a trip that could prove pivotal to the decision he will ultimately make.

The 6-foot-4, 245-pound Mukam is not shy to admit UVa is one of his top schools along with Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, and Cal. Of this quartet, UVa and Vanderbilt are the only two he has not officially visited yet.

Led by D-line coach and former UVa great Chris Slade, the Hoos have made Mukam feel like a priority.

“Coach Slade and I have stayed in constant contact, we talk every week,” the Woodberry Forest prospect said, helping the two forge a great connection.

Relationships and feeling like a family are key to Mukam’s college decision as that is what he loves about the game.

“The brotherhood, the family feel,” he said But Mukam also loves the physicality of the game.

That physicality includes getting his hands dirty and getting to the quarterback.

As he has been recruited, the topic has come up of changing positions.

“Cal has talked about me playing at outside linebacker, Virginia sees me as an edge rusher,” he explained. “Changing positions, I’m just not sure about.”

This past season was Mukam’s first full year of football, having played just a few games in Canada before coming to Woodberry Forest where he excelled in his first season. He earned First Team All-State honors and with 41 tackles and six sacks, making it is clear to see why so many like UVa have offered.

His newness to the game could make it easy to change positions or hard, depending on how you look at it and how he feels about it.

Helping him through the recruiting process is his head coach and another former Cavalier himself, Jackson Matteo.

“He doesn’t tell me what to do but rather answers my questions,” Mum said of Matteo, “and makes sure I understand the process.”

For now, he’s anxious to visit Charlottesville once more and get to spend time with Slade and head coach Tony Elliott.

“At Junior Day we saw the plans for the future of the football facility they are building,” he recalled, “and we heard the coaching staff led by head coach Tony Elliott speak of the future of the program. They are building a championship culture. Coach Elliott knows all about championship cultures having been at Clemson. It is a very exciting time right now in Charlottesville.”

He has come away from his early unofficial visits impressed to say the least. From hearing the coaches speak to “being in complete awe the moment I stepped on the field and looked around at the stadium”, Mukam said with a clear smile on his face by the tone of his voice.

Academically UVa is just as impressive to him as he sees few schools in the area with the academic demands and standards that come with going to school in Charlottesville. Mukam is as impressive in the classroom as he is on the field, holding down a 3.94 GPA.

As for the town and campus itself?

“Charlottesville definitely has that college town feel and that was awesome to experience for myself when I stopped to have something to eat in town,” he said.

Given where stands with Mukam and the level of interest from both sides, in a few weeks UVa might be in position to make that college town his future home.