Three-star LB Stevie Bracey is quite familiar with what the template for an inside linebacker in the Virginia defense looks like.
Three years ago, when Bracey was a freshman at the Lovett School in Atlanta, his teammate Nick Jackson committed to the Cavaliers. Now Jackson is a preseason All-ACC inside linebacker for the Hoos and Bracey has committed to joining Jackson in Charlottesville next season.
The comparisons are natural. Both play the same position and are products of the same high school program. Jackson was listed at 6-foot-2 and 217 pounds coming out of Lovett; Bracey is 6-foot-2 and up to 225. According to Bracey, the two players are “extremely similar in a lot of ways most people wouldn’t even imagine.”
It’s possibly the biggest reason why Bracey has chosen to play at UVa.
“A lot of people have said that me and Nick are a lot alike and I’ve seen his success at UVa over the past few years,” he told CavsCorner recently. “So if I just keep following in those footsteps, there’s no reason why I can’t have the same success.”
Bracey tagged Jackson and included a picture of the inside linebacker when he announced his offer from UVa in early March. Jackson was Bracey’s host for his official visit in June, a few weeks after he’d committed to the Cavaliers. Seeing that familiar face helped him feel at home in Charlottesville.
That visit was also important for Bracey because it marked the first time he’d met any of UVa’s coaches in person, including head coach Bronco Mendenhall and linebackers coach Kelly Poppinga. He was also introduced face-to-face to several players, mentioning Noah Taylor and defensive lineman Su Agunloye along with a few first-years in their early days with the program.
“When I was with Nick and the guys, I got to meet so many people and I enjoyed being around all of the people I was around,” Bracey recalled. “Even one of the other recruits there, AJ Holmes, I got to meet him and then he committed and everything and I was like yeah, this is somebody I want to be around for the next four years. So getting to see all of those people was really what I enjoyed the most.”
“Obviously I had gotten a really good read on them from the Zooms and stuff like that but I was really psyched to meet everybody,” he added about meeting the coaches. “Honestly, I just really enjoyed meeting everybody and talking to them and not through a screen.”
The visit was also Bracey’s first chance to check out the Cavaliers’ locker room and Scott Stadium and other indoor facilities that he couldn’t see during a previous self-guided tour in April. UVa athletic director Carla Williams showed Bracey and his family the plans for the program’s new football building.
“I was talking to Nick about it and he was like, ‘Man, I was mad because they said at first it would be by the end of my sophomore year and COVID just messed all that up,’” Bracey said. “But it’s great to see where things are going.”
Defensive coordinator Nick Howell talked with Bracey about the similarities between UVa’s defensive scheme and the 3-3-5 Bracey plays in at Lovett. A film session with Poppinga showcased how the Hoos use their inside linebackers, with plenty of clips of Jackson as examples.
“It was kind of going through blitz packages and even different formations and calls and stuff like that,’ Bracey said. “It was really basic stuff, showing where I’d fit into the defense.”
Bracey picked UVa over a list of more than a dozen offers that included Power 5 schools Syracuse, Indiana and Minnesota, plus rising programs like UCF and Coastal Carolina. He admitted that he’s relieved to be done with the recruiting process and committed to the Cavaliers, and looking forward to playing his senior season at Lovett without that pressure
As he prepares to join the Wahoos, Bracey will also be tracking his old teammate Jackson, who started all 10 games last fall and finished second in the ACC with 105 tackles.
“Having a spot in a place where someone who is exactly like me is thriving is extremely relieving as well,” Bracey said. “I’m not going in blind. I’m grateful to be in this position.”
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