It seems recruiting is a hot topic every year during the Virginia Tech-Virginia week. Many of the Hokies and Cavaliers players were recruited by both teams, so we scribes like to hear stories of why they chose one school over the other or why this school or that was late to make a scholarship offer.

Tech tailback Ryan Williams told reporters today that Virginia was the first school to offer him a scholarship, and that Cavaliers coach Anthony Poindexter, who starred at Virginia and Jefferson Forest, visited Williams’ high school in Manassas, Va., during his freshman year to express UVa’s interest.

As a follow up, a reporter asked him why Virginia didn’t make the cut when Williams pared down his list of schools.

“I don’t know, I just started looking at a lot of things as far as teams and football atmosphere and running back situations and just the players overall, and I guess the other schools that ended up in my top five, top six, kind of (knocked Virginia out of the running),” he said.

To hear Williams talk about it now, Virginia Tech was the overwhelming favorite to win his services. Hokies fans can thank Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor for that. Taylor hosted Williams on his recruiting visit, but they had met and become friends well before then.

That friendship, and some prescient words from Taylor, were two of the major factors in Williams’ decision.

Williams told a few reporters, who were still lingering around the interview room Saturday after Tech’s win over N.C. State, about the first time he met Taylor.

“I’ve known Ty since my ninth grade year in high school, and we’ve been cool since then. I met him at my state track meet, and I met him before I ran the 100, when I got blown out by Percy Harvin,” Williams said.

Turns out Taylor, who is from Hampton, was just a spectator at Todd Stadium in Newport News in 2005 when Williams was competing in the VHSL Group AAA meet.

Williams ran in the prelims for the 100-meter dash, and he got smoked by Harvin, who went on to star in football at Florida and is now catching touchdown passes from Brett Favre as a Minnesota Vikings rookie.

Harvin paced the field in the prelims with a 10.8. Williams ran an 11.43, which was good for 25th. Harvin later won the finals in 10.69 seconds.

Williams didn’t care too much for his running that day, but at least he got to meet Taylor.

“He was just watching (the meet). My little league coach is real cool with his father, and he introduced me to Ty, and after that I was just keeping up with his recruiting process and we talked here and there,” Williams said. “When I came here (on my recruiting visit), I asked him … I texted him right after I left, I said, ‘Do you think you would really need me here?’ And he said, ‘Yeah, I think we’d make a lot of big plays together.’ And right after that, I was sold. Tyrod wants me there, so let’s make some big plays.”

As for Williams’ track days … well, those ended after that state meet almost five years ago.

“I was 14 or 15. I was the only freshman at the state meet. … After that, I didn’t want to run track anymore. (Harvin) was the fastest person I’d ever seen,” Williams said.

ON TO THE BOWLS …
*BCS officials announced Tuesday that 20 teams are still alive for the six major bowls. Virginia Tech is among the eight teams still eligible for an at-large spot, though that is still a very long shot.

Here’s a link to the story on ESPN.com. 

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4686466

*The Chick-fil-A Bowl had representatives at Saturday’s home finale against N.C. State, and more CFA officials are expected to be in Charlottesville this Saturday.

I think the loser of the ACC championship game is a virtual lock to be the conference’s representative in the CFA Bowl. Both teams would travel quite well for a game at the Georgia Dome – Clemson is only a few hours away, and GT’s campus is within walking distance.

Virginia Tech has always been an attractive option to the folks at the Chick-fil-A Bowl, which is why it was a no-brainer pick for the 2009 season-opening game at the Georgia Dome against Alabama. But Tech has already played in Atlanta twice this season, and lost both of those games, so I’m not sure how crazy the Hokies fans would be about going back to the Dirty South.

I know the players like playing at the Georgia Dome, and they don’t seem to be swayed by the fact that games in Atlanta have been like Kryptonite to the Hokies.

The only way I could see Tech’s fans getting excited about another trip to Atlanta is if the CFA Bowl picks Tennessee from the SEC and matched the Vols up in a highly anticipated game against the Hokies. Fans of both of those schools have been begging for this game for years – come to think of it, isn’t it about time to revive those old Bristol Motor Speedway rumors?

VT-UT in the CFA is still possible, and right now it would definitely be the sexiest, because the other options are …

—Tech vs. Pitt/Cincy/West Virginia in the Gator Bowl
—Tech vs. Northwestern/Wisconsin in the Champs Sports Bowl

I don’t see the Hokies falling any lower than the Champs Sports.

Tech-WVU in the Gator would be an interesting game, mainly because the teams’ history playing each other, but a lot of things would have to happen for that matchup to become a reality.