Coach Fuente Welcomes Nine Mid-Year Enrollees to Virginia Tech

Hokies add nine mid-year enrollees to roster for 2017 season, including two quarterbacks

January 17, 2017

BLACKSBURG – Virginia Tech head coach Justin Fuente announced Tuesday that nine mid-year enrollees have joined the Hokies for 2017. This group includes two quarterbacks, a running back, a wide receiver, a tight end, an offensive lineman, a punter, a linebacker, and an all-around athlete.

“I’m excited that these nine student-athletes are enrolled at Virginia Tech and are ready to get to work with us during the spring semester,” Fuente said. “Competition makes any team better. Our staff is looking forward to welcoming back our returning student-athletes and watching how these guys compete with our veteran players.”

National Signing Day is February 1 and the start of spring football practice is tentatively slated to begin on March 21. The 2017 Spring Game is set for April 22 at Lane Stadium.

Oscar Bradburn
Punter, 6-2, 190
Sydney, Australia, Blackwattle Bay, Sydney Secondary College

Bradburn is a left-footed punter, who has only competed in Australian Rules Football, playing for Sydney Swans Academy.

A.J. Bush
Quarterback, 6-4, 220
Alpharetta, Ga., Norcross High School, Nebraska, Iowa Western CC

As a senior, Bush helped Norcross to a state title in the 6A ranks. The left-handed Bush completed 139-of-259 passes for 2,101 yards and 16 touchdowns for Coach Keith Maloof’s team. Bush also rushed for 764 yards and 13 touchdowns. He spent his junior season at Milton High School, helping the Eagles to the first round of the 6A playoffs after rushing for almost 900 yards in 2012, and passing for 1,000 yards. He spent two seasons at Nebraska and did not see any action before transferring to Iowa Western in 2016. His numbers this past fall included 10 games played, 602 yards passing and three touchdowns. Bush also ran the ball 89 times for 265 yards and five scores.

Silas Dzansi
Offensive Line, 6-6, 295
Woodbridge, Va., C.D. Hylton High School, Fork Union Military Academy

Dzansi spent the 2016 season at Fork Union Military Academy playing for Coach John Shuman. As a senior at C.D. Hylton playing for Coach Tony Lilly, he was on both sides of the ball racking up 56 tackles on defense, while protecting the blindside of the quarterback. He was named a 2015 Second Team All-Conference 4 selection on the offensive line, and an honorable mention on the defensive line. He started playing football during his sophomore year, while also playing basketball for the Bulldogs. He was on the 2016 conference championship team and was a 2015 dunk contest champion.

Caleb Farley
Athlete, 6-3, 185
Hickory, N.C., Maiden High School

Farley set a Maiden school record for rushing in a single season with 2,574 yards and added 37 touchdowns on the ground to go along with 1,776 passing yards and 21 touchdowns while playing for Coach Will Bryne. The 58 total touchdowns in a single season ranks third in North Carolina history. He also set the state record for touchdowns in a game twice, in back-to-back games, with eight in each, while his 4.83 TDs per game is also a state record. Farley threw for 1,831 yards and 20 touchdowns and rushed for 1,534 yards and 18 touchdowns as a junior. In his career, he rushed for 5,878 yards and 73 touchdowns, ranking 25^th all time in rushing yards in the state. He added 4,574 passing yards and 51 touchdowns to total 10,425 yards of offense and 124 career touchdowns, ranking sixth in the state’s record book.

Hendon Hooker
Quarterback, 6-5, 212
Greensboro, N.C., Dudley High School

In his career at Dudley, while playing for Coach Steven Davis, Hooker passed for 6,027 passing yards and 55 touchdowns and had 2,975 rushing yards and 48 touchdowns. He was a three-time all-conference selection and made the Associated Press All-State Team twice. NC preps named Hooker the All-State Player of the Year and he was a two-time state champions, being named the game’s MVP in 2016 after accounting for six TDs in a 54-0 rout in the title game. He also finished his career as Dudley’s all-time leading passer. Hooker also became a member of the 1,000-point club in basketball and was a three-time All-Metro conference.

Aundre Ricardo Kearney
Linebacker, 6-0, 220
Jacksonville, Fla., Mandarin High School

Kearney was a four-year letterwinner at Mandarin under Coach Quinn Gray & Brian Braddock while plyaing outside linebacker and running back. He finished his career with 240 tackles, 40 TFLs and 18 sacks and rushed for 1,217 yards with 23 touchdowns. Kearney was a two-time All-Gateway Conference OLB and was a first-team Class 8A all-state selection as a linebacker in 2015, a year Mandarin High made it to the region final. He had 102 tackles, 16 tackles for a loss and seven sacks on defense that season, in addition to 13 rushing touchdowns as a running back.

Dalton Keene
Tight End, 6-5, 228
Littleton, Colo., Chatfield High School

Keene earned letters all four years while played tight end, running back and linebacker for Coach Brett McGatlin at Chatfield. He once earned all-state honors and was also an academic all-state performer. Keene also competed on the school’s track team, earning four varsity letters running the 110- and 300-meter hurdles, once earning second team all-conference honors. His dad, Wesley, played football at Murray State and his brother, Trey, played football and baseball at Northern Colorado.

Kalil Pimpleton
Wide Receiver, 5-7, 165
Muskegon, Mich., Muskegon High School

Pimpleton was named the 2016 Muskegon Chronicle’s Football Player of the Year and one of five finalists for the MLive Michigan High School Football Player of the Year award, while also garnering the 2015 Muskegon Chronicle’s Offensive Player of the Year honor. He produced more than 2,800 total yards and 43 touchdowns for the Big Reds, helping them to a 12-2 record and a berth in the state championship game, which they lost by a point (29-28) to Orchard Lake St. Mary. During the 2016 season, playing for Coach Shane Fairfield, he rushed 139 times for 1,512 yards and 24 touchdowns, was 41 of 75 passing for 772 yards and 14 touchdowns, caught 22 passes for 317 yards and two scores and has 11 punt returns for 241 yards and three touchdowns. In 2016 season opener, Pimpleton had five touchdowns – two passing, two rushing and one receiving, in Muskegon’s 51-14 win over Ann Arbor Pioneer in Michigan Stadium. As a junior, he was a 1,000-yard rusher and passer and accounted for 27 touchdowns.

Terius Wheatley
Athlete, 5-11, 195
Ann Arbor, Mich., Pioneer High School, Fork Union Military Academy

Wheatley spent the 2016 season at Fork Union Military Academy playing for Coach John Shuman and his senior season at Pioneer, playing for Coach Jari Brown. Played for four different high schools in his career, as he followed his father, Tyrone – a 10-year NFL veteran and one of Michigan’s top running backs in program history – to various coaching stops. He excelled on the track team, finishing second in the long jump (23-10.75) and sixth in the high jump (6-05.00) at the 2016 Division 1 state meet, adding a fourth-place finish in the 4x200 relay. The senior broke school records in the indoor and outdoor long jump events en route to earning the 2016 Ann Arbor News Boys Track athlete of the year award.

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