Dinwiddie Virginia linebacker K'Vaughan Pope announces his commitment to the Ohio State Buckeyes

K’Vaughan Pope Announcement

K'Vaughan Pope realized he would become anxious on stage, before the TV cameras and all his teammates, while he was announcing his college commitment. This is why he asked K'ymon, his younger brother, to read the statement he had written to the crowd in the Dinwiddie County HS auditorium.

Once his brother had completed reading the statement, K'Vaughan read the last paragraph. He declared his commitment to the Buckeyes, and the audience in the assembly hall went crazy. Then, he threw a scarlet and grey football jersey over his shoulders after standing up.

Pope’s Recruitment

Billy Mills, who coaches Pope, said that he tends to shun the limelight, and is just a gifted working class kid from Virginia. Rated a four star recruit nationally, the 7th best linebacker in the country and the 4th best overall recruit in Virginia for 2018. He is aggressive on the field, he can play the pass, reacts with speed and can close in on a runner quickly. A great competitor, he is always around the ball according to his high school coach.

Take a look at these stats for his junior season: 135 tackles, 29 for a loss, 6 interceptions, 4 touchdowns, 4 and a half sacks, 3 blocked field goals, 4 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries, and 2 blocked punts.

The 215 pound, six foot two inch linebacker is the most prominent recruit from Virginia in recent years. He received offers from the country's leading programs, such as Auburn, Clemson, Florida, Georgia, LSU and Alabama. For Ohio State wide receivers coach Zach Smith and linebackers coach Bill Davis were in charge of getting Pope’s commitment. Most schools recruited him as an outside linebacker although he also plays wide receiver. His speed at 4.85 in the 40 yard dash is better suited for the defensive spot.

The Ohio State Commitment

The offer from Ohio State arrived last summer. During the spring, Pope visited Columbus with his family. While there, he witnessed a different environment. The players, the coaches, the way they conducted themselves, it was a new experience, said Pope. While on campus, he participated in a one day camp and got to interactive with coach Bill Davis more.

He decided to commit at that point, however there were still documents that had to be filled in. Pope had to send his SAT marks to the school. Roughly fourteen days ago, Ohio State approved him. They agreed to make an official announcement. Pope can now focus on his senior season with his team.

Dequan Coles, an assistant coach, gave an Ohio State uniform to Pope. He placed the number eighty-one, which is Pope's number, on the back and front, and wrote 'POPE' onto the nameplate.

Ohio State 2018 Class

Pope will fit in well with the other two linebackers in the 2018 Buckeye class, Dallas Grant and Teradja Mitchell. Mitchell is a middle linebacker while Grant is an outside linebacker. Mitchell lives in the same area as Pope and they got to know each other during camps. Pope likes the idea of playing along Mitchell at OSU.

The Buckeyes have two outstanding linebackers in their 2017 class as well, Baron Browning and Peter Werner. Pope will have to compete with them for playing time when he arrives on campus next year.

Ohio State’s 2018 class currently stands at 16 recruits and is considered the third best in the country behind Penn State and Miami (FL). OSU should climb in class rankings as they add more players in the coming months, state tuned.