Hokies Football Recruiting: Torrian Gray Chases Confident, Speedy 2016 DE Charles Wiley

Junior defensive end Charles Wiley of Stockbridge (Ga.) HS has no trouble pinpointing exactly why so many colleges seem to be developing an interest in him.

"My strength is my speed, you're never going to see a defensive end as fast as me," Wiley said. "I'll beat you off the line every time."

That's quite the claim for any prospect.

"As you can tell, confidence isn't something I'm lacking," Wiley adds.

But Wiley's coach at Stockbridge, Kevin Whitley, says Wiley can get away with such boastfulness because he really is that fast on the field.

"Last May, we were headed to this combine, you know we took our 15 or 20 best guys," Whitley remembers. "There were obstacle courses, drills, so I had my running backs ready to run the 40 (yard dash), and Charles volunteers."

That prompted some incredulity from Whitley, even with his firsthand experience with Wiley's speed.

"I just say 'Charles, there's no way you'll beat all them,'" Whitley said. "And sure enough, Charles ran the fastest in the whole daggone race, he ran a 4.4."

So while humility might not be his strongest quality, there's little doubt that the Hokies see plenty in Wiley. In fact, they've been pursuing him since his days as a freshman in high school.

"They were my first offer, actually," Wiley said. "It was the last day before my spring game my ninth grade year, they definitely realized my talent early on."

Wiley remembers defensive backs coach Torrian Gray calling Whitley, who gave him the good news after practice that day.

But Whitley says even this good news did little to change Wiley's demeanor.

"Charles is just laid back," Whitley said. "You can't tell he's excited about a whole lot, other than making sacks."

Even if his reaction to Tech's offer wasn't overwhelming, it's clear that Wiley has since come to take the Hokies very seriously.

"They're a very good overall school, just really good academically," Wiley said. "They really stick out."

Gray's kept in touch with Wiley frequently since then.

"It was just a month ago that he came up and talked to me," Wiley said.

But even for all this progress, Gray has yet to convince Wiley to come visit Blacksburg. That could be about to change in February.

Gray is trying to entice Wiley to come up for the team's Junior Day on February 7, but the talented prospect has a bevy of other offers to consider.

"He's invited me to the Junior Day, but there are lots of those all around the same time," Wiley said. "Hopefully I can make it down if I have the time and the resources, I'm just talking with my family to try and decide right now."

Whitley thinks a visit to campus would be an important step in the development of the staff's relationship with Wiley.

"I think he knows very little about what they're about," Whitley said. "Maybe on a scale of 1-10, it's a 3. It could be higher. But he hasn't been to campus, he hasn't talked with Coach Beamer. He's trying to look at all the schools interested right now."

He certainly has plenty of offers to sort through. Wiley notes he's giving plenty of consideration to programs like Ole Miss, Georgia Tech, Auburn and Clemson that have already offered, and he's also hearing from Tennessee.

But while it may seem like Tech is an outlier among these southern schools that are in Wiley's backyard, he insists distance won't play too much of a role in his final decision.

"Distance isn't really a factor for me," Wiley said. "For me, it's all about the vibe of a school. Their academics, position depth, the coaches, freshmen playing time, that sort of stuff."

Wherever Wiley ends up, Whitley thinks his star player has the potential to see the field right away.

"He's gotten better every year, he should be ready to start as a freshman," Whitley said.

But Whitley knows he better not fill him on that fact, lest he get a little carried away.

"Some kids have got it all, and he definitely does," Whitley said. "But so long as he doesn't think like that, he'll be fine."