The Week In Review

The “Week In Review,” a recap of how University of Virginia-bound recruits performed in the previous week, is back for the 2013 season. Each week I’ll highlight the top performances but also provide an update on the rest of Virginia’s class of 2014. Quin Blanding , Evan Butts , and Jordan Ellis are this week’s top performers.

Top Performers

Quin Blanding

Bayside (Virginia Beach, VA) first-year head coach Jon White calls senior safety Quin Blanding , “a natural. He’s a guy who just really understands football, and he has the physical capabilities to take care of any play.”

The 6’2″, 210-pound Blanding showed off his physical prowess last Thursday night, when the 5-star prospect played consistently near the line of scrimmage to help shut down the Landstown Eagles offense. Bayside pulled away at the end for a 29-10 win in its season opener.

Jordan Ellis

Peachtree Ridge (Suwanee, GA) tailback 28-14 win over Parkview.

Ellis rushed for 850 yards and nine touchdowns while sharing carries his junior season.

Evan Butts

30-22 season opening win over Father Judge. Butts hauled in a 75-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter and had at least another 23-yard reception in the win.

Updates on the rest of UVa’s class

– 5-star defensive lineman Andrew Brown and the Oscar Smith Tigers (Chesapeake, VA) will take on Lake Taylor (Norfolk, VA) on Friday, September 6. UVa fans will be able to watch the game live on ESPNU beginning at 8 p.m.

Lake Taylor, which captured a state title last season, is led by Ohio State-bound senior tight end/defensive end Jalyn Holmes .

– Woodgrove (Purcellville, VA), which features UVa-bound outside linebacker/defensive end JJ Jackson, blanked Freedom, 35-0, in its season opener.

– Clearwater Central Catholic (Clearwater, FL) is 2-0 on the year after blowing away Lely by 38 points this past weekend. Virginia-bound senior Caanan Brown plays tight end and linebacker for the Marauders.

– Fredericksburg (VA) Chancellor, Burlington (N.C.) Cummings, and Upland (CA) all took losses this past week. Chancellor (featuring 4-star OL Will Richardson ) dropped to 0-2.