UVa’s Signing Day surprise came early on February 6. Mere minutes past midnight on National Signing Day, Mike London received a call from Mills Godwin (Richmond, VA) senior offensive lineman Eric Tetlow , who was informing the Cavaliers head coach of his plans to sign a letter of intent with UVa. For three months prior, the 6’6″, 300-pound standout was committed to Wake Forest. So what happened?

Virginia recruited Tetlow last spring and summer but did not offer. In December of 2012, he received a message to call Cavaliers offensive line coach Scott Wachenheim. It was then that Virginia came through with an official scholarship offer, but initially the Mills Godwin star was steadfast in his original decision.

“When I was offered in December, I was a little frustrated because they had been recruiting me for so long. I was going to let it go and stay committed to Wake Forest,” said Tetlow, who landed offers from Arizona State, Boston College, ECU, Maryland, Navy, North Carolina-Charlotte, ODU, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Richmond, South Florida, Wake Forest and Virginia.

“The closer it got to National Signing Day, I started thinking about life past football. I realized I wanted to do Engineering. I started thinking about why I picked Wake. I picked Wake because of the coaches and the other people there. It felt like family. I realized I can’t base my decision on that, because you don’t know how long they are going to be there. I called the UVa coaches the Saturday before Signing Day and asked if I could come up to meet with them. I wanted to make sure I was making the right decision. I met with Coach Fairchild, Coach O’Brien, Coach London and Coach Wachenheim for about two to three hours. The more I thought it about it, I thought about Engineering, staying close to home, playing in front of friends and family, I realized it would be a better decision for me to switch.”

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