Virginia Football Recruiting Notes: West Weeks Off To Fast Start In 2020

By: Chris Horne |

Because of coronavirus-related postponements or cancellations, most of the University of Virginia football program’s class of 2021 commitments are not playing high school football right now. Some won’t play at all this fall – possibly in the spring, though – while others may be suiting up for their schools in the coming weeks. West Weeks is one of a handful in the class that has played, and so far he is off to a great start.

Weeks, a 6’2”, 220-pound senior who has committed to UVA as a linebacker, has helped 2019 Georgia Class 3A runner-up Oconee County to a 2-0 start. The Warriors opened 2020 with a 27-7 win over North Oconee. Weeks, who is playing quarterback on offense, completed 7-of-11 passes for 104 yards and a touchdown. He added 49 yards rushing and another score. Defensively, the linebacker/safety racked up 10 tackles with a sack and a forced fumble. The Oconee Enterprise named him the Athlete of the Week as a result of his outstanding performance on both sides.

Weeks added a pair of touchdowns and helped the Warrior defense shutdown Cedar Shoals, 35-0, last Friday. West’s brother, Whit Weeks, is a 6’2”, 190-pound sophomore on the Oconee County varsity football team. The younger Weeks enjoyed a nice outing versus Cedar Shoals, contributing a pick-6 and a fumble recovery in the shutout victory.

Last week, Virginia football became the first to offer a scholarship to Whit, who plays running back and strong safety for the Warriors.

Weeks isn’t the only Peach state Cavalier commit who has his school off to an undefeated start. Defensive line prospect Hugh Laughlin and Athens Academy are 1-0, while offensive line prospect Charlie Patterson has helped Fellowship Christian to a 2-0 mark.

Micah Gaffney and the Spanish Fort (AL) defense delivered a shutout of previously unbeaten Robertsdale, 42-0, to improve to 2-2 on the season. Gaffney, a cornerback commitment for the Hoos, tweeted one of his top plays from last week’s win.

UVA linebacker commitment Josh McCarron is leading a movement to get high school football going in Washington state this fall. While hoping and waiting to see the field, McCarron continues to train hard for whenever he takes the field again … whether that’s in high school or after he arrives in Charlottesville.

UVA Commits Out With Injuries

Javin Burke suffered a torn labrum in Bradley Central’s (Cleveland, TN) season opener and will miss the remainder of his senior season, WDEF reported here. The 6’1”, 200-pound standout was the Bears’ starting quarterback but projects as a defensive back or wide receiver at Virginia.

Bradley Central is 3-1 on the season.

Burke is out, but the status of running back pledge Amaad Foston less certain, as John Milledge Academy (Milledgeville, GA) head coach JT Wall indicated the future Cavalier could possibly return in this article by Gil Pound of The Union-Recorder.

“[Foston] suffered a leg injury in early August,” Wall told Pound following his team’s season-opening 43-7 win over Brentwood last Friday. “He’s been rehabbing, and we’re going to re-evaluate him in a few weeks to see where we’re at. He’s getting better and doing a great job of being a great teammate.”

Class Of 2021 Recruiting Updates

If a scholarship offer to Barryn Sorrell is any indication, Virginia is in search for additional defensive line prospects in the class of 2021. Sorrell, a 6’4”, 250-pound senior out of Holy Cross (New Orleans, LA), tweeted the news on Monday (September 14).

Sorrell has been committed to Northwestern since June. He also holds offers from Baylor, Kansas, Louisville, Memphis, Missouri and Vanderbilt, among others.

In other news …

– Virginia offered Appalachian State commitment DaShawn Brown earlier this summer. Based off his tweets, the York (S.C.) native remains firm in his pledge. Still, Virginia has kept up its hot pursuit of the 6’1″, 170-pound wide receiver.

– Uncommitted senior Titus Mokiao-Atimalala has the look of a wide receiver/H-Back type for UVA, which made the Hawaii native’s top 10 that he revealed on September 4.

The 6’1”, 170-pound Mokiao-Atimalala is rated a 4-star prospect by 247Sports and Rivals. Experts from both national outlets project Notre Dame as the favorite at this point.

– Here is a rundown of Virginia class of 2021 targets – some who were still being actively pursued, some not – who have committed elsewhere recently. Click here for our 2021 Target Board for a full rundown of the status of those senior prospects who at one point or another claimed an offer from Virginia.

RB Tavierre Dunlap (Michigan commit)
TE Carter Evans (Eastern Michigan commit)
OL Jack Leyrer (Stanford commit)
OL Brandon Mackinnon (Northern Illinois commit)
OL Ezra Oyetade (Arizona State commit)
OL Nolan Rucci (Wisconsin commit)
OL Kingsley Suamataia (Oregon commit)
DL Ryan Keeler (Rutgers commit)
DL Zyun Reeves (NC State commit)