CHARLOTTESVILLE- Connor Miles probably won’t see the field this year for the University of Virginia, but he’s an integral part of the football team’s practices. Kicker Alec Vozenilek was prepared to follow Mike London to the University of Richmond, before reconsidering and heading to Virginia. And Drequan Hoskey will star on U.Va.’s track team next spring, but he’s trying out for the football team to see if he’s got what it takes.

All three players are among the Cavaliers’ walk-ons who attended high schools in the Richmond area. Their stories offer a glimpse into the kind of players it takes to fill a college football roster, which can total more than 100.

Of the three, Miles is the only one who is not a freshman. He’s a senior who specialized in baseball at Hanover High. He attended Virginia Tech for a year before transferring to Virginia
for academic reasons— he’s a graduate student in environmental science.

“It’s something I always wanted to do,” he said of football. “I knew a couple guys on the team, and they said, ‘Hey, come on out.’ ”

He trained all winter with an emphasis on speed, knowing London was looking for that quality, and earned a spot during a spring tryout. Miles works out with the fullbacks during practices. He said that he’s having a lot of fun, but that his main goal is to “make the team better” by competing at a high level.

Vozenilek, the kicker, has the best chance of seeing action in a game for the Wahoos, though it likely won’t happen this year. The St. Christopher’s graduate attended a camp at UR for kickers, where he caught London’s eye. He never committed to the Spiders, and when London moved to U.Va., he jumped at the opportunity to join him at an ACC school.

“It’s been great, and the other guys have been really welcoming,” he said. Vozenilek still is finding his place on the team—he’s a kicker and a punter—but he’ll have time to figure that out, as the Cavs have established starters at both spots entering this year.

For Hoskey, the road to Charlottesville involved running. He was recruited out of Henrico High on a track
scholarship but also given the opportunity to work out and try to play his way onto the football team. NCAA rules allow him to do that without his athletic scholarship counting against the football team, though if he were to play in a game, he would count against the team’s limit.

“He’s trying out for football, and we’re going to see if he can help us,” London said. “He can run.”

Walk-ons are a big part of any football team, to help out with practices and provide depth in case of injuries,
and it’s natural that they would come from near the school.

Cornerback Chris Broadnax (Cosby), receiver Eric Thornton (Henrico), fullback
Billy Scrobacz (Deep Run) and wide receiver Matt Snyder (Deep Run) are among those who joined the team as walk-ons from the area. The others can take inspiration from Snyder, who played his way into a starting spot last year at wide receiver and is now on scholarship.

Michael Phillips is a staff writer for the Richmond Times Dispatch.