Orange’s Hunter stays close to home

ORANGE — Quintin Hunter is a man of few words. But he is a man of action.
And on Wednesday, the Orange County standout was all smiles as he put his four-year plan into writing, signing his official NCAA letter of intent to play football at the University of Virginia.
Hunter, a four-year starter for the Hornets and four-star recruit according to Rivals, made a verbal commitment to the Cavaliers nearly a year ago.
“When I committed, I couldn’t wait for this day to come, and now it’s here,” said Hunter, who donned an orange UVa t-shirt and navy blue UVa hat for the occasion. “It’s a lot off your shoulders because you know you’re officially going somewhere.”
The 6-foot-3, 180-pounder fielded offers from Maryland, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and Stanford, but opted to stay close to home.
He was listed as the country’s No. 22 athlete by Rivals and No. 81 by ESPN and rated the No. 12 player in Virginia by Rivals.
“It means a lot to me [to continue my football career at Virginia],” Hunter said. “I chose the school because of my family — they’re important to me and I want to have every chance in the world for them to come see me.”
As the team’s quarterback, he passed for over 1,000 yards, rushed for over 1,000 yards and recorded 35 total touchdowns last season. Hunter earned first team all-Central Virginia, all-Group AA, all-Region II and all-Jefferson District honors as a defensive back his senior year.
Orange coach John Kayajanian spoke glowingly about Hunter.
“He’s a great kid and a great athlete,” Kayajanian said. “He’s very coachable, he’s got a pleasant personality and gets along with his peers and coaches. As a head coach, you couldn’t ask for anything else. He’s willing to work, and I think he’ll work hard at the next level.”
In his junior campaign, Hunter accounted for 29 touchdowns, as he passed for 2,065 yards and ran for 846 more. As a sophomore, Hunter was used primarily as a wide receiver in the Hornets’ offense led by former quarterback Bradley Starks, now at West Virginia.
“He is a very purposeful, competitive player that has a great personality,” Virginia coach Al Groh said of Hunter. “He is going to have the opportunity to get on the field early here at Virginia.”
Hunter will join 24 other incoming freshmen at Virginia, who officially signed today. Sixteen of those recruits are from the state of Virginia, but none live closer to the Charlottesville campus than Hunter.
For the time being, Hunter is a double-figure scorer for the Hornets basketball team, but in six months time, he will attempt to make the same splash with the Cavaliers that Starks has made in Morgantown, W.Va. for the Mountaineers.
Then, Orange will be blazing at the next level.