Eddie Royal

An electrifying athlete, Eddie Royal wasn't able to fully display his ability as a wide receiver at Virginia Tech. The Hokies were limited for much of the season by inconsistent quarterback play. Royal did get to show off his skills in other areas and established himself as the premier punt returner in the Atlantic Coast Conference. He also excelled as a kickoff returner and proved to be a dangerous threat running out of the backfield. Royal holds the rare distinction of throwing a touchdown, catching 12 scoring passes, rushing for a touchdown and returning three punts for scores during his career. It was also rare to see a receiver become a school's career leader in all-purpose yards, but Royal is one of the few -- amassing 4,698 yards. His 1,296 punt returns established a new Atlantic Coast Conference career-record. At Westfield High School, Royal earned All-State honors as both a receiver and kick returner. He was named the Mid-Atlantic Offensive Player of the Year by Super Prep .and selected the Group AAA Player of the Year by the Associated Press. He was the Washington Post All-Metro Offensive Player of the Year and earned both Super Prep and Prep Star All-American honors following his senior season. Royal was rated the best player in Virginia by Super Prep and the second-best player by The Roanoke Times, in addition to ranking 13th in the nation among wide receivers, according to Rivals.com. He teamed with fellow Virginia Tech signee, QB Sean Glennon to lead his team to the Group AAA Division 6 championship with a 14-0 record as a senior. That year, he had 41 receptions for 875 yards and 11 touchdowns. He added a 47-yard punt return for a touchdown and a 1-yard scoring run on a reverse in the state title game. As a junior, he hauled in 48 passes as a junior for 905 yards and 11 touchdowns. For his career, he returned 10 kicks for touchdowns. Royal arrived at Virginia Tech and quickly established himself, both on the field and in the training room. The Freshman All-American started 11 games at flanker, leading the team with 28 receptions for 470 yards (16.8-yard average) and three touchdowns. He averaged 11.0 yards on 25 punt returns and had the eighth-best kickoff-return average (28.8) in the country, gaining 346 yards on 12 tries, finishing with 1,101 all-purpose yards. He also set a position record with a 365-pound bench press. As a sophomore, Royal missed spring drills with a left leg compartment syndrome, but went on to start all thirteen games. He ranked third on the team with 27 catches for 315 yards (11.7 avg) and two touchdowns. He rushed ten times for 79 yards and gained 263 yards on 32 punt returns (8.2-yard average). He also piled up 293 yards on 14 kickoff returns, despite being hampered late in the year by hamstring issues. In 2006, Royal earned All-Atlantic Coast Conference second-team and All-American honorable mention. He led the ACC and ranked 12th nationally with a 13.2-yard average on 23 punt returns, adding 431 yards on 19 kickoff returns (22.7-yard average). He gained 24 yards on five carries and finished third on the squad with 31 catches for 497 yards (16-yard average) and three touchdowns while starting nine of 13 games. Royal was a second-team All-American and first-team All-ACC punt returner in 2007, ranking 10th in the nation as he led the league with 31 punt returns for 455 yards (14.7-yard average) and two scores. He gained 316 yards on 14 kickoff returns, 496 yards and four scores on 33 receptions (15.0 avg) and 112 yards on eight rushing attempts (14.0 avg). In 51 games at Virginia Tech, Royal started 44 contests. He ranks fourth in school annals with 119 receptions, sixth with 1,778 yards (14.9-yard average) and fifth with 12 touchdown catches. He rushed 24 times for 226 yards (9.4 avg) and a score, as he also completed 1-of-5 passes for 53 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. He returned 111 punts for a school career-record 1,296 yards (11.7 avg) and three scores. He added 1,386 yards on 59 kickoff returns (24.5 avg) and holds the Tech record with 4,686 all-purpose yards.

positives

Has a well-built upper body with a tight abdomen, good muscle thickness in his chest, back, shoulders and arms and valid timed speed to threaten the deep secondary...Best on controlled routes, as he is slippery getting under defenders and finding the soft areas on the field...Does a nice job of working back when the quarterback is pressured...Relies a lot on his quickness in and out of his breaks to gain separation...Will trap the ball at times, but shows soft hands and good vision to look the ball in over his outside shoulder...Despite his explosive speed, he is patient letting blocks develop on returns...Does a good job of moving laterally to avoid tackles and has a short pitter-patter running style to elude in space...Will lose his concentration at times, but is a tough, fearless receiver combating for the ball in a crowd...Likes to get the ball in pressure situations and has a keen knowledge of defensive coverage...Can sneak up on a cornerback to gobble up the cushion and get behind the defender in an instant...Hard worker in the weight room and has a good grasp of the playbook...The staff feels his knowledge and love for the game will make him a coaching candidate one day...Shows good body tilt and lean, along with the burst and acceleration to surprise a lethargic defender, showing good stutter-step moves with above-average balance in attempts to escape after the catch...Has the ability to eat up the cushion with his speed and does a nice job of dropping his pads and exploding out of his cuts (will drift on long patterns)...Can generate power in his running stride, using effective head-and-shoulder fakes while stemming and stabbing to set up the defenders...Has a nice set of gears that he uses to change the pace of his running stride...Makes good body adjustments to get under the ball and is quick to find the soft spot in coverage...Will go vertical and lay out to haul in the ball near the sideline...Adjusts well underneath and can take a shot and hold on to the ball when working in traffic...Makes a good effort to snatch the ball at his shoestrings or extend to reach and pluck at its high point...Has natural hands and while he will trap at times, he shows ease of movement with his arm extension...Has the body control to adjust to off-target tosses and shows good vision and run instincts...Times his leaps well and has the quick burst to separate...Good pester-type blocker in the open, doing a nice job of taking defenders off their feet with cut blocks (needs more bulk to sustain when blocking in-line, though)...Shows a good wiggle and quick feet to get past the initial tackler and when he maintains focus on the ball, he will come up with some spectacular aerial grabs...Has the leaping ability to explode in his jumps to reach the high point...Has the vision to locate defenders, making his an efficient runner on screens and reverses...Has the upper-body strength to break arm tackles...Also shows a decent arm to throw the option pass.

compares to

ROSCOE PARRISH-Buffalo...Royal is much stronger than Parrish, but both are excellent speed merchants who will have great success as returners. Royal has the ability to be a good vertical threat, but needs to refine his route running. He is a good cut blocker, but despite his upper-body strength, he struggles vs. a strong press and will get frustrated when he can't get a clean release. Still, he is a playmaker who will be a nice fit as a slot receiver while handling return chores.

negatives

Has a strong build, but his frame is at maximum growth potential, leaving no room for needed additional bulk...Has a muscular upper body, but possesses a small bubble and just adequate thickness in his thighs and hamstrings...Has very good timed speed, but is inconsistent getting a sudden burst off the snap...Despite his upper-body strength, he struggles to avoid getting a clean release vs. press coverage, which causes him to get redirected in his routes too often for a player with his power...An inconsistent route-runner who will drift on deep routes and takes soft-angle cuts when going long distances...Is more effective on controlled and short-area routes, but needs to be more consistent when attempting to plant and drive to gain separation...Tough player, but will have some concentration lapses, along with a penchant for trapping the ball, leading to a share of dropped balls...Can make the initial tackler miss when working in space, but is not a very shifty route runner and needs to be more crisp in his turns coming out of his breaks...Scrappy cut blocker with a good concept for taking angles to stalk second level defenders, but because of size issues, he can be walked back into the pocket when trying to block in-line...Has had some minor injury problems, leading to some durability concerns...Must do a better job extending for the ball, as he likes to let it into his body too often (has just adequate hands)...Good competitor, but will get frustrated when he can't escape the jam to get into his route (lets that affect him for several plays, getting take out of his game).

2004: Missed most of the first half of the West Virginia game (10/02) with a slight concussion...Did not play vs. Florida A&M (10/16) due to flu-like symptoms. 2005: Sat out spring practices with compartment syndrome in his left leg...Sat out most of the Miami game (11/05) with a hamstring pull. 2006: Suffered a big toe sprain vs. Northeastern (9/02). 2007: Suffered a calf bruise that forced him to miss most of the Georgia Tech (11/01) clash and the entire Florida State game (11/10).

Campus: 4.36 in the 40-yard dash (ran a personal best 4.22 during 2006 spring drills)

Holds the school position record with a 390-pound bench press

450-pound squat

270-pound power clean

39-inch vertical jump

31-inch arm length

8 5/8-inch hands

Right-handed

21/29 Wonderlic score. Combine: 4.39 in the 40-yard dash

1.48 10-yard dash

2.55 20-yard dash

Bench pressed 225 pounds 24 times

36-inch vertical jump

11.66 60-yard shuttle

10'4" broad jump.

Attended Westfield (Chantilly, Va.) High School, playing football for head coach Tom Verbanic

Earned All-State honors as both a receiver and kick returner

Named the Mid-Atlantic Offensive Player of the Year by Super Prep and selected the Group AAA Player of the Year by the Associated Press

Washington Post All-Metro Offensive Player of the Year and earned both Super Prep and Prep Star All-American honors following his senior year

Rated the best player in Virginia by Super Prep and the second-best player by The Roanoke Times, in addition to ranking 13th in the nation among wide receivers, according to Rivals.com

Teamed with fellow Virginia Tech signee, QB Sean Glennon to lead his team to the Group AAA Division 6 championship with a 14-0 record as a senior

That year, he had 41 receptions for 875 yards and 11 touchdowns

Added a 47-yard punt return for a touchdown and a 1-yard scoring run on a reverse in the state title game

As a junior, he hauled in 48 passes as a junior for 905 yards and 11 touchdowns

For his career, he returned ten kicks for touchdowns.

Sociology major

Son of Pearl Royal

Born William Edward Royal on 5/21/86 in Alexandria, Virginia

Resides in Herndon, Virginia.