This is suddenly an impactful weekend in determining the complexion of Virginia Tech's 2019 defensive back recruiting. Yesterday evening, 757 prospect Sheridan Jones committed to Clemson:
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That's been the expectation for a while, and the destination became obvious when he set his commitment date for yesterday - it was immediately on the heels of a visit for the Clemson spring game.
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VT was the (very) early favorite fir Jones, but had faded a bit by the time he reclassified from the 2020 class to 2019 (in no small part thanks to losing a pledge from close friend Tayvion Land about a year ago). The Hokies couldn't seem to re-establish traction, and needed an extended process to have a shot: they didn't get it. They'll observe this one from afar but unless something changes on his end (or Clemson's) without VT being involved, they won't get back into the mix.
The other news to come will be in the form of Alexandria (Va.) Episcopal safety Litchfield Ajavon. The moment of truth is 3:00 p.m.
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The 6-0, 185-pound four-star will make his college commitment this evening. Michigan (which faded after he had to cancel a visit aa few weeks back), Notre Dame, and Virginia Tech are considered the top contenders... but I'd be at least a little surprised if it ended up being a program other than Notre Dame.
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Virginia Tech actually made a decent late run here, but the fact that neither prospect nor coaching staff had the other at the very top of the board is telling in each direction. Again, this is one that, if it opens back up down the road without VT involvement, they would get back into the mix (and there's still a chance that the Hokies' dark-horse run with a couple visits over the course of the Spring makes them the choice, but that is not the expectation for me or the coaches).
So what's next for the Hokies at the position group? With a true DB (Nyquee Hawkins) and three Ath/WR types (Elijah Bowick, Jahad Carter, and Mike Sainristil) already in the fold, they can be pretty selective at this point. The positions of the three athletes might depend more upon which spot VT has success right now - say, if they were to land Rivals100 receiver DeMarcco Hellams, one or more would be more likely a DB than a receiver - so there's plenty of flexibility as things stand right now.
With a smaller class expected, that flexibility is paramount.
