After picking up a huge de-commitment from four-star wide receiver Carnell Warren a couple of weeks ago, things have been improving for Virginia Tech football coach Brent Pry with four commitments over the last nine days in the Class of 2026.
On Sunday, three-star cornerback Zaevion Cleveland committed to the Hokies, giving them six commitments in the class, and this was a big one. With Cleveland on board with a verbal commitment, here are three thoughts on him quickly committing after visiting this past weekend.
Class of 2026 slowly coming along
Warren was the second four-star to de-commit from Virginia Tech in the Class of 2026 after quarterback Peyton Falzone de-committed back in November after verbally committing last June. It has been a slow process for Pry in building the class, which is not a good thing going into a pivotal year, but Cleveland caps off a good run over the last nine days.
Cleveland is the second Green Run commitment for Pry after edge Kamren Johnson committed last week. The Green Run to Blacksburg pipeline is continuing, and in-state recruiting is essential for Pry to pick up.
Pry building a solid defensive class
Cleveland is the fourth defensive commitment for Virginia Tech this cycle out of the six commitments they have to date. Joining Cleveland and Johnson on the defensive side of the ball for new defensive coordinator Sam Siefkes are linebacker Joshua Pittman and defensive lineman Kamdon Gillespie. Kicker Will Love and offensive lineman Buddy Wegdam are also committed.
Defense is Pry's background so it's not surprising to see them hit that side of the ball as hard as they are, but the two de-commitments on the offensive side of the ball are tough ones. There is more work to be done on that side of the ball.
Another win over ACC schools
This is another recruiting win for Pry in terms of keeping him away from Duke, Syracuse, and Virginia, who were all after him. Arkansas tried to get him to visit this weekend, but Cleveland kept his visit to Virginia Tech, and it paid off for the Hokies.
Virginia Tech has the smallest committed class in the ACC, and there is a lot of work to do, but getting some commitments over other ACC schools is big. We'll see if Pry can get a flip from Syraucse commit Amare Gough, who was also on campus this past weekend.