When the horn sounded to end the 2023-24 Virginia Tech men's basketball season in the second round of the NIT at Ohio State, little did anyone know what was coming with a mass exodus out of Blacksburg through the transfer portal. Several key players in Mike Young's rotation left for greener pastures.
Well, so they thought. One of the players who entered the portal, MJ Collins, and he ended up at Vanderbilt in the SEC along with former Hokies teammate Tyler Nickel. Both players were in the rotation for the Commodores and helped them reach the NCAA Tournament. Following the season and after just one season in Nashville, Collins hit the portal again and he has found a new home in the Mountain West Conference.
Former Virginia Tech guard MJ Collins commits to Utah State
After a couple of weeks in the transfer portal, Collins found a new home and committed to Utah State in the Mountain West Conference, which will be his third program in as many years. He joins former Virginia Tech guard Brandon Rechsteiner, who committed to Colorado State earlier this month, in the Mountain West Conference.
In his second year at Virginia Tech in 2023-24, Collins averaged 7.4 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.7 assists a game while shooting 34%. To be fair, his shooting struggled, but it got better as the year went along. In his only year at Vanderbilt, he averaged 7.4 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 0.5 assists a game while shooting 42%. He has 15 points in December back in Blacksburg in an 80-64 Commodores win over the Hokies in the ACC/SEC Challenge.
In this day and age of the transfer portal, it's not surprising to see players change schools multiple times, but Collins should be a versatile addition to the Aggies for next season.