When Virginia Tech fired football coach Brent Pry, it opened the Transfer Portal window for the current players. Since the firing happened within the first four weeks, it allowed players to redshirt and save a year of eligibility.
Some players took advantage of that and hit the portal right away. One player who took some time to continue playing before entering the portal was New Mexico transfer Christian Ellis. The talented defensive back played his final game as a Hokie in late September when Virginia Tech traveled to Raleigh to play North Carolina State to open conference play.
That was a memorable final game for Ellis at Virginia Tech. With the Hokies clinging to a 23-21 lead late in the game, the Wolfpack faced a fourth-and-2 near midfield. NC State went for it, and Ellis had a huge pass breakup on NC State tight end Josh Jolly to seal the road upset.
After that game, Ellis announced he was entering the portal, which was a surprise. As it turns out, the bigger surprise was to come.
Virginia Tech transfer Christian Ellis commits to Virginia
Talk about a shocker. Jacquie Franciulli of 247Sports reported that Ellis committed to Virginia in the portal, which is a stunner. He joins a Cavaliers team that made an appearance in the ACC Championship Game, losing to Duke, and had a very strong year under Tony Elliott.
The Jacksonville, Florida native had 160 tackles over three seasons with New Mexico and registered seven with Virginia Tech in 2025 in three games. He has one year of eligibility remaining, and he will be back in Blacksburg Thanksgiving Weekend later this year when Virginia makes the trip for the Commonwealth Cup.
This is a very rare occurrence where someone transfers from one school to another in this bitter rivalry. This will certainly be interesting to see how things go. What a storyline for the 2026 battle between the two schools, which has been completely dominated by Virginia Tech.