Like on the offensive side of the ball, Virginia Tech football will have many new faces on defense in 2025. It will start with new defensive coordinator Sam Siefkes, who is replacing Chris Marve, who was one of three coaches fired back in December by head coach Brent Pry.
Several starters are gone from the 2024 unit, whether it was the NFL Draft or the transfer portal. The Hokies added some players in the winter transfer portal who have experience and will step into the lineup next fall. Despite the unit making strides in spring practices, according to Pry, there were still some holes that needed to be filled. Over this past weekend, Virginia Tech got a pair of commitments to help fill some of those needs.
Virginia Tech football adds resources to its defense through the transfer portal
Two transfer portal additions on defense over the weekend were much-needed players for depth. Hawai’i transfer Caleb Brown was one of the better cornerbacks in the portal, and the Alabama native recorded 24 tackles in 2024 and had seven pass breakups this past season.
More importantly, the Hokies added defensive line depth when Georgia Southern defensive lineman, tackle Elhadj Fall. The 6-foot-3, 290-pounder has two years of eligibility remaining, and the Georgia native is coming off a season where he was an All-Sun Belt Conference honorable mention. In 2024 for the Eagles, he recorded 20 tackles, 4.5 for a loss, and 2.5 sacks on 432 snaps. Fall joins tackle transfers Kody Huisman of North Dakota State, Arias Nash of Mercer, and Jahzari Priester of Hampton.
Virginia Tech’s defensive line was a key area last year, where they lost a lot of talent to the NFL, including Antwaun Powell-Ryland to the Philadelphia Eagles and tackle Aeneas Peebles to the Baltimore Ravens. Pry and Siefkes do have Kemari Copeland and Oklahoma tran sfer Kelvin Gilliam who came in through the portal in December of 2023.