Elijah Howard
Athlete, Class of 2021
Baylor School, Chattanooga, TN
5-11, 192

One of the final additions to Virginia Tech’s 2021 recruiting class came in the 11th hour. On Dec. 15, the day before National Signing Day, Baylor (Tenn.) three-star athlete Elijah Howard literally wasn’t sure what he would do the next day.

Howard, originally from Webb School in Knoxville (Tenn.), had been committed to Tennessee since June 25. But having kept up with assistant coach Adam Lechtenberg for the past couple of years, Howard had second thoughts. In the span of a few hours, he flipped from the Volunteers to the Hokies and signed the next day. Now, Howard said he’s ready for whatever Virginia Tech has planned for him, on either side of the ball.

“I had a long conversation with my parents,” he said. “I was talking to them throughout the day, talking to Coach Lechtenberg all that morning. They had that meeting right before Coach (Justin) Fuente had the press conference. We were trying to get everything finalized, get the paperwork done, and when it was all in, I was ready to come to Virginia Tech.”

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