Division II All-American CB Shon Stephens remains one of the best defensive players available in the transfer portal with Power 5 programs across the country continuing to be interested in him including Virginia Tech.
Stephens told us that he has scheduled a visit to Virginia Tech on April 8th along with a visit to UCLA on April 1st. He's also actively receiving interest from Rutgers, Indiana, and Troy with the 2022 Sun Belt champs also working to set up a visit.
Stephens having Power 5 interest shouldn't come as a surprise after he was a DII First Team All-American for West Liberty this past season with 37 tackles including 3 for loss plus 8 interceptions and 14 pass deflections. Stephens previously shared a lot about how the adversity that he has overcome to reach this point in his football career which you can read more on here.
It may seem as a surprise that the Hokies are looking at another cornerback given the addition of Derrick Canteen who has fit in well at the nickel cornerback. However, Stephens would boost Tech's depth further and give the Hokies more time to ensure Cam Johnson is fully recovered from injury while taking pressure off a true freshman like Antonio Cotman Jr from having to be a two-deep guy immediately (though Cotman has looked promising in spring practice).
He could also allow the Hokies to move some guys around when they want to go very man coverage heavy given that Mansoor Delane has spent some time at safety in the past and could move to safety with Dorian Strong, Canteen, and Stephens as the three cornerbacks in man-heavy nickel formations or those 4 at CB in dime packages. Stephens also would bring even more competition into a loaded cornerback room that may be the deepest position on the roster if they land Stephens.
CBs coach Derek Jones has been leading the charge with Stephens telling us that he was in contact with Jones as recently as yesterday. He also added that he has a "pretty good" relationship with the Hokies' CBs coach with "contact consistently since I entered the portal."
Looking ahead, Stephens told us that he is currently looking at making his decision in May though it could be earlier depending on how well his currently scheduled visits go. He had this to say about what the key factors will be in his decision.
"Definitely have to be on the field! That’s the main thing! Then whoever is showing the most favor towards me of course," Stephens said.
Virginia Tech has strengthened their roster through the transfer portal already this offseason with their focus on further improvement and more competition even at a deep position like CB with Shon Stephens. However, the Hokies have plenty of strong competition to stave off to land him.
