Virginia Tech LB Alan Tisdale told reporters today that he plans to use his additional year of eligibility thanks to the free COVID year rule in 2020 and return to Blacksburg next season.
#Hokies linebacker Alan Tisdale says he plans to take his COVID year and return next season.
— Aaron McFarling (@aaronmcfarling) November 16, 2022
The news from Tisdale comes after he was suspended for the first 6 games by the NCAA due to a self-reporting by Tisdale of minor sports betting on the NBA Finals (go to The Athletic to see Andy Bitter's great reporting on that). Since his return, Tisdale has taken back over at will linebacker and played well with 35 tackles including a sack while providing some much-needed consistency at a spot that had seen a mix of young LBs make some big time plays but be fairly inconsistent.
Now what could be interesting is what position Tisdale plays next year as Brent Pry mentioned during fall camp that Tisdale was cross-training some at the mike linebacker spot.
Tech does have a veteran in Keshon Artis who could be solid and Will Johnson is an intriguing prospect, but Tech seems to have more high-upside guys at will especially with Keli Lawson playing well lately. Getting Lawson on the field as a starter in 2023 seems sensible for next season with Tisdale at mike to go with Lawson at will and Keonta Jenkins at sam.
We will have more as this story develops.
