Ellies trims list, including Virginia Tech

It's list-narrowing season during the Summer Dead Period, and that means plenty of recruits are trimming it down. Owings Mills (Md.) McDonogh 2019 defensive tackle D'Von Ellies is down to four schools, including Virginia Tech:

Ohio State, Rutgers, and West Virginia join the Hokies on his list of finalists, and will be the competition going forward. The No. 6 player in Maryland and No. 18 defensive tackle nationally is a former high school teammates of incoming freshman quarterback Dejuan Ellis, and comes from a pipeline area for VT.

That means plenty of connections to the 6-3, 280-pound four-star coming out of Blacksburg. VT already has a pair of defensive linemen in the class, but one or both of Mario Kendricks Jr. and Norell Pollard could bump out to defensive end if the coaching staff were to reel in a top interior talent like Ellies.

He has not announced plans for further narrowing his list or making his college commitment.