Former Virginia Tech linebacker Isi Etute enters transfer portal

Virginia Tech linebacker Isi Etute is soon to become a former Hokie after entering his name into the transfer portal. According to On3’s Matt Zenitz, the former three-star recruit has elected to transfer from the program just days after he was found not guilty of second-degree murder.

Etute was found not guilty in late May in the beating death of Jerry Smith after a three-day trial in Montgomery County Circuit Court, per The Roanoke Times. Etute was facing a sentence of five to 40 years in prison if convicted. The jury began deliberations at 3:00 p.m. EST and returned with a verdict just before 6:30 p.m. EST.

While the trial going on, Etute was removed from the team and team functions. Now that that situation is resolved, he can continue on with his football career. Etute has begun the search for a new home.

According to the On3 Consensus Rankings for the 2021 cycle, the three-star linebacker was ranked as the No. 144 linebacker in America. He played both defensive end and safety for Cox High School (Virginia Beach, Virginia). His junior season was the first season that he primarily played linebacker. The Hokies’ coaching staff saw potential in him at that position, decided to offer in the summer of 2020, and it didn’t take long for him to accept.

Transfer portal background information 

The NCAA Transfer Portal, which covers every NCAA sport at the Division I, II and III levels, is a private database with names of student-athletes who wish to transfer. It is not accessible to the public.

The process of entering the portal is done through a school’s compliance office. Once a player provides written notification of an intent to transfer, the office enters the player’s name in the database and everything is off and running. The compliance office has 48 hours to comply with the player’s request and that request cannot be refused.

Once a player’s name shows up in the portal, other schools can contact the player. Players can change their minds at any point and withdraw from the portal. However, once a player enters the portal, the current scholarship no longer has to be honored. In other words, if a player enters the portal but decides to stay, the school is not obligated to provide a scholarship anymore.

The database is a normal database, sortable by a variety of topics, including (of course) sport and name. A player’s individual entry includes basic details such as contact info, whether the player was on scholarship and whether the player is transferring as a graduate student.

A player can ask that a “do not contact” tag be placed on the report. In those instances, the players don’t want to be  contacted by schools unless they’ve initiated the communication.