Virginia Tech football garnered a commitment from South Carolina defensive back D.Q. Smith . Smith gained eligibility due to a temporary restraining order (TRO) granted by a Louisiana court.
In four years at South Carolina, Smith has logged 141 solo tackles (228 total), three forced fumbles, 4.5 tackles for loss five interceptions and 12 pass deflections. In Virginia Tech's matchup against South Carolina, Smith logged six tackles, all but one which was unassisted.
Smith entered the transfer portal on Aug. 23 and has committed to the Hokies nine days after his entrance. The 6-foot-1, 219-pound defensive back has started 45 games and tied teammate Justin Okoronkwo for the team lead in tackles with 64 in 2025. He also posted eight tackles against LSU and Ole Miss.
At the time of writing, Virginia Tech now has nine safeties on its roster: Smith, redshirt senior Tyson Flowers seniors Jordan Bass and Sherrod Covil, redshirt sophomore Quentin Reddish, sophomores Knahlij Harrell, Brennan Johnson and Sheldon Robinson, and freshman Tyrell Grant Jr.
Head coach James Franklin touched on the question of pursuing Class of 2022 athletes during Monday's press conference; he had previously touched onto the fact that the team would pursue the avenue given that other teams have done so.
"That's a little bit why we're waiting to update our rosters until Friday," Franklin said. "Because, now with the 105, that's when your roster has to be set. So, it doesn't really make sense to give you guys or put something out today that could change by Friday. ... I've been very transparent since I got here that we were going to create competition at every single position and they needed to embrace that.
"For the most part, our guys have really done a really good job of that... But this is the nature of college football now, and you have to embrace all those things... You do your homework, you do your due diligence the best you possibly can."
Smith went undrafted and was given a tryout by the Minnesota Vikings , but he did not sign an NFL contract.
Smith is the fourth defensive back in the class, joining cornerbacks Cam Chadwick , Jaquez White and Kenny Woseley Jr.
Here's the updated list of Virginia Tech transfer portal commitments with Smith's entrance into the fold:
QB Bryce Baker
RB Bill Davis
WR Jeff Exinor
WR Que'Sean Brown
TE Matt Henderson
OL Justin Bell
OL Logan Howland
OL Michael Troutman
OOL Justin Terry
DL Daniel Jennings
DL Javion Hilson
DL Eric Mensah
DL Cortez Harris
DL Mylachi Williams
DL Randy Adirika
LB Keon Wylie
DB Cam Chadwick
DB Jaquez White
DB Kenny Woseley Jr.
DB D.Q. Smith
P Nathan Totten
Virginia Tech's 2026 season starts in four days against VMI on Saturday, Sept. 5. The contest starts at 7:30 p.m. ET, will be available for viewing on the ACC Network and will be the first meeting between the two programs since the 1984 season.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/virginiatech as Virginia Tech Earns Commitment From South Carolina DB DQ Smith .
