HARRISONBURG — Virginia Tech athletic director Jim Weaver said Friday the Hokies are happy in the Atlantic Coast Conference and are not pursuing a move. He’s also not worried about Clemson or Florida State jumping ship and leaving the ACC for the simplest of reasons. Weaver said he trusts his fellow ADs when they tell him they’re committed to the league.

“The thing about communicating with the ADs in our league is, I believe we can take their word for gospel,” Weaver said Friday. “If they tell us there’s nothing to it then I believe them. They’re not going to lie to us.”

Weaver said he doesn’t get too caught up in all the realignment and expansion rumors that run rampant on the internet.

“I don’t,” Weaver said. “I don’t pay any attention to it until I’ve had some direct communication about it. It helps me get my work done.”

Weaver shot down rumors that Virginia Tech had sent out feelers to the Big 12 about moving to that conference.

“I can tell you I have not talked to anybody about relocation,” Weaver said. “Nobody whatsoever. But people write that stuff just to keep the topic hot.”

Weaver said Virginia Tech is happy in the ACC, satisfied with the league’s new television contract with ESPN and shot down the notion that the league is rapidly becoming a basketball league in a football-driven landscape of college sports.

“I think the conference is in good shape,” Weaver said. “We obviously have 12 current members that will soon go to 14 with the addition of Pittsburgh and Syracuse. There’s no question in my mind that we’re in the right place for Virginia Tech to be. We’ve always wanted to be in the Atlantic Coast Conference since it began in 1953. We’ve seen there now for eight years. We like the philosophical approach and balance the conference offers with regards to its academics and athletics.”

BLACKSBURG – Adam Smith’s transfer to Virginia Tech from UNC Wilmington became official Tuesday, the Hokies announced.

“We are extremely excited to have Adam join our program,” new Tech coach James Johnson said in a statement released by the school. “He had his best games against the best teams. Obviously, he played well against ACC opponents. He is a guy that can score the basketball in a lot of different ways. He is an excellent student who is going to be a great asset to our team.”

Smith, a 6-foot-1, 161-pound combination guard, played one season at UNC Wilmington, will sit out the coming year at Virginia Tech and have three years of eligibility remaining with the Hokies.

The Jonesboro, Ga., native was a starter as a freshman and was second on the Seahawks in scoring last season. He averaged 13.7 points per game and led the team with 58 3-pointers.

Smith did not return phone calls Tuesday.

New Virginia Tech assistant Mark Byington recruited Smith when Byington was on the staff at the College of Charleston.

“The number one thing he can do is score the ball in different ways,” Byington said Tuesday. “Very good shooter. He’s aggressive. He’s good at using ball screens. He can make a play for himself. Make a play for someone else, too. But offensively he has a lot of ability.”

An opposing coach echoed Byington’s assessment of Smith’s offensive prowess.

“He’s a young guy with explosive scoring ability,” James Madison coach Matt Brady said. “I think he’s got the potential to develop into a very good basketball player. He had some great games. Like most freshman he was a little up and down. He had some really tremendous outings.”

Brady’s JMU team faced Smith twice last season.

Against the Dukes, Smith didn’t exactly light things up.

On Jan. 18 at home, Smith managed just five points in 25 minutes against JMU in a 69-61 loss. Then, in the first round of the CAA tournament, Smith scored 12 points in 30 minutes during a Seahawks’ 70-59 victory.

But against some of the top competition he faced, Smith excelled.

He scored 32 in a loss to Wake and 23 in a defeat by Maryland.

CHRISTIANSBURG – Virginia Tech placekicker Cody Journell accepted a plea agreement, was found guilty on a misdemeanor charge of trespassing and was sentenced to 100 hours of community service and one year of probation Monday.

Journell, a rising junior, also received 365 days of jail time, with 355 of it suspended. He has already been credited for time served for the remaining 10.

Journell, clad in a dark suit with a purple shirt and striped tie, left the Montgomery County General District Court without commenting, except to say he hoped to hear from the Virginia Tech athletic department in “a week or so” regarding his status with the football team.

“Cody was at the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong people,” Journell’s Radford-based attorney, Jimmy Turk, said. “He’s happy to have it all behind him.”

Journell entered a plea of not guilty but stipulated that the facts were considerable enough to result in a conviction to an amended trespassing charge, a Class 1 misdemeanor.

Journell had been charged with breaking and entering, a Class 2 felony, in late December and has been suspended from the Hokies’ team since then.

Journell, Matt Dunton and Matthew Brady, all faced charges after an incident on Dec. 21.

According to testimony given later Monday, a fourth man drove Journell, Dunton and Brady to the apartment of former Virginia Tech basketball player Dorenzo Hudson. Dunton went to the front door carrying a pizza box and a BB gun to retrieve marijuana that had been stolen from him by one ofHudson’s roommates.

Turk denied that drugs were involved in Journell’s case.

“There wasn’t any marijuana,” Turk said. “There is no marijuana. Cody’s not involved with narcotics.”

But after Journell and Dunton had their plea agreements certified by Judge Gino Williams, the court heard arguments in the case against Brady, who rejected a deal similar to Journell’s.

Hudson, a senior on Virginia Tech’s basketball team this past season, testified that Dunton came to his house posing as a pizza delivery man, entered the residence and began brandishing what appeared to be a firearm.Hudsonsaid Journell and Brady then entered the apartment, with Brady shouting “Where is he?” and Journell running upstairs.

Hudsonsaid he the three men left when he threatened to call the police.

After hearing arguments from both sides, Williams certified the felony charge against Brady of breaking and entering with an intent to commit assault, to the July grand jury.

Brady and Hudson both testified that Brady is suing Hudson for $125,000 for an assault that occurred shortly after the incident. But Williams limited what testimony could be heard Monday about that assault and lawsuit.

Assistant commonwealth’s attorney Patrick Jensen told Williams he was willing to amend the charges for Journell and Dunton because the weapon in question turned out to be a BB gun and because Hudson supported the deals.

“I just wanted to get it over with,” said Hudson, who signed with an agent Monday and hopes to play professionally in Europe.

Journell’s attorney said the gun being a BB gun and not an actual firearm was a key factor.

“That’s a huge consideration,” Turk said. “A real gun versus a little toy is a huge consideration.”

Jensen declined to comment.

Journell went 14-for-17 on field goal tries as the Hokies’ starter last season, earning honorable mention all-ACC honors. But he was suspended for the team’s Sugar Bowl loss toMichiganbecause of this case.

Turk expects his client to be re-instated to the football team shortly.

“I would think so, just based on what I have known Tech to do in the past,” Turk said. ”A Class 1 misdemeanor is a relatively minor infraction. Based on what I have known Tech to do in the past, I would be very surprised if he’s not back on the team.”

BLACKSBURG– Virginia Tech kicker Cody Journell will be in court today to accept a deal that will allow him to avoid jail time and could clear the way for his reinstatement to the Hokies’ football team, Jimmy Turk, Journell’s attorney, said Monday morning.

Journell will plead not guilty but stipulate that the facts are considerable enough to result in a conviction to an amended trespassing charge, a Class 1 misdemeanor.

Journell had been charged with breaking and entering, a Class 2 felony, in late December and has been suspended from the team since then.

“Cody’s very relieved to get all this behind him,” Turk said Monday morning. “Obviously it’s been a long five months. He’s happy to get back to focusing on school and football.”

Turk said, under the terms of the agreement, Journell won’t serve any more jail time, will perform 100 hours of community service and be on probation for one year.

The deal will be finalized when Journell appears in Montgomery County General District Court this afternoon.

On Dec. 22, Journell and two other men, Matthew Brady and Matthew Dunton, were originally charged with breaking and entering. The Commonwealth’s Attorney said the trio broke into the residence of a Virginia Tech basketball player on Dec. 21, seeking to retrieve stolen marijuana.

During the incident, prosecutors said Dunton brandished a firearm. That was later reported to be a BB gun.

Turk said both of Journell’s co-defendants are expected to accept deals that avoid jail time when they appear in court today as well.

Journell, a rising junior, went 14-for-17 on field goal tries as the Hokies’ starter last season, earning honorable mention all-ACC honors. But he was suspended for the team’s Sugar Bowl loss toMichiganbecause of this case.

Turk expects his client to be re-instated to the football team shortly.

“I would think so, just based on what I have known Tech to do in the past,” Turk said. ”A Class 1 misdemeanor is relatively minor infraction. Based on what I have known Tech to do in the past, I would be very surpsied if he’s not back on the team.”

BLACKSBURG - Looks like Virginia Tech’s baseball and softball seasons ended over the weekend.

A young Hokies softball squad opened the program’s first NCAA regional since 2008 with a pair of wins, beating UAB on Friday and Miami of Ohio Saturday. It needed one win in two games against host Tennessee on Sunday, but was swept 2-1 and 10-2.

Tech finished the year 42-21.

The baseball team was swept three games at North Carolina, finishing ninth in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The top eight teams make the ACC tourney. The Hokies lost five of their final seven games to finish 34-21 overall and 11-19 in the league.

It would appear unlikely they’ll be an at-large selection to the NCAA tournament.