Conference realignment has once again been a hot topic the past few weeks, but Virginia Tech Athletic Director Jim Weaver has done his best to dispel the notion that the Hokies are looking to leave the ACC.

On Wednesday, Weaver reiterated what he said last fall when rumors popped up that Virginia Tech could be invited to join the Southeastern Conference soon, saying the Hokies have no plans to go anywhere right now and have not spoken with any other conference about switching leagues.

“Our current position is we’re very happy where we are in the Atlantic Coast Conference,” Weaver said on the SiriusXM radio show, CFB Playbook. “We’ve wanted to be here in the conference since the conference was started in 1953. We’re right smack in the middle of the footprint of the conference. We like the philosophical approach of academics and athletics that the conference employs. And I don’t believe there’s gonna be any movement at this juncture. We’re pleased where we are.”

Virginia Tech place kicker Cody Journell, who was charged in December with felony breaking-and-entering, has reached a plea agreement that will lower the charge to a Class One misdemeanor, his lawyer confirmed Monday. The deal opens the door for Journell to be reinstated to the Hokies’ football team before next season.

Journell, 20, will plead guilty to misdemeanor trespassing in Montgomery County General District Court in Christiansburg, Va., Monday afternoon, when he is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing, said Journell’s attorney, Jimmy Turk.

Turk said his client will not serve any additional jail time but will be on probation for one year and must complete 100 hours of community service. According to Virginia Tech athletic department policy, a felony conviction would have resulted in Journell’s permanent dismissal from the football team.

After the first two weeks of his tenure as Virginia Tech men’s basketball coach were defined by two high-profile defections, James Johnson got some reinforcements Wednesday afternoon. Former UNC Wilmington guard Adam Smith has orally committed to transfer to Virginia Tech, Smith’s AAU Coach, Lee Aldridge, confirmed Thursday morning.

Smith was the top freshman scorer in the CAA, averaging 13.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game, and earned a spot on the all-CAA rookie team last year. He chose the Hokies over suitors like Arkansas, Northwestern and Murray State, Aldridge said.

Aldridge added that Smith’s choice was due in part to the fact that new Virginia Tech assistants Mark Byington and Ramon Williams, as well as Johnson, had all recruited Smith at some point during his high school days. Smith also has interest in becoming an engineer, Aldridge said.

Smith must sit out next season because of NCAA transfer rules but will have three years of eligibility remaining when he steps onto the court at Cassell Coliseum for the 2013-14 season.

The Virginia Tech men’s basketball hasn’t had much success over the years in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, but the Hokies will face the one opponent they’ve been able to beat when the 2012 version of the event tips off next season.

Virginia Tech will face Iowa at Cassell Coliseum on Nov. 27, ESPN announced Monday afternoon, the third time the two programs have met since the Hokies joined the ACC in 2004. Virginia Tech is 2-5 in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, with both wins coming over Iowa in 2006 and 2009.

In last year’s challenge, the Hokies lost at Minnesota, 58-55, in a game that was marred by a controversial back-court violation ruling involving guard Robert Brown. The Big Ten later admitted that the official “misapplied” a rule in the situation.

Virginia Tech Athletic Director Jim Weaver hoped that hiring new men’s basketball coach James Johnson would help the program avoid the roster turmoil usually associated with a coaching change. But four days after freshman Dorian Finney-Smith informed Hokies officials of his desire to transfer to another school, Virginia Tech found out Thursday it will now also lose its top incoming recruit.

Hargrave Military Academy forward Montrezl Harrell has asked Virginia Tech for a release from his national letter-of-intent, Coach James Johnson confirmed Friday morning. Harrell’s father let the Hokies know about his son’s decision, which leaves Virginia Tech with just eight scholarship players next season.

Johnson realizes there might be a perception about his hiring out there now that Virginia Tech has seen its highest-rated recruits from the past two years go elsewhere, but that hasn’t deterred him during his first week on the job. In fact, the unexpected turnover has only reinforced what the coach has been saying since he took over the program.