Virginia Tech has taken a football commitment from Dewayne Alford, a 6-foot-3, 220-pound defensive end from Nansemond River High School in Suffolk, Va., who is described by his coach as "a diamond in the rough."

Alford spent his sophomore year at Portsmouth Christian, where he played running back before transferring to Nansemond River, where he had 61 tackles as a junior. He has 22 sacks in three seasons, including six last season in one of Virginia's most competitive leagues, the Group AAA Southeastern District.

Nansemond River coach Tracy Parker said Alford has some of the same attributes as Chris Ellis, who played for Parker at Bethel High School in Hampton and enjoyed an outstanding college career as a defensive end for Tech.

"What they both bring to the table is a great burst and speed," said Parker, who also coached Tech defensive back Jimmy Williams at Bethel. "They have an uncanny ability to disrupt plays."

Alford's other offers were from James Madison and Old Dominion and he may have "flown under the radar because he's only been here for one year," Parker said. "A lot of I-A schools were hesitant to pull the trigger but Tech saw what I saw."

Alford runs the 55 meters and 300 meters in indoor track and has a 40-yard time estimated at 4.75 or 4.8 seconds.

Alford, the eighth player to commit to Virginia Tech for the class of 2011, said the Hokies have asked him to "greyshirt" and enroll in January 2012.

"At first, I had to think about that," said Alford, a 3.0 student. "I weighed the pros and cons, but there were actually more pros. This will make it easier to get my master's [degree]."