NORFOLK Darrius Jones turned down a football scholarship offer from the University of Richmond, so the Norview senior was not among the dozens of area high school football players who last week signed national letters of intent. But Jones, a standout wide receiver and defensive back, didn't opt for another football program.

The NFL released the final invitation list for its scouting combine later this month and six Virginia Tech and Virginia players are on it. Former Hokies running back David Wilson and cornerback Jayron Hosley were added. The original one included only seniors and none of the record 65 underclassmen who declared for the draft.

It's unclear when Pittsburgh and Syracuse will become members of the ACC, but the league knows how it will accommodate them when they do. The ACC announced Friday that Pittsburgh will play in the Coastal Division in football and Syracuse in the Atlantic, with the two soon-to-be-former Big East schools paired as yearly crossover rivals.

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Four years ago, Old Dominion coach Bobby Wilder stood by his fax machine in a tiny office, waiting anxiously for a bunch of teenagers to send him their signed, time-stamped national letters of intent. The process is different today. The letters are sent first to ODU's office of NCAA compliance. Once approved, information is filtered to Wilder and his coaching staff.

By Doug Doughty Virginia identified 26 new scholarship football players Wednesday, and all but three were committed since August. So why was coach Mike London awake at 2 a.m. Wednesday, national signing day, watching some old Sally Jessy Raphael episodes?

When Lynchburg defensive lineman Korren Kirven picked national champion Alabama over Virginia Tech early on national signing day, it caused a brief panic among the Hokies faithful, pushing the message boards to the brink of a meltdown.

Sequan Gooding made his college decision last summer, then breathed a sigh of relief. But last week - nearly seven months after committing to Western Michigan - the Oscar Smith wide receiver's scholarship offer was pulled. That sent him scrambling, and Wednesday he picked Hampton University.

Norfolk State football coach Pete Adrian promised the Spartans won't struggle to convert in short-yardage situations next season. Running back R.J. Robinson, 6-foot-2 and 225 pounds, looks likely to make Adrian a man of his word. The Spartans got letters of intent from 11 players Wednesday, putting together a group that includes four players given stars by Rivals, a popular scouting service.

Former Penn State and Western Branch High quarterback Kevin Newsome landed at Temple on Wednesday, signing with the Owls after sitting out the 2011 season. Newsome left Penn State last August on the first day of fall camp and has been taking classes at Tidewater Community College.