When Jowon Briggs announced he was committing to the Virginia Cavaliers, the recruiting world wasn’t quite sure how to react.
After all, this is one of the top 100 recruits in the entire country for the class of 2019—the second-ranked defensive tackle—who hails from Big Ten country and is right in Ohio State’s back yard. Just this week, Briggs accepted an invitation to the elite Under Armour All-America Game in January. Choosing a school with two bowl appearances and zero wins over its in-state rival in his football-watching life seems like an odd decision, at least from the standpoint of people who cover top-flight recruiting year in and year out.