Brown must re-recruit his current players
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MORGANTOWN -- While awaiting word from the mount on the future of Coach Neal Brown, West Virginia football is caught up in a very lively dead recruiting period at the end season.
Newly created by the NCAA, this dead period consists of four days during which a team can hold personal meetings with its players about their future with the program. In a sense, it is a period during which they re-recruit their own players.
This is important, of course, for every program, but for a program like WVU, it is vital to its future. While all is pointing toward the Mountaineers hierarchy bringing Brown back for another season, both financially and to allow him to finish what he started, there is much to work out.
They are currently without an athletic director on staff, which creates an unknown on Brown’s future which, in turn, creates uncertainty for players whether to return or enter into the transfer portal.
Since Brown is conducting these interviews, it seems almost certain that he knows his fate and that his assistants, some of whom just as certainly won’t be retained even if Brown is, also probably have been informed of his and their situations.
That WVU needs help from the outside can’t be denied after a 5-7 season and Brown has assembled what is considered a strong recruiting class.
But what will that do with his current players? Who are the top players who WVU must keep be convinced to return if they are to move forward this year?
This group includes players who could head to the NFL and leave eligibility behind or feel they would better themselves by moving on, either because they just don’t like what they’ve seen at WVU or can get more NIL money at a different school.
It appears clear that WVU is sitting on a big offensive season next year. All the parts are there now, but the coaching staff can’t let the heart of that offense get away.
No. 1 priority would be to have Zach Frazier back next year. Just a redshirt sophomore this year, he has two years left and he makes the offensive line special. What’s more, in the season ending victory over Oklahoma State, he showed how important he is, as WVU’s running game was special and he scored highest on the team in the efficiency ratings put forth by PFF.
There is no implication that he wants to leave and, in fact, the offensive line as a whole has grown into an effective unit that could dominate last year.
That makes two other offensive linemen imperative to convince to come back, left tackle Wyatt Milum and right guard Doug Nester. Both are West Virginia natives from Spring Valley High School. If WVU can pull an experienced, talented guard or tackle out of the portal, they would have the foundation for what could be an explosive offense.
Certainly, quarterback is the most important position on offense. This is a little bit tricky with the concussion suffered by Garrett Greene in the Oklahoma State game. Greene’s healthy return would give the Mountaineers an experienced hand at QB who brings back Pat White memories with his ability to pass and run while serving as a leader.
However, running quarterbacks are always in danger of taking a pop, as both Greene and White -- I feel like I’m writing an art story rather than football one -- have proven.
That is why it’s urgent that Nicco Marchiol be convinced his future lies with WVU. It would give the opponents difficult preparations as he and Greene are so different and you can bet that Brown -- yes, another color -- can’t wait to draw up plays with both on the field.
To go with that, as the season progressed, first CJ Donaldson showed himself to be a budding superstar but had his year ended prematurely with a broken ankle. If he’s told he will be healthy next year, he may be the centerpiece of a strong bidding war for his services, so Brown will have to do a strong sales job on WVU.
The skills showed over the last two games of this year boosted the stock of running back Jaylen Anderson to the point that he becomes a key target to keep around.
Offensively, it might not be easy to keep the top receivers but make no doubt Bryce Ford-Wheaton, Sam James and Kaden Prather would like to continue what they started here, but all would be welcome at major programs elsewhere.
The defense was not as good as the offense, so look for WVU to head into the portal with defense on its mind.
Targeted to keep will surely be defensive linemen Jordan Jefferson and Sean Martin, both of whom proved themselves capable of playing at WVU next year.
Linebacker Lee Kpogba was the energizer of the defense from his middle linebacker role, leading the team in tackles. He is a player out of the mold of a David Long, who has gone on to become a starting NFL linebacker.
Safeties Aubrey Burks and Marcus Floyd seem ready to become highly productive players while Jarrett Bartlett and Lance Dixon figure highly in next year’s plans.
There will be an emphasis on finding cover corners, which was one of the biggest deficiencies on defense this year.