MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- West Virginia’s football team ended the 2017 season losing its last three games, but that hasn’t put a damper on the outlook for 2018. With Heisman contending quarterback Will Grier and the nation’s leader in touchdown receptions in David Sills returning, the Mountaineers are set to make some noise in what could be a down year in the Big 12 despite questions on defense.
“We were a good offense last year and obviously had some explosive plays and pretty much moved the ball on everyone. But what's that missing piece? What do we need to do to become great?” Grier said during spring camp. “We did all these studies and stats and all that, and it came down to a couple things. Being about to tweak those and improve and off what we did last year, I'm telling you, it puts you ahead a lot. I think we have a chance to be really good, so I'm excited to keep building, keep working, one day at a time.”
With summer workouts looming, let’s break down what the Mountaineers could look like in 2018:
QUARTERBACK
Grier is the no-brainer for this West Virginia offense. After completing 250 of 388 for 3,490 yards and 34 touchdowns over the course of a season that ended with surgery on a broken finger in a loss to Texas in late November, Grier is primed to be one the nation’s best players in 2018.
The former Florida Gator does all the right things: He leads, he reads defenses like a book, he makes strong throws, and he can keep plays alive with his legs.
He’s touted by many to be the top signal caller in the country, but it’s been the way he’s progressed with his knowledge of game management that has West Virginia coaches most excited.
“It's more of adding extra checks to what we did last year. Last year, we were big on if you called a run play, then this would be, 'Is that a good run play?', and then look for your RPO (run-pass option). Then, we would end up maxing up and throwing,” offensive coordinator Jake Spavital said. “Well, now, it's, 'What's the situation with the game?' 'Do we need to hand the ball off in this situation?' 'Do I have an efficient RPO that I can get to?' 'Is the best situation to max it up and throw deep?'
“So, it's been some really good conversations in terms of what runs work in certain fronts and when to hand it off and when to throw it. I think that he is enjoying spring that way because it's actually very challenging for him. We'll go out there and say, 'This is first-and-10 mentality,' or 'This is third-and-short mentality.' He's got to find a way to get the first down. So, it's been pretty efficient so far.”
Beyond Grier are two unproven QBs in Jack Allison and freshman Trey Lowe. Allison redshirted at Miami before transferring to West Virginia in 2016. At 6-foot-6, 220 pounds, the strong-armed redshirt sophomore is viewed as a viable backup despite zero game experience. Lowe, is a dual-threat QB who also played for the West Virginia baseball team this spring while learning behind Grier and Allison.
RUNNING BACK
It’s next man up in the running back room once again. After yet another Mountaineer found his way into the NFL, production of a 1,000-yard rusher will need to be replaced.
Junior Kennedy McKoy will draw that straw, and he’s no stranger to the game. In two seasons, McKoy has carried the ball 198 times for 1,068 yards, finding the end zone 11 times. He toted the rock 125 times a season ago, supplanting Justin Crawford, who signed an underrated free agent contract with the Atlanta Falcons this offseason.
Behind the 205-pound McKoy is junior Martell Pettaway, who has been biding his time and filling in nicely when called upon the past two seasons. Behind Pettaway is speedster Alec Sinkfield, who will see his first action this season after redshirting a year ago.
“Obviously Kennedy has had a lot of reps and has played a lot of games as well as Martell, but Sinkfield is coming along for a young guy and doing really well,” said first-year running backs coach Marquel Blackwell. “Hopefully they complement each other. I'm just proud of the way that they are competing and challenging one another.”
Blackwell stressed taking care of the football this spring, something he instilled into talented backs during his time at Toledo. That list includes Kareem Hunt, the school’s all-time career rushing leader who didn’t lose a single fumble during four seasons in college.
WIDE RECEIVER
Revered again as possibly one of the best units in college football, the Mountaineers will rely heavily on the hands of some guys who have proven themselves over the years.
Most notably is the return of Sills, whose story has been well documented over the past several years. Sills, though, is just worried about the road ahead after catching 60 passes for 980 yards and a nation-best 18 touchdowns.
But beyond Sills is where this position really needs to thrive. It's in the hands of senior Gary Jennings, junior speedster Marcus Simms and newcomer T.J. Simmons, who sat out last year after transferring from Alabama.
“What I've seen, now, is maturity,” wide receivers coach Tyron Carrier said. “A lot of those guys, the backup guys, the year twos and under — you’re seeing a lot of productivity out of them.”
Added to the room this year is Tevin Bush, who was recruited as a Tavon Austin-esque player that has the ability to do “things nobody else in that room can do,” according to Carrier.
OFFENSIVE LINE
The strength of West Virginia’s offensive line lies within now-veteran tackles Yodny Cajuste and Colton McKivitz. Working in from the left side is Josh Sills at guard while Isaiah Hardy is likely to line up at right guard. Matt Jones returns at center.
Cajuste and McKivitz are proven commodities at their position while Jones is well on his way to being considered a staple as well after starting 13 games in the middle a year ago. Sills, a redshirt sophomore, moved around last season at both guard spots and earned 10 starts while registering a team-high 13 knockdown blocks last year. Hardy, a senior, is the lone wild card. He hasn’t earned a single start yet.
Much of the excitement for this offensive line, though, is due to its size.
McKivitz is 6-7, 306; Cajuste is 6-6, 318; Sills is 6-6, 326; Hardy is 6-6, 325; and Jones is 6-3, 325.
“(Offensive line) Coach (Joe) Wickline is big on that," Spavital said. "He wants big guys. We're bringing those two junior college kids in June so you're looking at 330 to 350 across the board, and they're all about 6-foot-5, 6-foot-6, which is a massive offensive line.”
DEFENSIVE LINE
Here’s where things get tricky for West Virginia.
What do you do when a projected starter at defensive end transfers? What do you do when a freshman All-American defensive tackle transfers? Answer: Fill one holea with a guy who was once the best defensive tackle in the country and the other with a dude who has won a national championship.
Staring down the barrel of a depleted defensive front, that’s what West Virginia did when it signed former five-star tackle Kenny Bigelow as a graduate transfer and found itself as the top suitor for Jabril Robinson, a graduate transfer defender from Clemson.
Bigelow’s looking to spark up a collegiate career that never took off on the West Coast while Robinson is just looking for a chance to catch scouts’ eyes.
Either way, a much-need lift to a group that has underperformed the past several seasons. This group understands now that it all starts up front, according to senior end Ezekiel Rose.
“We are bringing energy now, the D-line is bringing energy to the whole defense now,” Rose said. “When something is going wrong, the D-line, we come together and talk and it's like we have to go out on the field and make plays, we have to bring everybody else up. If someone else makes a play, go congratulate them. It is starting to work for us, bringing everybody up.”
Rose is expected to star opposite of Robinson on the end while Bigelow will compete with sophomore Darius Stills, who has continued to catch his coaches’ eyes. Darius’ brother, Dante, is likely to compete for one of the three starting positions when he arrives this summer.
Of note, West Virginia had just 19 sacks last season.
LINEBACKER
The success of this group will depend on one big thing: Can Dylan Tonkery handle the transition to middle linebacker?
Coaches seem to think so, but it begins with Tonkery.
“With how smart Dylan is, his football IQ has grown leaps and bounds over the last year and a half,” linebackers coach Mark Scott said of Tonkery, who moves inside from the strong side. “Normally, it's easier to move from outside to inside as opposed to inside to out, because you're playing in less space, getting your eyes right and seeing different keys to allow you to anticipate and play faster.”
David Long is expected to regain his starting spot outside, leaving one job up for grabs. With injuries to Brendan Ferns and Quondarius Qualls, newcomers will need to step up after West Virginia gave up 3,005 yards on the ground last season.
DEFENSIVE BACKS
The biggest question mark here is cornerbacks once again. Can this group sustain a Big 12 season?
A middle-of-the-road effort came last season when West Virginia’s secondary allowed 241.4 yards per game through the air and let offenses score 24 times on them via the pass.
The solution, one coach said, is building depth.
“They have to take advantage of every rep,” safeties coach Matt Caponi said of the defensive backs. “Even the younger guys, I tell them whether they're getting five reps at practice, 10 reps at practice, we're trying to build some depth, so we're trying to take advantage of it no matter what team period we're in or what individual period we're in. I'm expecting the guys to go out there and compete and just take advantage of their opportunity for when they get called on.”
Offseason moves here include Dravon Askew-Henry to SPUR and Derrek Pitts from safety to corner. Other big names include sophomore safety Kenny Robinson and redshirt junior corner Hakeem Bailey.
SPECIAL TEAMS
It's business as usual in the punting department as Billy Kinney returns after averaging 40.9 yards per punt a season ago. But things could get interesting in the kicking department with a battle between transfer Skyler Simcox and incumbent kicker Evan Staley.
“We're going to be deeper there than we've been since I've been here. We have two quality guys, and whoever wins that field goal battle, the other one is probably going to have a leg up on the kickoff competition,” said Scott, who also handles special team duties. “We'll see how that plays out and see how durable those guys are. We don't want to throw too much at them, especially early in the spring, and progress them along.”
OVERALL
Well, I’ll let Dana Holgorsen say it: “I'm excited about this group, the 2018 group. It's probably, obviously offensively, the most veteran unit that we've had since I've been here. I just like where the guys are right now, and I wanted to get started.”