It's been a busy off-season to date for the West Virginia Mountaineers football program with players both coming in and exiting the roster.
WVSports.com examines all the movement to date to see how the roster has fared with at least two more scholarships open until the season opens.
Returning: OL Doug Nester
Nester has been a two year starter for West Virginia since arriving over from Virginia Tech. He has played all but one game during that time and has been a key part of the offensive line during his time in Morgantown.
Nester has one season of eligibility remaining after he announced that he would be returning for another season up front which was significant news for the football program. The offensive line was already set to be a strength but bringing back Nester is significant for a lot of reasons.
Declared for NFL Draft: WR Bryce Ford-Wheaton, WR Sam James
Wheaton had one season of eligibility remaining but elected to bypass that to enter his name in the NFL Draft. The redshirt junior had his most productive season in Morgantown with 62 catches for 675 yards and 7 touchdowns. He improved vastly in contested catch situations and was the primary receiver for the Mountaineers.
James had his best season at West Virginia in his final year with the program hauling in 46 catches for 745 yards and 6 touchdowns. Had one season of eligibility remaining but elected to declare for the NFL Draft and move onto the next stage of his career. James played his best football down the stretch and will be difficult to replace.
Transfers Added: Kent State CB Montre Miller, Kent State WR Ja'Shaun Poke, LSU tight end Kole Taylor, Georgia State K Michael Hayes, Buffalo S Keyshawn Cobb, Tennessee State DL Davoan Hawkins, NC State WR Devin Carter, Penn State DL Fatorma Mulbah, Minnesota DB Beanie Bishop, Abilene Christian DL Tyrin Bradley, Georgia Southern S Anthony Wilson, Kentucky DE Tomiwa Durojaiye, Marshall WR EJ Horton, Angelo State WR Noah Massey
Miller, 5-foot-10, 179-pounds, took an official visit to Morgantown over the Dec. 9-11 weekend and saw enough to select the program over other offers from Virginia Tech, Duke, California, Tulane and several others.
The graduate transfer has one season remaining in his career and is coming off a season where he recorded 52 tackles, 2 interceptions and 8 passes defended.
The South Carolina native appeared in 12 games this past season playing a total of 807 snaps and recorded 115 tackles and 6 interceptions in his career. He graded out as one of the best defenders on the entire Kent State roster, especially in the area of coverage. A converted wide receiver, Miller has plenty of experience at the cornerback spot during his time at Kent State and will be a graduate transfer for the Mountaineers.
Poke is coming off a season where he hauled in 31 catches for 362 yards and a score but only played in a total of six games.
A native of Georgia, Poke appeared in 25 games during his time at Kent State and hauled in a total of 81 passes for 1,033 yards and 5 touchdowns. He played a total of 1,309 snaps across four seasons with the Golden Flashes.
Poke would have two years to play one remaining in his career and helps to address a position where the Mountaineers need able options after the departure of the top four pass catchers from a season ago.
West Virginia wanted to add a tight end from the transfer portal that has the ability to catch passes and Taylor should provide just that. Standing 6-foot-7, 250-pounds, Taylor immediately became a priority of the Mountaineers when he entered the transfer portal and took an official visit to campus in mid-December.
Taylor spent three years with the Tigers and played a total of 693 snaps during that time. Over his three years, Taylor ran 253 pass routes and hauled in 17 of his 25 targets for 159 yards and a score and did not record a drop.
The Colorado native is going to have a much bigger opportunity in Morgantown and he immediately becomes the most seasoned tight end option on the roster. Has two years left and is an addition that fills a major void on the roster.
Hayes is a specialist that is coming off a very productive year both as a kicker connecting on 11-14 field goal attempts but more importantly on kickoffs. He hit 47 of his 69 attempts for touchbacks and should be an upgrade in that department. Hayes will have two seasons left in his career as well.
Spent three seasons at Georgia State and should address serious needs for West Virginia this coming season on special teams.
Cobb spent only one season at Buffalo but made the most of it by recording 67 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, an interception and 7 passes defended. That drew offers from West Virginia, Wake Forest, Stanford and Houston, among others. The Georgia native took an official visit to West Virginia from Jan. 6-8 and saw enough to end his recruitment.
Cobb is being slotted as a spear which is a natural fit after spending this past year at slot cornerback and the Georgia native has two years left in his career.
Hawkins spent time at both Kentucky and Tennessee State during his career appearing in a total of 29 games. He has collected 92 tackles, 8 sacks and 18 tackles for loss during that time and was named an all-American after the 2021 season.
The big defensive lineman has experience up front and will have one season left in Morgantown after committing to the program following an official visit. Hawkins has had a long-winding career but will close things out in Morgantown when he arrives on campus for the mid-term to compete in spring football.
Carter had initially committed to Penn State but flipped his pledge to West Virginia prior to when he enrolled on campus. It goes without saying it's a massive addition for the Mountaineers considering their lack of options at the position.
During his time in Raleigh, Carter hauled in 118 catches for 1,906 yards and 10 touchdowns while playing a total of 2,264 snaps over his four season with the Wolfpack. This past season Carter caught 25 passes for 406 yards and a pair of touchdowns but was limited to just 9 games due to injury.
He will have one season of eligibility remaining and immediately becomes a key factor in the wide receiver room the Mountaineers given the turnover from last year.
Mulbah saw action in 18 games at Penn State but was primarily used as a reserve and on special teams. The 6-foot-3, 307-pounder, will have more opportunities on a West Virginia defensive line that is looking for more help.
The native of Liberia has only made 4 tackles during his career but is going to have a chance to increase those numbers as a defensive tackle in the scheme from the start.
Bishop appeared in 49 games during his career split between Western Kentucky and Minnesota. The Louisville native has over 1,200 snaps to his credit and has been productive with over 105 tackles and 3 interceptions during that time.
A versatile defensive back, Bishop can play anywhere from safety to cornerback and has one year left to maximize what he can do at the college level. Bishop is going to be counted on during his last year of eligibility on defense and in the return game.
Bradley, 6-foot-4, 250-pounds, spent two years at Abilene Christian where he put together a highly productive sophomore season with 49 tackles, 4 sacks and 10 tackles for loss while earning all-conference first-team honors. The Texas native is a versatile pass rusher that can fill multiple roles off the edge for the Mountaineers.
After playing over 600 snaps last season, Bradley becomes the most seasoned option for the program on the defensive line and will have two years left.
Wilson, 5-foot-10, 200-pounds, played over 2,500 snaps as a three-year starter with the Eagles and was highly productive in the process. The South Carolina native recorded 101 tackles and an interception last season and immediately becomes one of the most seasoned options in the secondary for the Mountaineers. On top of his experience, Wilson also brings plenty of versatility as he has seen time at various spots which means he can help at multiple positions on the field.
Expect Wilson to step into a major role in the secondary immediately and with two years left there is a chance he can make an impact beyond just this coming year.
Durojaiye, 6-foot-4, 278-pounds, was a key target for West Virginia in the 2022 class but lost his recruitment to Kentucky. However, just a year later the Delaware native entered the transfer portal and the Mountaineers were able to secure his pledge this time around. A true defensive end that has four years left.
West Virginia needed to find speed on the outside that that's exactly what Horton will provide. The 6-foot-1, field stretcher was initially committed to Colorado over offers from a number of power five programs but flipped his commitment after a visit to West Virginia in May. Horton is coming off his most productive season at the college level with 12 catches for 186 yards and a touchdown and has two years left.
Horton is going to be able to step into a major role at the wide receiver spot and the Louisville native brings a different element there as well.
Massey, 6-foot-4, 230-pounds, spent two seasons at Angelo State where he piled up 81 catches for 1,083 yards and 9 touchdowns. That includes this past year where Massey collected 52 grabs for 684 yards and 4 scores earning all-conference honors as the leading receiver for his team.
Originally signed with Bowling Green out of his Houston high school, Massey will have one year left and is being targeted as a big slot for the program.
Early Enrollees: LB Josiah Trotter, EDGE James Heard, LB Ben Cutter, CB Josiah Jackson, RB Jahiem White, TE TJ Johnson, QB Sean Boyle and OL Johnny Williams
Each of these players will have their opportunities to see playing time but the ones that will have the best shot were the two linebackers Trotter and Cutter as well as edge presence Heard. However, Trotter will now will the majority of the season due to injury but the others are going to be counted on to play a major role.
Other signed freshmen: WR Rodney Gallagher, WR Traylon Ray, RB DJ Oliver, TE Noah Braham, OL Nick Krahe, OL Cooper Young, DL Zachariah Keith, DL Oryend Fisher, S Aden Nelson, DL Corey McIntyre and CB Jordan Jackson
These players didn't arrive until the summer but there are certainly going to be windows for some of them to make a significant impact especially at wide receiver or some of the skill positions. This will be interesting to see if any of these carve out a role.
In Portal: WR Kaden Prather (Maryland), DL Jordan Jefferson (LSU), CB Charles Woods (SMU), RB Tony Mathis, QB JT Daniels (Rice), WR Reese Smith (Liberty), TE Mike O'Laughlin (Houston), DE Taijh Alston (Colorado), S Saint McLeod, OL Jordan White (Liberty), LB Lanell Carr (Indiana), OL Chris Mayo (Eastern Michigan), CB Mumu Bin-Wahad (Connecticut), CB Jayon Shelton, CB Tyrin Woodby (Morgan State), TE Corbin Page, QB Will Crowder (Troy), LB Aric Burton
West Virginia was hit with only a handful of impactful scholarship players entering the transfer portal. The biggest names on the list were Prather who would have been the leading returning receiver for the Mountaineers and Jefferson on the defensive line. Prather hauled in over 500 yards and 3 touchdowns this past season and would have been counted on for a large role in his third season with the program but now he will close out his career at Maryland.
Jefferson spent four seasons at West Virginia and had 54 total tackles and 3.5 sacks over his career with his best season to date this past year. He will play at LSU.
Mathis spent four years at West Virginia and was coming off his most productive season to date with 562 yards and 5 touchdowns. The Georgia native was part of a loaded backfield for the Mountaineers but will leave a hole with experience.
Daniels, who started 10 games for West Virginia, prior to giving his starting job to Garrett Greene. The one-time USC and Georgia transfer had an up and down campaign in Morgantown where he threw for 2,107 yards with 13 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.
Woods is another key loss for the program in the sense that he was a pre-season all-Big 12 selection this past year but was limited to only four games after suffering an ankle injury which required surgery in the opener against Pittsburgh. He has one year left and elected to transfer back home and spend that season at SMU.
O'Laughlin played in 32 games over his time at West Virginia but struggled to stay healthy with a total of three-season ending knee injuries. A very productive player when on the field, O'Laughlin finished with 37 passes for 292 yards and a score and has one year remaining at his next college stop in Houston.
Alston dealt with injuries during his career but was productive at times for West Virginia along the defensive line. He had his best season in 2021 when he 36 tackles and 5 sacks but took a back seat this past year as Sean Martin was elevated to the starting role and enrolled at Colorado.
Smith collected 42 catches for 457 yards and 2 touchdowns over his time on the field as primarily a reserve wide receiver that saw time in the slot. He should have two years left at his next stop at Liberty and is a loss from an experience standpoint.
Carr spent three seasons at West Virginia and mostly served as a backup although he did play his best this past year with 21 tackles and a sack. Was part of a rotation at bandit and the Mountaineers will need to fill his spot after transferring to Indiana.
White appeared in 8 games over his career, including starting the season opener this past season but outside that was mostly a reserve during his time on campus. White should have three years left at this next stop at Liberty.
McLeod appeared in eight games as a true freshman and was successful with 22 tackles and a pair of forced fumbles but was involved in an off-the-field incident in the off-season and never returned to the team. He has three years left.
The rest were either freshmen or backups that had yet to establish themselves.
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