West Virginia not only signed 20 players that were committed to the football program during the early signing period without a head coach in place but also added two to the fold.
The Mountaineers were able to add the pledges of a pair of defensive backs in Columbus (Oh.) Marion Franklin 2025 cornerback Dawayne Galloway and Bel Air (Md.) 2025 safety Julien Horton.
Both of which were key targets for the football program throughout the course of the process and had visited campus on multiple occasions as the Mountaineers attempted to address one of their key needs this cycle with talented pieces in the defensive backfield.
Horton, 6-foot-0, 175-pounds, had been committed to North Carolina since late June but had visited Morgantown for junior days and there was growing interest between the two parties down the stretch. In fact, Director of Player Personnel Trey Neyer elected to remain in town while the team traveled to Texas Tech for the season finale because Horton had planned to come to town for an official visit.
That didn’t occur, but is a sign of where his recruitment was at with the Mountaineers overall.
“We had a really good relationship with Julien and he was ultimately a guy we knew we wanted to sign so now it’s UNC and West Virginia both without a head coach and I think that speaks volumes about the guys on my staff and the coaches in our building,” Neyer said. “It’s a pride thing.”
Ultimately, Horton felt comfortable with the plan from West Virginia as well as his fit on the defensive side of the ball. That made the decision to pick the Big 12 Conference an easy one.
“He felt comfortable with us. He felt comfortable with this place being close to his home,” Neyer said.
Galloway, 6-foot-1, 175-pounds, was no stranger to Morgantown as he took multiple unofficial visits as well as his official visit in early June. He took an unofficial visit to campus for the Baylor game and things seemed to be trending in a positive direction at that stage of the process.
A speedster at the cornerback spot, Galloway moved squarely onto the radar for West Virginia despite a commitment to Purdue over the summer. The Mountaineers never gave up in their pursuit and it all came together in the days leading up to the start of the early signing period.
“We’re sitting there on monday night after the first initial crazy day and somebody in the room said what about Dawayne Galloway? Let’s see what he’s doing,” Neyer said. “Called up his trainer Darren and I said I don't know what’s going to happen but you’ve been with us.”
Those connections, which were established over the course of the process, were critical for West Virginia in the pursuit of both. But it’s also a testament to the remaining staff who recruited both despite their own futures with the program being very uncertain.
Still relationships and honesty matter and both were critical in the decision-making process of both additions to the 2025 class.
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