West Virginia needed to get faster at the wide receiver spot this off-season. That’s where the transfer addition of EJ Horton comes into play for the Mountaineers.
Horton, who was initially committed to Colorado, flipped to the Mountaineers in May after taking an under the radar visit to Morgantown. The attraction for both parties was a simple one. Opportunities.
West Virginia needed to find a player that could help stretch defenses vertically with their speed, while Horton wanted the chance to showcase that there’s a lot more to his game than what he had displayed during his time spent with the Marshall football program.
Horton is coming off a season where he hauled in 12 passes for 186 yards and a touchdown, but will have more opportunities than that from the jump in Morgantown where the offense is devoid of many options to stretch the field. It’s important to remember that despite those low totals Horton only played a total of 15 snaps and was targeted only once over the first eight games.
That means all of the production that Horton did have came in the final five games of the season.
Timed at 4.3 in the 40-yard dash, Horton fits the profile of what the program needed to secure on the roster to help complement what the Mountaineers already have with Devin Carter and Cortez Braham. That makes him an intriguing fit as a player that has upside.
Horton appeared in 19 games during his three seasons with the Thundering Herd and hauled in a total of 16 passes for 245 yards and a pair of touchdowns as he was used primarily down the field but also carried the ball twice. He has spent most of his time outside which is where he should fit into the mix in this offense although he could be used inside.
Over his career, Horton isn’t necessarily inexperienced with 356 snaps under his belt but still is relatively green in the sense that he has never received a lot of opportunities. If you’re going to swing and take chances on players making the next step from the transfer portal, they need to have traits that can help them potentially reach that goal and Horton definitely has just that.
Especially when you consider the overall need on the roster for that speed. And early returns are that Horton has certainly impressed.
The added bonus here is Horton isn’t just a potential one year stop gap either, as the talented wide receiver has two years left in his career and is looking to make the most of his next opportunity.
"I'm very pleased with what hes been doing. He can roll, he’s fast and he can make guys miss. Very fast, very twitchy and I'm excited to see how he can grow," wide receivers coach Bilal Marshall said.
Speed and more of it, that’s what West Virginia needed and Horton is certainly a major step in the right direction on that front for the program. Now, it’s up to him to take advantage of the opportunity.
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