Transfer of Zack Dobson adds depth, new wrinkle to WVU’s offense

In a 2019 season where the West Virginia offense struggled to do much of anything, one thing remained constant: WVU head coach Neal Brown liked to spread the ball around.

It’s easy to see why the Mountaineers opted to add Middle Tennessee State transfer Zack Dobson, who will be a junior this fall. Dobson stands at 5-foot-8 and weighs a touch over 160 pounds, essentially a clone of former WVU receiver Tevin Bush.

Bush, Dobson and other smaller receivers typically bring a unique skillset — one that is mostly reliant on utilizing speed and making defenders miss, essentially embracing a “playmaker” label.

Brown said on Saturday that the team eyes a variety of different types of wide receivers, each bringing different talents to the depth chart.

"We kind of look at four different body types,” Brown said. “We want a guy that's bigger-framed that has good twitch but really has phenomenal hands. We want a little, make-you-miss guy, and we'd like to have a bigger, physical guy inside who knows how to use his body, and then we'd like to have a long, fast guy – somebody that can take the top off it and really go get the ball."

Dobson seemed to fill that role of “little, make-you-miss guy” effectively during the 2019 season, totaling 16 receptions, 242 yards and three touchdowns over eight games, in addition to 113 yards rushing.

"I think he's dynamic with the ball in his hands," Brown said Wednesday after Dobson began practicing with the team. "There's things he's got to get better. I think, with the limited opportunities he had over the last couple of years, I think he made the most of it."

The Mountaineers had been looking to fill that role since Bush officially transferred to Nicholls earlier this offseason and Dobson, who entered the transfer portal in June, seemed like a logical fit.

"Those guys that are dynamic with the ball in their hands — we were limited with those type of kids in our program," Brown said. "We felt like, not only offensively, but in the return game, he can add something to us."

Yet, while Dobson may bring (or return) a new wrinkle to the Mountaineers’ offensive attack, he is joining a wide receiver room that is incredibly deep — a blessing and a curse to a growing football program.

"A lot of them are young, and we've got to continue to grow 'em up," Brown said. "I think Gerad (Parker) has done a great job with those guys. I think the most depth we have on our football team is at that position."

For this season, Dobson becomes the 15th wide receiver on the team — a number that, when looking ahead, may cause some roster shuffling in the coming years.

After this season, only two players at the position are guaranteed to be departing: TJ Simmons and Keion Wakefield, who will both be out of eligibility. The Mountaineers are currently slated to add two wide receivers in the 2021 recruiting class — Kaden Prather and Andrew Wilson-Lamp — keeping that number steady.

The entire position group — in addition to tight ends — is fighting for a limited amount of receptions which, in this era of increasing roster movement, becomes a challenge to balance.

Dobson brings a distinctive set of skills to the Mountaineers' offense, but the effects of his transfer will not be fully known for quite some time.

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