It would have been easy for linebacker Sean Walters to pack it in or pout.

A redshirt senior, Walters was replaced in the starting line up by freshman David Long in the Kansas State game meaning that his role on the team would change. That is enough for some players to call it a career and go through the motions. Not Walters.

“Our preparation and the type of players we have anybody can go in and start. I just had to keep battling and keep pushing and getting David Long better. Just doing that, it helps everybody in the long run,” Walters said.

That attitude kept him right in the mix in the linebacker rotation and when his number was called Saturday he made two of the biggest plays of the game for the defense. Walters recorded the game’s only turnover and his first career interception.

On the play a third down at the West Virginia 13-yard line, Walters was assigned the running back out of the backfield and Justin Stockton leaked out so he was in pursuit.

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes triggered the ball to Stockton, who bobbled the ball at first and attempted to pin it against his leg to haul in the catch. That decision proved costly as while wrestling Stockton to the ground, Walters snared the ball from Stockton to complete the interception.

It was a play that even caught Walters by surprise and was the first interception he had recorded in any game since his senior year in high school.

“When I saw it hit my chest that’s when I had to pull it close to me,” Walters said.

The second play came in the third quarter with West Virginia winning 27-10 when Walters came free on a delayed blitz to send Mahomes to the turf near midfield to effectively kill the Texas Tech drive that had moved the ball to the Mountaineers 38-yard line.

For the game Walters finished with three total tackles and while he is not a starter, continues to be a valuable asset for the Mountaineers in a rotational role. And as Walters found out Saturday when opportunities arise, it’s his job to snatch them.

“He was a kid that could have pouted and went into the tank but he didn’t. He’s into the game, he’s telling me what’s going on out there so at any point I feel comfortable throwing him in,” defensive coordinator Tony Gibson said.