West Virginia football trying committee approach at nose guard

West Virginia returns the bulk of the production from a defensive unit that finished No. 4 nationally in 2020, but there is a major hole to fill in the center up front.

Gone from the unit is nose guard Darius Stills, who soaked up 540 snaps on the interior of the defensive line and his efforts earned consensus first-team all-American honors. You simply don’t just replace somebody of that stature with one person, which is the approach the Mountaineers are taking.

This spring is about experimenting at that spot and attempting to find a replacement by committee when it comes to addressing that nose guard spot.

“I just think it makers a lot of sense to give yourself some versatility. Spring is a time of teaching. It’s a time of getting guys prepared for the season and during the season if you have to move them around, too,” head coach Neal Brown said.

Junior Jordan Jefferson returns as a nose guard, while West Virginia is expected to slide sophomore Akheem Mesidor and senior Dante Stills into that spot as well. The Mountaineers also plan to see what they can get out of redshirt freshman Sean Martin and true freshman Edward Vesterinen.

“We want to get as many reps in there as we can just because I think versatility is going to be key,” Brown said.

The Mountaineers will be without sixth-year senior Jeffery Pooler for the bulk of spring drills as he will be limited to individual activities which is going to open up doors for some others to see time as well. The coaches have already moved former bandit linebacker Taurus Simmons to defensive line.

Vesterinen showcased what he could do at nose during the first day of practice, and Brown believes that he could surprise people at that position.

“Moves really well, he’s strong. His understanding of the game is better,” Brown said.

The Mountaineers are operating with a base three-down look but because of the way the program is thin this spring at linebacker they’ve experimented with some traditional four down options. Still, the purpose is to create competition and get as many of the best players on the field as possible.

“We’re really going to move all those guys around,” Brown said.

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