West Virginia in a better place inside LB room
It’s taken some time, but West Virginia is getting into a good place with the inside linebacker position room.
The Mountaineers have been relatively thin there over the past few seasons but have at least five that repped there during the spring and will add to that in the summer when freshmen join the program. It’s something that the program has been working to build and it was noticeable this past spring with the players in the rotation.
“We do look a lot better,” head coach Neal Brown said. “I think we’re one class, this class coming in and our numbers will be there. We have not been at full strength there for a long time.”
Some of that simply boils down to it being harder to recruit and evaluate linebackers given the way the game is played in space more than it was in the past.
“So, you have to project a little bit,” Brown said.
It also hasn’t helped matters that while the program has gone down to the wire in the recruitment of some of their top targets they have missed on several. And instead of trying to reach on others to fill things out, they have remained patient to find the right fits.
But there are some reasons to be optimistic with what is on the roster.
Trey Lathan was limited to just 264 snaps after a leg injury cost him all but five games. However, during his time on the field, Lathan recorded 27 tackles and a forced fumble while showing significant improvement during his redshirt freshman campaign.
Lathan also displayed plus ability as a pass rusher from the inside linebacker spot and was full-go this spring as he bounced back from the injury.
Sophomore Ben Cutter played 464 snaps as a true freshman in 2023 and was thrust into a much larger role once Lathan went down with his injury. The North Carolina native was productive finishing his first year with 56 tackles, 6 tackles for loss and a pair of sacks.
He has the versatility to play either of the inside spots and that should help him earn a bigger role as he also continues to flash improvement.
One player who never saw the field in 2023 but was set to prior to a torn ACL was Josiah Trotter. The Philadelphia native enrolled in January and was making waves in spring football prior to sustaining the injury that cost him the entire season.
However, much like Lathan, Trotter made his way back for spring practice and certainly looked the part as a physical inside option that can run.
West Virginia also added another inside linebacker from the transfer portal in Ohio State transfer Reid Carrico. The 6-foot-2, 235-pounder, spent three seasons with the Buckeyes where he was limited to just 20 defensive snaps during his time with the program and was a contributor on special teams.
Still Carrico was a highly recruited player out of high school and displayed his intelligence on the field this past spring as a key piece to the rotation. It also helps that he has two years of eligibility remaining in his career and should compete immediately there.
The final pieces of the puzzle is Caden Biser who played 134 snaps in 2023 but has improved his overall flexibility and stood out during spring ball and Jairo Faverus who missed the spring due to injury. And each has played their roles.
"It's been our MO all spring we'll make a mistake and get it fixed and it doesn't turn into two or three times," inside linebackers coach Jeff Koonz said.
West Virginia also will welcome a pair of freshmen in Curtis Jones and Rickey Williams to provide even more depth. And with six players that have seen action at the power four level along with some others, it's going to allow Koonz to rotate and keep some fresh bodies in the game while also adjusting to teams with sub-packages if they attempt to try to get bigger which was an issue at times in the past.
"It's going to give us the ability at times to have as many as three on the field if not more and also we want to keep those guys fresh," he said.
It’s been a steep climb at that spot, but it’s at a much better place than it’s been.
“It's taken a few years to get this exactly where we want the body type. To stack classes in recruiting and to be able to develop guys and retain them. Make sure we're continuing to grow with guys that are all in with what we're trying to do," Koonz said.
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