West Virginia putting focus on building quality in walk-on program
West Virginia has been busy when it comes to filling out roster spots.
While the bulk of the 2024 class from a high school perspective has been completed, the focus has shifted to securing quality walk-ons for the program.
“A lot of those guys will be from the state of West Virginia and we’re going to spend time investing in that,” head coach Neal Brown said.
Walk-ons have long been a significant part of the build-up to the Mountaineers football program and it has produced a number of players that would go on to earn scholarships and play major roles for West Virginia on the field.
That is the hope here as well as the program has been aggressively hunting for preferred walk-ons to add to the football program.
That has resulted in a number of commitments for the Mountaineers over the past several weeks as the coaching staff has been looking to find quality walk-ons.
As Brown suggested, a bulk of those come from within the state borders with a total of 11 of the 18 known commitments hailing from the Mountain State.
And it's a strong collection of talented prospects such as Hedgesville 2024 pass rusher Aydin Fleming who is coming off a massive senior season with 167 tackles, 23 tackles for loss and 10 sacks. It also includes Martinsburg (W.Va.) athlete Murphy Clement who won the Gatorade Football Player of the Year this past season.
Others that have committed to the program include George Washington 2024 quarterback Abe Fenwick, George Washington 2024 offensive lineman Aiden Ellis, Independence 2024 athlete Trey Bowers, Martinsburg 2024 offensive lineman Wesley Hancock, John Marshall 2024 offensive lineman Andreas Hunter, Jefferson 2024 defensive lineman Quintin Goins, Morgantown 2024 wide receiver Andrew Phares, Parkersburg kicker Casey Stanley and Wheeling 2024 fullback Raymond Kovalesky. The Mountaineers are in pursuit of several others, too.
But it wasn't just limited to West Virginia products as the football program has added a number of other preferred walk-on pledges from players such as Oakdale (Ct.) St. Thomas More 2024 defensive lineman Zyir Daniel, Philadelphia (Pa.) Roman Catholic 2024 safety Mikey Preston, Leesburg (Va.) Tuscarora 2024 defensive end Jonah Ulloa, Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy 2024 running back Clay Ash, St. Clairsville (Oh.) 2024 offensive lineman Griffin Fogle and Hilliard (Oh.) 2024 long snapper Kaden Sell.
West Virginia has embraced this aspect of recruiting for a long time and Brown has only continued to strengthen it as well.
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