West Virginia reloading in cornerback room
West Virginia has opportunities available at the cornerback spot this spring.
Both starters from last season in Beanie Bishop and Malachi Ruffin have exhausted their eligibility and with that a combined 1,579 snaps.
If you throw in Andrew Wilson-Lamp, who exited through the transfer portal, three of the top four players that saw the field at the cornerback spot in 2023 are gone.
Bishop was named a consensus all-American this past season after starting 13-games and finishing with 80 tackles, 20 pass breakups and 4 interceptions. Meanwhile, Ruffin compiled 37 tackles and an interception as a seasoned, reliable option on the opposite side.
Out of the players that saw any significant snaps only junior Jacolby Spells returns after he saw action in nine games and registered just 8 tackles and a pass defended across 131 snaps.
But more often than not the depth in the room was challenged.
Now, that doesn’t include Montre Miller, a Kent State transfer that enrolled last January with the program. He was limited to just one game and missed the remainder of the season due to an injury last year but will return for an additional year this coming fall.
Miller started 25 games over his final two years with the Golden Flashes and was productive with 99 tackles, 6 interceptions and 17 pass breakups during that time.
But because there was so much turnover, it was a guarantee that West Virginia would be using the transfer portal to help fill out that position. And the coaching staff has certainly done that.
West Virginia added three cornerbacks with each expect to be available in time for spring ball in Northwestern transfer Garnett Hollis, Colorado State transfer Ty Crandall and Duquesne transfer Ayden Garnes.
Hollis, 6-foot-2, 205-pounds, became a priority for the Mountaineers after he entered the transfer portal in February. That resulted in a quick scholarship offer and a few days later a commitment to the Mountaineers. The Tennessee native appeared in 26 games during his time with the Wildcats where he recorded 78 tackles and a pair of picks.
The big cornerback put together his best campaign in his final one in Evanston where he recorded 49 tackles and an interception while starting all 13 games. Hollis brings over 1,000 snaps of power four experience into the fold and will have one year left to close out his career which means you can expect him to step into a major role in the Mountaineers secondary immediately.
The only question here is if Hollis will indeed be enrolled by the time spring practice begins although that isn’t a necessity in today’s transfer portal driven world.
Crandall, 6-foot-1, 185-pounds, spent one season at Colorado State where he finished with 19 tackles and an interception across 10 games. He elected to enter the transfer portal after earning a long list of scholarship offers in the process before visiting just West Virginia and UCLA.
Crandall has three years of eligibility remaining and is a high-upside option but in the immediate future as well as what he could develop into down the line. He enrolled in January to start his career with the Mountaineers and is going to be a factor at the position given his skill set.
Garnes, 6-foot, 170-pounds, is coming off a season where he recorded 51 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 2 interceptions and a sack during his sophomore campaign. The Philadelphia native played a total of 688 snaps and graded out as the highest rated defensive player on the Dukes roster.
The FCS transfer took an official visit to Morgantown during the Dec. 8 weekend after previously stopping at Cincinnati and made the decision to pick the Mountaineers. He will slot in as an option that can help immediately and will have two years left which makes him intriguing for a number of reasons.
Like Crandall, Garnes enrolled at West Virginia in January and has been working with the team.
Overall, the Mountaineers have at least five experienced options battling in the position room and that doesn’t even include any of the younger options on the roster that could develop.
It’s a different spot this spring but the battle there is only just beginning.
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