WVU lands specialist Simcox
West Virginia has landed a commitment from a specialist when former Western Kentucky kicker Skyler Simcox selected the Mountaineers.
“I have committed and accepted a full scholarship to WVU. I can't wait to be a Mountaineer!” he said.
Simcox connected on 16-22 field goal attempts a season ago for the Hilltoppers but left the program following this past fall camp. The specialist was 10-11 on kicks inside 40-yards and 2-2 on attempts over 50-yard during the course of last season.
His efforts named him to the pre-season Lou Groza Award Watch List this past off-season.
West Virginia hadn’t been involved long with Simcox, but things moved quickly between the two and heated up in the past couple days. Assistant Mark Scott was the lead recruiter for Simcox and he also kept in contact with offensive coordinator Jake Spavital and Ryan Dorchester.
The Mountaineers offered him a scholarship and he accepted Friday evening.
Ultimately, the decision to pick the Mountaineers came from the fact that it was close to home and the opportunity to work for both the field goal and kickoff spots on the team. He plans to compete for both jobs upon arriving in Morgantown.
“I’ve been a fan since I was a little kid," he said. "I'm really excited and I can't wait to win football games."
Simcox is expected to take an official visit to West Virginia for the Texas Tech game. He informed WVSports.com that he also had received interest from Virginia Tech and Oklahoma State. That will be his first trip to Morgantown but he has multiple friends that have been to the school.
The Virginia native started his career at Division III Emory & Henry College earning first team all-conference honors before electing to move onto the FBS level. He will have two years of eligibility remaining and is set to enroll in the program in January.
Simcox has worked with kicking coach Mike McCabe since high school and plans on training with him in order to be prepared for when he will arrive on campus in Morgantown.
Simcox now considers his recruitment a closed book.
“I’m a solid commit,” he said.
WVSports.com will have more with Simcox in the near future.
