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WVU's Holgorsen discusses opening week of practice

Holgorsen addressed the media and spoke about the first several days of fall practice
Holgorsen addressed the media and spoke about the first several days of fall practice (WVSports.com)

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West Virginia head coach Dana Holgorsen wasn't ready to anoint a full depth chart following one-day of padded practice, but he has noticed some positives with the direction of the football program.

One of those has come in the style of bodies that the Mountaineers now have in the program. A focus on the recruiting trail has been on more length and bringing in a different style of body than in the past. While West Virginia has had excellent success with undersized players in the past, now when the skill set matches up they are targeting those prospects that are bigger and more physically prepared.

"Our recruiting is continuously getting better with the type of bodies we're bringing in and thankfully we don't have to play those bodies when they first get here," he said.

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SEE ALSO: WVU Fall Camp Insider Notes: 8/1/17 ($)

West Virginia tracks player progress during the summer and the Mountaineers had more "elite," test outs, which involve a combination of charting off-season strength, agility and speed drills, than at any point under Holgorsen.

Compared to the common four or five in the program at a time, the Mountaineers have as many as three times that in the program this summer.

"I do think we have top end talent," he added.

One area this has been especially evident is on the defensive side where West Virginia is once again replacing eight starters from a season ago. But unlike several years ago in the Big 12 Conference, the football program has both experience and depth to fill those holes on the roster.

"How are we going to replace eight starters on defense? Well the same way we have the last couple years," Holgorsen said.

SEE ALSO: Go Inside the Action -- WVU Football Practice 7/30/17

When it comes to redshirt freshmen, Dylan Tonkery, Brendan Ferns, Jacob Long and several others have impressed early in fall camp. All three of those players tested out elite during the summer, which is a good sign for the future of the program.

On the other side of the ball, Rice wide receiver transfer Nate German has looked good to this point but has only been repping for three days at inside wide receiver. It's hard to tell at this junction, but he has a chance to help the program.

Holgorsen said that Saturday the coaches will sit down and evaluate how the players are performing to date and begin to formulate the initial depth chart. That way coaches will have six days of video to review and give them a chance to look at two of every day that players can practice, including two days of full pads.

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