You might remember these Bearcats when they were WVU football targets

WVSports.com takes a trip down memory lane and takes a look at current Cincinnati players that at one time were recruited by West Virginia. We’ll examine their recruitments as well as how they have turned out in college.

So without any further waiting, which Bearcats were once West Virginia targets on the recruiting trail?

West Virginia had not one, but two shots at Threats as he was originally committed to Purdue before backing off that pledge. West Virginia was in the mix both times but was unable to overcome the draw of Cincinnati. The Mountaineers had a connection with his teammate and cousin Hammond Russell but couldn't overcome the draw of staying home. Threats saw action in year one, but took a big step last year appearing in all 13 games and recording 58 tackles and 2 interceptions.

Jones received a scholarship offer from West Virginia out of high school but outside of that was never really able to generate any momentum. Jones would later commit to Florida and spent four years with the Gators with his best season coming in 2021. That year Jones tossed for 2,734 yards and 19 touchdowns with 13 interceptions while rushing for 759 more yards and 4 touchdowns. Decided to enter the transfer portal after that and enrolled at Arizona State. In his lone season with the Sun Devils, Jones started the first six games before getting injured and threw for 1,533 yards and 7 touchdowns with 3 interceptions. Entered the transfer portal yet again and while the Mountaineers never expressed any interest he could commit to Cincinnati for the sixth and final year of his college career.

Kiner was recruited by essentially everybody as a high school senior and while West Virginia offered a scholarship was really never able to gain any traction. Kiner would sign with LSU where he spent just one season rushing for 324 yards and 2 scores. Entered into the transfer portal and ended up back home at Cincinnati where he is coming off a season where he rushed for 362 yards and 5 scores on 81 carries.

Related: Behind Enemy Lines: Cincinnati

Grzesiak spent five seasons at Nevada and played in 34 career games with 42 tackles, 7.5 sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss. He transferred to Utah State where he had 52 tackles, 8.5 sacks and 13 tackles for loss. He has one season remaining in his career and is a native of Los Angeles, California. West Virginia has extended an offer when he entered the transfer portal and at one point looked like they would get a visit. However, he took an official to Cincinnati and ended his recruitment by picking the Bearcats.

Young spent two years at Florida where he appeared in 13 games and recorded 11 tackles and a pass defended. He is originally from Florida and West Virginia jumped into the mix with a scholarship offer once he entered the transfer portal. But things never really materialized between the two as he would take a series of official visits before committing to Cincinnati. He has three years left.

Metayer was originally committed to Miami but backed off that pledge and West Virginia offered a scholarship. He ended up committing to Cincinnati and moved from the defensive side to tight end. Didn't appear in any games in his first year and played in 6 this past season catching just 1 pass for 32 yards.

West Virginia offered Jackson but did not make the cut for his final three which consisted of Cincinnati, Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh. He committed to the Bearcats in December of 2020 and has appeared in 7 games over the past two seasons as a reserve defensive lineman.

West Virginia jumped into the mix with a scholarship offer to Gillison led by then tight ends coach Travis Trickett in 2020. But he wasn't that familiar with the program and they weren't able to overcome that in his recruitment. Committed to Cincinnati in the spring and he appeared in only one game during the 2022 season.

West Virginia jumped into the mix with an early scholarship offer to Burns and he took a visit to campus. He was set to return for an official visit in the summer but that trip never happened because he ended up committing to the Bearcats prior to returning to Morgantown. He is a true freshman this coming fall.

West Virginia offered Carter early on in his recruitment and for some time it appeared that he could end up at West Virginia after making multiple trips to campus. But committed to Cincinnati in a somewhat surprising move early into things and never really backed off that pledge. He is a true freshman.

Doggette was a legacy prospect at West Virginia and while the program was involved in his recruitment the Mountaineers never made a real push. Doggette made multiple visits to campus but when push came to shove the Mountaineers simply liked other options at the position better. Travis Trickett served as the lead recruiter and he would commit to Cincinnati early into the process. He has yet to appear in a game.

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