--The coaches try to throw as many situational deals at the players as possible in order to show them how to react. There are a lot of teachable moments. Sam James made a couple one-on-one plays today in two-minute drills and Isaiah Esdale scored a touchdown yesterday to win the drill.
--West Virginia holds weekly leadership meetings but it will be determined how effective those are in the fall. They are trying to transition from a coach-led team to a player led team which should happen in year three with the right guys in the program. You have a chance to be elite when you have guys that embrace that.
--Doug Nester has practiced four times and the last two days he has been impressive. He is playing at guard and tackle and they are dual training guys at different spots. As he learns what he is doing and the expectations he is playing with more confidence and being more physical. Brown thinks he can be an upper level Big 12 offensive lineman. They look forward to him playing a big role over the next couple years.
--West Virginia has five scholarship tight ends and it's where they want to be because they play a lot of 11 personnel. At tight end Mike O’Laughlin is progressing. The next year will be a critical year for him and he is ready to take the next step and has shown signs of improvement in the past. T.J. Banks has been a positive through five practices, he’s got to continue to show that growth. Charles Finley has been out of practice due to a back issue, nothing major, and the two early enrollees in Treylan Davis and Victor Wikstrom are very physical. They can put their hands down or play in the backfield and create movement. Wikstrom is extremely athletic and is very talented at that spot. The Mountaineers have invested into the tight end spot because there will be length and a threat in the passing game. They will utilize fullbacks but overall they are relying on the tight end position in that role.
--Running backs coach Chad Scott has done a great job with the progression of senior running back Leddie Brown and the growth he has shown since last fall. He is an all-around back and can play every down. He understands setting up blocks and has shown the ability to break tackles. He has displayed growth as a pass catcher and has a lot of the techniques and skills that the wide receivers use. He has had championship level practice habits which has helped him.
--West Virginia did some full tackling today, a lot with the second group. Offense, A’Varius Sparrow is a guy that’s tough to tackle. He has courage to run the ball up the middle. And James Thomas at linebacker had a couple big hits which stood out.
--Today was the first live tackling for Kerry Martin, who worked with the second team unit, since TCU in 2019. He was rusty, but he is flying around. He’s changed his body and is now up to 190-pounds which is heavier than he was. He’s had a good winter but has to continue to do the right things and is learning multiple safety positions.
--James Thomas is playing the MIKE position, which will maximize his ability. He’s a guy they are going to need to be a factor on special teams and at linebacker. Every day is a learning and growth opportunity for him. He came from a small high school program in Georgia and played about every position. He’s a good athlete and he really good contact courage. He runs well but he has to get to where he lines up consistently, is more disciplined with his eyes, plays lower and is able to defeat blocks. He’s spending a lot of time with coach Jeff Koonz and they have high hopes for him but there’s a lot of learning to do.
--Andrew Wilson-Lamp is at cornerback and Davis Mallinger is at safety. Both of them are coming along and he expects both of them to contribute this fall. Really fast, really long and hungry and both of them practice hard. They will help on special teams for sure and maybe even on defense if they continue to progress the way that they currently are now.
--Jackie Matthews has had a really solid spring in his second year and it’s starting to click. Daryl Porter was out and is now getting back into shape. Nicktroy Fortune, Brown wants him to take more chances. He needs to play a little freer and play with confidence.
--Brown doesn’t plan on cross training any safeties there because they plan on getting some help at the cornerback position either by transfers or other additions.
--When it comes official visits, West Virginia will have three weekends in June and they plan to keep the numbers low. It will be critical when they bring those players on campus and they also want to have unofficial visitors from the 2023 and 2024 classes in town.
--The timing of official visits is key because you need to try to plan those when guys are getting ready to make decisions. That is the balance you have to figure out and Brown admits that he likes having guys on campus in the summer because it helps put the best foot forward.
--Jarret Doege and Garrett Greene are both getting a ton of reps. Greene has the ability to extend plays and get out the pocket while making some wow runs and throws, but he also makes some major mistakes. You have to try to bring him in sometimes, but it’s a difficult balance because you don’t want to try to take that away from his game either. Doege is progressing and is showing better pocket movement.
--Lanell Carr and Taurus Simmons have grown into defensive end bodies and Brown is really excited about both of them. Lanell is probably the most natural pass rusher they have and he is working on continuing to change his body. He has upside. Taurus Simmons just works and both of them could be high level players and he said he will be disappointed if they aren’t giving some snaps this fall.
--West Virginia holds weekly leadership meetings but it will be determined how effective those are in the fall. They are trying to transition from a coach-led team to a player led team which should happen in year three with the right guys in the program. You have a chance to be elite when you have guys that embrace that.
--Doug Nester has practiced four times and the last two days he has been impressive. He is playing at guard and tackle and they are dual training guys at different spots. As he learns what he is doing and the expectations he is playing with more confidence and being more physical. Brown thinks he can be an upper level Big 12 offensive lineman. They look forward to him playing a big role over the next couple years.
--West Virginia has five scholarship tight ends and it's where they want to be because they play a lot of 11 personnel. At tight end Mike O’Laughlin is progressing. The next year will be a critical year for him and he is ready to take the next step and has shown signs of improvement in the past. T.J. Banks has been a positive through five practices, he’s got to continue to show that growth. Charles Finley has been out of practice due to a back issue, nothing major, and the two early enrollees in Treylan Davis and Victor Wikstrom are very physical. They can put their hands down or play in the backfield and create movement. Wikstrom is extremely athletic and is very talented at that spot. The Mountaineers have invested into the tight end spot because there will be length and a threat in the passing game. They will utilize fullbacks but overall they are relying on the tight end position in that role.
--Running backs coach Chad Scott has done a great job with the progression of senior running back Leddie Brown and the growth he has shown since last fall. He is an all-around back and can play every down. He understands setting up blocks and has shown the ability to break tackles. He has displayed growth as a pass catcher and has a lot of the techniques and skills that the wide receivers use. He has had championship level practice habits which has helped him.
--West Virginia did some full tackling today, a lot with the second group. Offense, A’Varius Sparrow is a guy that’s tough to tackle. He has courage to run the ball up the middle. And James Thomas at linebacker had a couple big hits which stood out.
--Today was the first live tackling for Kerry Martin, who worked with the second team unit, since TCU in 2019. He was rusty, but he is flying around. He’s changed his body and is now up to 190-pounds which is heavier than he was. He’s had a good winter but has to continue to do the right things and is learning multiple safety positions.
--James Thomas is playing the MIKE position, which will maximize his ability. He’s a guy they are going to need to be a factor on special teams and at linebacker. Every day is a learning and growth opportunity for him. He came from a small high school program in Georgia and played about every position. He’s a good athlete and he really good contact courage. He runs well but he has to get to where he lines up consistently, is more disciplined with his eyes, plays lower and is able to defeat blocks. He’s spending a lot of time with coach Jeff Koonz and they have high hopes for him but there’s a lot of learning to do.
--Andrew Wilson-Lamp is at cornerback and Davis Mallinger is at safety. Both of them are coming along and he expects both of them to contribute this fall. Really fast, really long and hungry and both of them practice hard. They will help on special teams for sure and maybe even on defense if they continue to progress the way that they currently are now.
--Jackie Matthews has had a really solid spring in his second year and it’s starting to click. Daryl Porter was out and is now getting back into shape. Nicktroy Fortune, Brown wants him to take more chances. He needs to play a little freer and play with confidence.
--Brown doesn’t plan on cross training any safeties there because they plan on getting some help at the cornerback position either by transfers or other additions.
--When it comes official visits, West Virginia will have three weekends in June and they plan to keep the numbers low. It will be critical when they bring those players on campus and they also want to have unofficial visitors from the 2023 and 2024 classes in town.
--The timing of official visits is key because you need to try to plan those when guys are getting ready to make decisions. That is the balance you have to figure out and Brown admits that he likes having guys on campus in the summer because it helps put the best foot forward.
--Jarret Doege and Garrett Greene are both getting a ton of reps. Greene has the ability to extend plays and get out the pocket while making some wow runs and throws, but he also makes some major mistakes. You have to try to bring him in sometimes, but it’s a difficult balance because you don’t want to try to take that away from his game either. Doege is progressing and is showing better pocket movement.
--Lanell Carr and Taurus Simmons have grown into defensive end bodies and Brown is really excited about both of them. Lanell is probably the most natural pass rusher they have and he is working on continuing to change his body. He has upside. Taurus Simmons just works and both of them could be high level players and he said he will be disappointed if they aren’t giving some snaps this fall.
