JaCorey Thomas Officially Added to WVU Roster — How Much Could He Play?

A little more help in the secondary for the Mountaineers.

A mouthguard flies through the air after Georgia defensive back JaCorey Thomas (20) hits Ole Miss wide receiver Cayden Lee (19) to the ground during the Sugar Bowl and College Football Playoff quarterfinals at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La., on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. Ole Miss defeated Georgia 39-34. Thomas was called for targeting and ejected from the game. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The West Virginia football roster has been updated, and on it, you will now find Georgia defensive back transfer, JaCorey Thomas, who will be sporting No. 30.

Interestingly enough, Thomas is NOT listed as a safety, although there is a strong chance that defensive coordinator Zac Alley will move him around instead of pigeonholing him into one spot. That being said, Thomas is listed as a nickel/sam — a position WVU has primarily played one player at through the first three games of the season, that being Geimere Latimer.

What could the workload look like for Thomas?

Nov 1, 2025; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Georgia Bulldogs defensive back JaCorey Thomas (20) reaches for the ball in the second half against the Florida Gators at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Thomas has been around the block and played really good football for the Bulldogs a year ago, finishing the 2025 season with 45 tackles, one sack, and a tackle for loss. Because he has already missed the first three games, I don't think he is going to want to be held back for very long.

However, the staff has to be careful with how much they put on his plate early. He needs to get back into game shape first and foremost, but also needs to have a strong understanding of what is being asked of him in this defense.

If he primarily sticks at nickel/sam, it will allow Maliek Hawkins and Miles Khatri to serve as depth pieces and guys who can be more of a factor on special teams, buying them more time to develop. Right now, Geimere Latimer is averaging 59.3 snaps per game. Last year at Wisconsin, he averaged 35.2 defensive snaps. In his final year at Jax State, he was at 47.9 snaps, which is probably in the ballpark of where the staff would like him to be.

Latimer can push toward 60 a game and still be fine, but that's a ton of wear and tear on the body, and you're going to need him down the stretch for this defense to be playing its best football at the end of the year.

If Thomas can pick things up quickly, I think you're looking at somewhere between 15 and 25 snaps per game early. The deeper we get into the season, I expect that number to increase. But with this staff, nothing would surprise me. If they feel confident in him being in the right spot more often than not, it could be double what I'm expecting.

He is not listed on the team's availability report throughout the week, but it remains unclear if he will play tonight versus Oklahoma State. We will have a better idea when the team goes through pregame warmups, and if he is dressed, he will almost certainly see the field. We will have another story out during warmups on his status.