Lucky Number 13 Has Become The Top Target Once Again
Morgantown, WV - Redshirt freshman receiver Sam James heaped a whole lot of expectations on himself at the outset of fall camp when it was announced he would be changing his jersey number from 81 to 13 which was of course vacated by former Biletnikoff Award finalist David Sills V. The native of Richmond Hill, GA saw action in just four games last season, maintaining his redshirt season and making two catches along the way. Filling the shoes, or jersey if you will, of David Sills was never going to be easy, but it is starting to look like young Sam James has all the ability to do so over the next four years.
With very little decided at the receiver position coming into the season, young players like James have been relied upon to make plays in the first three games and did he ever make plays this afternoon. The connection between the redshirt freshman and quarterback Austin Kendall was evident early and seemed to breathe life into an offense that had looked stagnant through two weeks of play. On the Mountaineers' first offensive possession, a pair of big plays from Sean Ryan and true freshman Winston Wright set WVU up on the Wolfpack 20-yard line. A tunnel screen would be set up for James and the speedy receiver was able to make something happen, avoiding multiple tacklers over the middle as he traversed the field and broke a tackle at the goal line to give his team a seven-point lead to start the game.
James continued to serve as the go-to option for Kendall throughout the first half, making several key catches to keep WVU scoring drives alive. His ability to find open space and then turn on the jets were crucial to his success, making three catches over 15 yards. The most explosive play of the half came as he took a shovel pass behind the line and burst around the left side, picking up a pair of key blocks on the edge for a huge gain of 51 yards, putting the Mountaineers in business on a drive capped off by Kennedy McKoy's 23-yard touchdown tote. James put up career-high numbers in the first half alone, tallying six catches on nine targets for 114 yards and a touchdown through the initial 30 minutes of play.
He was once again a massive part of the offensive attack as the second half began, running the ball for a seven-yard pickup to start the half, and then making a pair of catches including a big 25-yard grab to put WVU in the red zone. A few plays later, Evan Staley came on to kick a short field goal, giving the Mountaineers back the lead. James would add another catch on a key fourth-quarter drive, bringing his final stat line to a robust nine catches for 155 yards and a touchdown, all career highs in his seventh career game.
The bond between a quarterback and his receivers is key and James believes his connection with Austin Kendall was a big part of toady's success.
"Since he got here we've been throwing. I've been running routes. He can throw me the ball." The Georgia native said of his new quarterback, "We've just built a relationship and then outside football, we play games and stuff like that. We hang out. We have a good relationship."
The passing game began to flourish today with the addition of some young receivers to the lineup. The success of Winston Wright and Ali Jennings showed James that the depth at receiver is strong and they can go to the bench without missing a beat.
"They're ready to play and if we needed them we'd throw them in just like today," he said about his teammates. "Just to know that we have backups that go in and do exactly what we do so it's not like someone's falling off or it's like "oh, they put him in and its a mismatch on defense or something like that. Just they can go in and do what we do."
Sam James is the leader of a group of young receivers who will be absolutely crucial to WVU's success not only this season but in the first few seasons of Neal Brown's tenure. With sophomore Sean Ryan hauling in four catches, along with Winston Wright making a few explosive plays and Ali Jennings catching a touchdown in their first collegiate game, the future looks very bright out wide and James should have some very talented running mates on the edges for the next four years.
The progression of Sam James will be extremely important to WVU's success through the rest of the season. His vast potential is unrivaled on this roster, providing speed reminiscent of Shelton Gibson and a knack for making plays over the middle like Daikiel Shorts. A major part of Austin Kendall becoming comfortable with the Mountaineers was going to be finding a favorite target who can make those big plays that are necessary to win in the Big 12. Just like calls of Grier to Sills were heard countless times a year ago, expect to hear the combination of Kendall to James quite a few times as the season goes on.
