Ranking the Top 13 Mountaineers Who Are Not Entering the Transfer Portal (For Now)

The transfer portal will officially open up on January 2nd, but we've already heard from a number of West Virginia Mountaineers, who plan to enter and evaluate their options.

Who are the best of the group of players potentially staying put in Morgantown? Today, I'm going to rank the best of the best.

For this exercise, we're going to take the best player from each position group and rank them. So obviously, there are going to be players who may be among the top five or ten of the entire team that you don't see listed because we're just taking one player from each position.

Note: This list only includes players from the 2025 roster.

No. 13: CB ChaMarryus Bomar

The cornerback room is pretty bare right now, so the true freshman gets the nod here. The staff will bring in some veterans through the portal, in addition to the JUCO talent they've already signed, which will allow Bomar to continue to develop rather than being put in an unfair position. Expect his role to grow significantly in 2027 and perhaps the back end of next season.

No. 12: N/S Chris Fileppo

Fileppo saw limited action, largely due to Fred Perry occupying much of the workload. He's sitting atop the depth chart right now, but it may not be that way at the end of spring ball. Still, at worst, he'll be in the rotation.

No. 11: TE Ryan Ward

Ward is the only tight end returning who had a catch this past season. Don't let his low receiving totals fool you, though. He can be an asset in the passing game and will likely have to be in 2026 unless they land a receiving-first TE out of the portal.

No. 10: OG Donovan Haslam

There's a strong chance Haslam doesn't start next season. WVU is going to be heavily active in the portal, looking for a pair of guards, and I'd be shocked if they fail to land two proven starters. I still believe, however, that he can have an important role in this offense, particularly in the run game and in short-yardage situations.

No. 9: S Israel Boyce

Boyce logged a ton of snaps this year, which was much needed after seeing very limited action in 2024. I doubt WVU will go out and get a safety to start over him unless there's a clear upgrade that has interest, so we can unofficially peg Boyce into the starting lineup.

No. 8: RB Cyncir Bowers

I'm really interested to see where Bowers falls on the depth chart with so many new faces populating the running back room. His speed and one year of experience in the system should position him for a spot in the rotation. The question is, where does he fit? Is he the No. 2? Three? Maybe No. 4? Time will tell.

No. 7: DL Asani Redwood

Redwood had a decent 2025 campaign, but probably fell a little shy of expectations. He ended the year with 23 tackles, one sack, and one tackle for loss. Currently, I have him listed as the starting nose guard.

No. 6: LB Ben Bogle

An elite run defender who has an opportunity to step into a starting role in 2026. Bogle finished his first season in Morgantown with 19 tackles and also got home to the quarterback three times as well, showing he's more than just a run stuffer.

No. 5: OT Nick Krahe

Krahe, in my opinion, did a fairly decent job for his first full year as a starter, especially when you consider that he had to learn an entirely new offensive system. There were more than a few times when he got outleveraged, which led to a pressure or a QB hit. He wasn't stellar, but not someone I believe WVU fans should be concerned with.

No. 4: QB Scotty Fox Jr.

Fox took over as the starting quarterback following the first bye week and never relinquished it. As you'd expect, there were some freshman mistake, but in all, he played well and did some unexpected things, such as a beating a ranked team on the road and throwing for 300+ yards twice.

No. 3: C Landen Livingston

Because of how poorly the offensive line played this season, you probably didn't realize how good Livingston was, more specifically in pass pro. He finished the season with an 88.1 pass blocking grade on PFF after allowing just one sack and five pressures.

No. 2: WR Cam Vaughn

The talent is there. The length is there. The playmaking ability is there. Now, it just comes down to consistency and effort. There were a few times this season where Vaughn was nonexistent, and some of that, of course, can be attributed to not having another dynamic receiver on the other side. If he can put it all together, he can be special. Everyone sees it.

No. 1: BAN Curtis Jones Jr.

Yes, I'm going with the West Virginia native as my top returning player on the roster. I know he logged fewer snaps than Braden Siders, and having to play some running back this past season contributed to that. Still, he has the highest ceiling of anyone currently on the roster. Now he'll fully be able to focus on mastering his role at the bandit and develop into an all-league caliber player.