West Virginia Freshman Defensive Back Transfers to Penn State

Despite seeing some action in a limited role as a true freshman, West Virginia defensive back Chris Fileppo entered the transfer portal and quickly decided on his next stop... Penn State. He announced his decision on X on Saturday afternoon.

🐾 @PennStateFball pic.twitter.com/sBfSpcO2Om
— Chris Fileppo (@Cfileppo22) January 10, 2026

Other than quarterback Scotty Fox Jr., Fileppo saw the most snaps this past season of any true freshman (although there weren't many) on the WVU roster, with 104. He saw the field in all twelve games, notching twelve tackles and one tackle for loss. Forty-two of those snaps, however, came in the regular season finale against Big 12 champion, Texas Tech.

Fileppo did show some flashes here and there, but with the additions of Wisconsin transfer Geimere Latimer, who can play some nickel/sam, along with incoming freshmen Miles Khatri and Emory Snyder, the Mountaineers will be just fine.

Coming out of high school, Fileppo picked the Mountaineers over offers from James Madison, Lafayette, Monmouth, New Hampshire, Purdue, South Florida, UConn, and a few others.

He will have three years of eligibility remaining.

Mountaineers who are transferring out

Offense: QB Nicco Marchiol, QB Khalil Wilkins, QB Jaylen Henderson, RB Jahiem White, RB Diore Hubbard, RB Cyncir Bowers, RB Tyler Jacklich, RB Clay Ash, RB Kannon Katzer, WR Tyshawn Dues, WR Oran Singleton Jr., WR Cam Vaughn, WR Jarel Williams, WR Rodney Gallagher, WR Christian Hamilton, WR Jordan McCants, OL Jude Edwards, OL Cooper Young, OL Ethan Chill, OL Robby Martin, OL Xavier Bausley, OL Donovan Haslam.

Defense: DL Adam Tomczyk, DL Elijah Simmons, DL Hammond Russell IV, DL Asani Redwood, BAN MarShon Oxley, BAN Keenan Eck, BAN Curtis Jones Jr., LB Michael Hastie, LB Caleb Nuhi-Yandall, LB Jackson Biser, LB Ben Bogle, CB Dawayne Galloway Jr., CB Devonte Golden-Nelson, S Kaleb Gray, S Zae Jennings, S William Davis. S Jason Cross Jr., S Chris Fileppo.

Mountaineers who are transferring out

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