WVU Confidence Meter: Which Offensive Units Are Rock Solid and Which Aren’t?

The West Virginia offense should see marked improvement this fall with deeper position groups across the board and higher-end talent making up the starting unit.

How confident am I in each group on the offensive side of the ball?

I gave each a grade, using a scale of 0-10, with 10 being extremely confident. Keep in mind that the grade is based on the entire makeup of the room and not just the starter or the two-deep.

Quarterback: 6.8

Mike Hawkins Jr. — WVU Athletics Communications

This will be my 11th season covering West Virginia football, and there are only a few other years when I thought West Virginia had more than one quarterback that could play and that could win games with. Mike Hawkins Jr. has all of the makings of becoming Rich Rodriguez's next star quarterback and is not getting enough credit for what he can do with his arm. He made several next-level throws as a true freshman at Oklahoma and did so against SEC competition with a far-from-ideal supporting cast.

Behind him, West Virginia has Scotty Fox Jr., who started a handful of games last season and flashed during the games against TCU, Houston, and Arizona State. He needs more time to develop, but if West Virginia needs him to go into the game due to injury, I feel pretty good about his ability to go in there and operate the offense well enough to give the Mountaineers a chance to win.

The only reason I don’t have this over seven is that it is the first year in the system for Hawkins, and I typically don’t go over that number for a quarterback who has yet to become a full-time starter, giving respect to those who have experience. I have no doubt in my mind, though, that he will be tremendous in this offense.

Running Back: 7.2

You would think that with the nation's leading rusher being in the backfield, I would have this group rated much higher. But when he is the only player in the room with Division I experience, I have to temper expectations to some degree. Amari Latimer is a special talent, and I think we will see positive contributions from JUCO product Martavious Boswell and fellow freshman Chris Talley. That said, they have to go out and prove it first.

As talented as Latimer is, I believe we will see a heavy dose of Cam Cook, at least early on in the Big 12 schedule. Once Latimer gets his feet wet, running backs coach Jay Boulware will start to take some things off of Cook’s plate.

Wide Receiver: 5.5

There are several intriguing options in this room, each of which comes with a lot of uncertainty.

Can Jaden Bray stay healthy?

Can Prince Strachan stay healthy?

Can DJ Epps have similar success at the Power Four level?

Does John Neider develop into a top-of-the-rotation guy this fall?

Is TaRon Francis ready to make an impact?

Do either JUCO products Keon Hutchins or Kedrick Triplett factor into the equation?

And does walk-on Cyrus Traugh find his way into meaningful snaps on offense?

West Virginia certainly doesn’t lack bodies or talent in this room; it’s just mostly unproven talent at the moment. This feels like a group that could collectively boom or bust. If they find 3-4 reliable options, then Rich Rod should be able to call a balanced game each week.

Tight End: 4.6

West Virginia will play at least three players at tight end this fall — Ryan Ward, Josh Sapp, and Cam Ball. None of them have logged a bunch of catches to this point in their career, although they are each capable of being a threat, to some degree, in the passing game. The blocking aspect is a big question mark with this group, and when you couple that with the minimal production in the receiving game, you get to this number on the meter.

Offensive Line : 8.1

There isn’t a position group on the entire roster that I am more confident in than this group led by Rick Trickett. His mere presence alone will do wonders for the Mountaineers in the trenches, but it also helps to have some legit dudes controlling the line of scrimmage.

The projected starting five of Kevin Brown, Nick Krahe, Wes King, Amari Grayson, and Carsten Casady will enter the season with a combined 5,528 career snaps. This group has been around the block and produced at a high level. I don’t see why that would be any different here under Trickett's tutelage.

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