Big Ten School Flips 2026 West Virginia Running Back Commit Jett Walker

The Mountaineers lose a piece of their recruiting class.
WVU Athletics Communication

Late Monday night, class of 2026 running back Jett Walker (6'2", 215 lbs) of Georgetown, Texas, announced that he has flipped his commitment from West Virginia to Minnesota.

P.J. Fleck and the Gophers got in the door late, having just offered Walker on October 27th, but they were able to convince him to switch his decision after taking an official visit there this past weekend, where he was on hand to see their overtime win over Michigan State. Earlier this season, Walker eclipsed the 5,000-yard mark for his high school career.

Walker committed to the Mountaineers back in early May, picking them over offers from Bowling Green, Charlotte, Dartmouth, Harvard, Houston, Marshall, Navy, New Mexico State, Ohio, Rice, San Diego State, Texas State, Tulsa, UNLV, UTEP, UTSA, Yale, and several others.

West Virginia still has two running backs verbally committed in this recruiting cycle in SirPaul Cheeks and Christopher Talley. They would still like to sign three, given that Cheeks has a knee injury that is going to sideline him for roughly eight months.

Jahiem White, Diore Hubbard, and Cyncir Bowers figure to be the top three backs on next year's roster. Clay Ash, Tyler Jacklich, Kannon Katzer, and Andre Devine all have eligibility remaining, but it wouldn't be surprising to see some movement there with the top three spots likely set.

If WVU doesn't sign another back in addition to Talley and Cheeks in the high school ranks, they'll almost certainly target one in the transfer portal. A power back who can handle short-yardage situations is something they desperately need.

Updated 2026 WVU Football Recruiting Class

QB: Jyron Hughley, Wyatt Brown

RB: SirPaul Cheeks, Christopher Talley

WR: Robert Oliver, Malachi Thompson, Charlie Hanafin

TE: Sam Hamilton, Kade Bush

OL: Lamarcus Dillard, Justyn Lyles, Rhett Morris, Camden Goforth

DL: Cameron Mallory

EDGE: Noah Tishendorf, Carter Kessler, Kamdon Gillespie

LB: Antoine Sharp, Miles Khatri, Cam Dwyer

CB: Vincent Smith, Emari Peterson, Simaj Hill

S: Emory Snyder, Rickey Giles, Jayden Ballard

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Schuyler Callihan
SCHUYLER CALLIHAN

Schuyler Callihan is the publisher of West Virginia On SI and has been a trusted source covering the Mountaineers since 2016. He is the host of Between The Eers, The Walk Thru Game Day Show, and In the Gun Podcast. The Wheeling, WV native moved to Charlotte, North Carolina in 2020 to cover the Charlotte Hornets and Carolina Panthers.

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