Neal Brown, WVU is Red Hot on the Recruiting Trail
Heading into year three as the head coach of West Virginia, Neal Brown is starting to make some serious gains on the recruiting trail. He and his staff landed some highly rated recruits in their first two recruiting cycles but it's the 2022 class that is really sticking out. What makes it even better? He's just getting started.
This week alone, WVU has secured verbal commitments from running back Justin Williams and cornerback Jacolby Spells. Since the start of June, WVU has received a total of seven commitments and a lot of that can be attributed to getting recruits on campus for an official visit. Last year, recruits were not permitted to take visits to schools due to the pandemic so virtual recruiting became essential. During that time, WVU put the finishing touches on its newly renovated facilities that came with a $55 million price tag and recruits are taking notice.
WVU has always had the rich history and tradition to compete with some of the other big boy programs in recruiting but always seemed to be a bit behind in terms of facilities. Now, they're going toe to toe with the nation's top programs and it's making a huge difference in how a recruit views the program.
Although the future certainly looks bright in Morgantown, patience is still needed to see the returns. The 2022 class as a whole won't make much of an impact until at least 2023, maybe 2024. As important as it is for Neal Brown to win football games, it's even more important he continues to win the battles off the field in recruiting. I'm no psychic by any means but I believe this uphill trend in recruiting will continue for WVU. The coaching staff has done a tremendous job of making the recruits feel like they are already a part of the team and make them feel like a priority. After speaking to several recruits over the last few months, those two things seem to be a consensus. The coaching staff cares for the players both on and off the field and have a plan in place for them to grow not only as a player but as a student.
Depending on which recruiting service you look at, WVU could be on the verge of piecing its best recruiting class in program history and again, just in Brown's third year on the job. With several big-time recruits still yet to make their decision, it is very possible that it comes to fruition. Some names to watch for can be seen below.
RB Ramon Brown (Chesterfield, VA)
Top 5: Virginia Tech, Penn State, South Carolina, Maryland, West Virginia.
Visited WVU: June 4th-6th
Decision date: July 9th
WR Shawn Miller (Bradenton, FL)
Top 5: Illinois, Miami, Arizona, Indiana, West Virginia.
Visited WVU: June 11th-13th
DE Tomiwa Durojaiye (Middletown, DE)
Top 5: Georgia Tech, Kentucky, South Carolina, Vanderbilt, West Virginia.
S Steven Sannieniola (Gaithersburg, MD)
Top 3: Purdue, Vanderbilt, West Virginia.
Visited WVU: June 11th-13th
Decision date: Late July
ATH Jaden Mangham (Franklin, MI)
Top 15: Michigan, Nebraska, Minnesota, Baylor, Miami, Georgia Tech, Michigan State, Kentucky, Oregon, Florida, Washington State, Penn State, Cincinnati, Bowling Green, West Virginia.
Visited WVU: June 4th-6th
ATH Christion Stokes (Harper Woods, MI)
Top 7: Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Michigan State, Kansas, Iowa, Toledo, West Virginia.
Visited WVU: June 4th-6th
Decision date: July 10th at 5:30 p.m.
When you look at the current makeup of the 2022 class, there's a lot to like. Starting with the most important position of the football field, quarterback. Nicco Marchiol announced his pledge to WVU last month after decommitting from Florida State. The consensus four-star dual-threat gives something WVU hasn't had in a very long time and that's competition at the QB position. Garrett Greene, Will Crowder, and Marchiol will all be battling for the starting job once current starter Jarret Doege departs from the program. It's hard to remember the last time WVU had three, young talented quarterbacks on the roster and that will be the case beginning in 2022.
The other area that Neal Brown has placed his focus on is building up the offensive line. To win games at this level, you have to be strong in the trenches and also have depth. The 2021 and 2022 classes show that Brown is able to land some high-quality talent at the position such as Wyatt Milum, Doug Nester (Virginia Tech transfer), Sullivan Weidman, and Maurice Hamilton.
Flipping over to the other side of the ball, WVU has secured commitments from some high-profile defenders such as cornerback Jacolby Spells and safety Mumu Bin-Wahad while being considered the favorites to land linebacker Travious Lathan and defensive backs Jaden Mangham and Christion Stokes. Having the nation's No. 1 passing defense in 2020 and No. 4 total defense probably have something to do with that.
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