What Are West Virginia's Portal Needs Following Spring Ball?

Taking a look at where the Mountaineers' roster could improve.

West Virginia University head coach Neal Brown. / Christopher Hall

Spring ball is officially over in Morgantown and over the next 48 hours, WVU head coach Neal Brown and his staff will do everything they can to keep the main pieces of this roster intact. Once May 1 arrives, they'll shift all focus to filling out their roster through the portal.

What areas of the roster could use a little TLC? Here are my very specific needs, ranked in order.

5. Quarterback

Hear me out here. I'm not vouching for Neal to go out and get someone who can beat out Garrett Greene to be the starter, nor is this toward the top of priorities. This is more about depth and giving yourself some cushion if some injuries take place. Greene and Marchiol are the only two quarterbacks on scholarship as of now. Incoming freshman Khalil Wilkins will join them later this summer, but can you count on a true freshman who did not early enroll if you know what hits the fan?

Last week, I said pushing for an experienced quarterback made a lot of sense - you know, one that's just happy to still be playing somewhere. I'd also encourage them to look for someone with two or three years of eligibility left. Why? Because Marchiol is the clear-cut No. 2 this year and next year, the job is basically his to lose. Infuse competition to push Marchiol and Wilkins in 2025. If the staff does pursue a quarterback, they need to be extremely careful with how they handle it. There needs to be 100% transparency with all involved.

4. Spear/safety

The coaching staff is extremely high on Zae Jennings, and they should be. He's going to make an impact fairly early on in his career. However, you'd like to not put too much on his plate as a true freshman. Raleigh Collins III is also an option here, but this feels like a spot that can be upgraded with a grad transfer. Give someone for Jennings to learn under and turn him loose as the starter in 2025. If WVU feels comfortable with these two at spear, then I'd be willing to bet they look at someone who can play both safety spots.

3. Experienced big-body receiver

West Virginia's got a ton of talent in that receiver room, but the one thing they don't have is length/size. They have a couple of guys at 6'2", 205 (Jaden Bray, Jarel Williams), but they don't have the big and long 6'4", 6'5" target like they've had in previous years such as George Campbell, Bryce Ford-Wheaton, and Devin Carter. The offense can still operate efficiently and feature an explosive passing game without it, but having that dimension really helps stretch the field vertically.

2. Receiving tight end

Kole Taylor is a stud and if he puts up big numbers again in 2024, he'll hear his name called pretty early in next year's draft. After him though, there's much to be desired from a pass-catching standpoint. Treylan Davis' hands have improved throughout his career, but he's a block-first guy. Will Dixon is on the verge of being ready and Jack Sammarco will be a player down the line. If the right guy is out there that has a year or two left, go get him. You need to be able do disguise what you're doing on offense and if you take Taylor off the field, the defense has a pretty good hunch that whoever replaces him isn't likely to be targeted if a pass play is called.

1. Versatile d-lineman with pass rush ability

I expected West Virginia to add to the defensive line before Corey McIntyre Jr.'s injury, but now it's one of the top needs for this defense. If I'm being specific, they'd ideally be able to identify someone who can play the nose and defensive tackle. Having the ability to rotate in nine or ten guys up front a year ago allowed that unit to play at a high level throughout the entire season with fresh legs.