Despite having just completed a nine-win campaign and placing fourth in the Big 12 Conference,
West Virginia is not receiving much attention from college football analysts. Neal Brown is kind of cool with that. They were predicted to finish dead last in the league the previous year, which fueled the flames even more.
Maybe it happens once more in 2024. One of the few who rates the Mountaineers as a top 25 team ahead of the season is ESPN’s Greg McElroy. In a recent Always College Football episode, McElroy gave an explanation for why WVU is ranked No. 23.
Despite having just completed a nine-win campaign and placing fourth in the Big 12 Conference, West Virginia is not receiving much attention from college football analysts. Neal Brown is kind of cool with that. They were predicted to finish dead last in the league the previous year, which fueled the flames even more. Maybe it happens once more in 2024. One of the few who rates the Mountaineers as a top 25 team ahead of the season is ESPN’s Greg McElroy. In a recent Always College Football episode, McElroy gave an explanation for why WVU is ranked No. 23.
After nine victories in the previous season, West Virginia’s next move is to compete for the conference title in a conference that has added four more teams, making it a much deeper league. That ground and pound was kind of established by West Virginia last year.
We already know who they are: after Jahiem White, a true freshman who was a revelation last year, they topped the Big 12 in rushing and were ranked fourth nationally. Additionally, CJ Donaldson performed admirably in the one-two punch. White had 842 yards, Donaldson 798 yards, and Daonalson 11 touchdowns. The running backs should be OK, in my opinion.
“They need to take some more steps in the defense. Last year, they did produce some. In terms of yards and points allowed, they actually placed in the upper half of the Big 12, but they lack depth and have experienced some portal turnover.
It wasn’t like they went out and added ten players, but they did try to provide some depth. They added Aydan Garnes, TJ Crandall, Garnett Hollis Jr., and Jaheem Joseph, among other important, in my opinion. Those individuals ought to be quite reliable.
Although McElroy is headed in the right direction, I don’t think he done his research on West Virginia’s defense. However, he is correct. They brought in nine gateway guys instead of ten.
It doesn’t seem as though he conducted a deep dive into the gateway class, but I’m not sure. Most of the guys they lost in the portal weren’t really that important. WVU would have preferred to retain defensive lineman Mike Lockhart and Tomiwa Durojaiye as their sole remaining players. Those two losses should be made up for with the addition of Troy transfer T.J. Jackson and the ongoing progress of Fatorma Mulbah and Hammond Russell IV.
