WVU ready to kick off spring football practice

“This is our opportunity to get it fixed,” stated the coach. “We’re not trying to hide from last year not being good enough. When you talk about getting things fixed – and we’ve been talking about this program-wise, but I’ll say it publically – you talk about the three Es. We have to better in terms of efficiency when it comes to third downs and red zone. It’s also about explosives. Last year we gave up way too many explosive plays. Also on offense, we have to figure out ways to use our run game to create explosive plays down the field. The third E is to eliminate errors.”

WVU will hold 15 practice sessions beginning March 21 and concluding with the Gold-Blue Spring Game on Saturday, April 22.

“We had a strong winter under strength coach Mike Joseph,” noted Brown. “The infrastructure for our program is in a really good spot. I think (Joseph) is as good as anybody in the business.

“We really focused on improving our overall athleticism during the offseason, and I’m pleased with where our guys are. Also from a nutrition standpoint, we’ve really come a long way. Our guys are leaner and look better.”

The NCAA loosened regulations in recent years that had restricted a coach’s ability to work directly with players during the offseason. While contact drills still aren’t allowed during the winter or summer sessions, coaching staffs can now do more practical football work than in the past.

“From a winter standpoint with the rules changes, we were able to work on some fundamentals,” explained Brown. “I’m pleased with where we’re at, and our staff and players are energized about the start of spring.

“I want for us to establish an identity,” emphasized Brown. “First of all, we want to be disciplined. Second thing is strain and playing with extreme effort. Third is physicality, and the fourth thing is to play smart.”

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Each spring usually brings about a few position changes and also features some players who are unable to practice, or at least are limited, because of injuries.

In terms of position changes, the most significant this spring for WVU will be switching Davis Mallinger from safety to wide receiver.

“He played receiver in high school, though he played safety his first two seasons here,” said Brown of 6-foot-1, 194-pound sophomore. “We want to add his speed to offense.”

Unfortunately, Mallinger’s receiver education will be restricted this spring, as he’s still recovering from an injury that sidelined him for the final four games of ’22. He had started four games and played in a total of eight at spear safety prior to that.

Injuries will also impact West Virginia’s defensive line this spring, as junior Jalen Thornton will be limited, while sophomore Zeiqui Lawton and redshirt freshman Asani Redwood will both be unable to participate, according to Brown. Sophomore Taurus Simmons, who had seen time at linebacker previously, will concentrate on defensive end this spring.

On offense, junior center Zach Frazier, who is heading into his fourth year as a starter, will be limited some this spring, though Brown said his injury isn’t anything that should linger into the fall.

Also junior receiver Graeson Malashevich, who missed the latter portion of last season with a leg injury, will be out the first week or two of spring practice but should be available after that. Running back C.J. Donaldson will be limited as well in spring drills as he recovers from an injury last season.

Mallinger’s move from defense to offense is the most prominent position change, though there will be some juggling in the offensive line, as starting guard Doug Nester will get some work at tackle this spring and tackle Brandon Yates gets some reps at guard and center, said the head coach.

“O-line wise, it’s about establishing some depth and also finding some position fits,” explained Brown. “We’re going to move some guys around just to give us some versatility.”

With five offensive line starters back from last year, WVU has plenty of experience up front, but it is looking to build better depth. Brown noted that sophomore tackle Dylan Ray and redshirt freshmen guards Sullivan Weidman and Mo Hamilton are some of the young linemen he’s excited to see this spring.

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Certainly, quarterback is a position that always gets a lot of attention, and it will again this spring at WVU, as junior Garrett Greene and redshirt freshman Nicco Marchiol battle for the starting job.

“I don’t plan on making a decision on this, just to be clear, until we get into fall camp. We’re playing the long game on this,” explained Brown of the QB1 role. “We’ll split the reps with Garrett and Nicco through the entire spring. There will be some ups and downs with that, but we’ll split the reps. We will carry that competition into the summer and into the fall. Now, if it is just really clear, then we’ll make the choice, but I don’t foresee that happening.

“We have running quarterbacks for the first time,” added the fifth-year WVU coach. “Both the guys who are vying for the starting quarterback job are capable of pulling the ball on read plays and we can call quarterback runs, which changes the game. That makes some things easy for a playcaller, especially on third downs where we have to get better.”

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Besides finding a new starting quarterback, West Virginia also must rebuild its receiving corps after the departure of its top four pass catchers from last year – Bryce Ford-Wheaton and Sam James to the NFL, and Kaden Prather (Maryland) and Reese Smith (Liberty) to transfer.

“At receiver, it’s a matter of who is going to be The Guy,” noted Brown. “Obviously, (N.C. State transfer) Devin Carter has done that at another school, and we have high expectations for him. We also expect some growth from (returnees) Jeremiah Aaron, Cortez Braham, Preston Fox, Hudson Clement and Jarel Williams. Those guys had productive winters, and we expect them to take a step.

“In scrimmage situations and live settings, we have to find out what receivers we can count on. I have a pretty good idea of what offensive linemen I can count on, because I’ve watched them (in games). I’ve also got a pretty good idea of what running backs I can count on, but we have to see the quarterbacks and the receivers and the pass-catching tight ends. Can they execute in pressure situations? We have to set them up to do that.”

The Mountaineers bring back a vast majority of their rushing attack with the return of the five offensive linemen who started in the last half of 2022 plus their top four running backs, three of whom had 100-yard games.

“At running back, we want that room to continue to grow,” said Brown. “We have to find ways to get multiple running backs on the field together, and we’ll do some of that this spring.”

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Brown admits his defensive unit needs to significantly improve from last year, when it gave up 32.9 points per game, placing it next-to-last in the Big 12 Conference in that department.

WVU’s defense returns 10 players who saw at least one start on that side of the ball in ’22 but loses nine others.

“On defense, it’s really about getting back to basics,” stated Brown. “We did not play up to our standards last year. Now we’ve simplified things from a schematic standpoint. Early on, alignment and communication are going to be the focal point on that side of the ball.

“We have some newcomers in the defensive line and some guys who have to increase their role. We’re really going to push them. Everything defensively starts up front and then moves backward, so we’ve got to be able to establish the line of scrimmage. We’ve done that in the past, though we didn’t do as good a job with that last year as we needed to, so it’s going to be a point of emphasis.

“At linebacker, Lee Kpogba is ready to take the next step,” the coach added. “Really for Trey Lathan, Josiah Trotter, Ben Cutter, Jairo (Faverus), some of those guys, this spring is huge for them because they’re getting live reps. I think that’s a position where we’re going to see a lot of improvement. There is youth in there, but there is talent.

“At outside linebacker, (Jared) Bartlett had one of the best winters in our program. James Heard, I’m really excited to see him. He’s as good a pass rusher as we’ve brought in here, from a high school perspective.

“We went through some pain with our secondary play last year, but I also expect that to be one of the most improved areas on our team this year,” concluded Brown. “We’ve simplified things to help them. My expectation is they’ll be much improved, and I think that will show by the end of the spring.”

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The Mountaineers have 10 more members of their 2023 signing class who will enroll at WVU this summer.

They will also have a few scholarships available for further transfers. Brown indicated that additional defensive linemen, defensive backs and wide receivers would be priorities with any transfers from the May portal window.