When peaking into a team’s Fall camp and building projections for the coming season, we often look at the prior year’s snap counts to start that analysis. Last season, West Virginia had five receivers log more than 200 snaps. Four of those five return. Of those who return, one is a junior, and three are sophomores. What was a young room last season remains young this season, but we see the Mountaineer receivers growing up in 2024 to shoulder a bigger burden. With the addition of two bigger-bodied transfers, we also see the room growing up more literally.
Mountaineer Receivers Growing Up
We start by retreading some ground we covered in our Fall quarterback preview. In his August 1 open interview, Garrett Greene celebrated the addition of transfers Justin Robinson and Jaden Bray to the receiver room. With larger targets comes a bigger catch radius, which means, to Greene, that he doesn’t have to be perfect. Robinson joins the room after prior stops at Georgia and Mississippi State. He offers Greene a 6′-4″ target, presumably on the outside. Bray transferred from Oklahoma State, and he added a 6′-2″ target. Both play physically, but they also stand as the two tallest scholarship receivers in the room now. We figure the added height was intentional.
Both Head Coach Neal Brown and Offensive Coordinator Chad Scott mentioned Bray and Robinson by name in Fall camp interviews. For Scott, Bray and Robinson “help us with our red zone gameplan.” Brown adds that both “are going to play a role for us.”
For the veterans in the room, Brown told the media on August 7 that he really likes the receiver group. He started his comments on the room by noting that “all those guys who were with us last year made a positive step” in their development. Traylon Ray, Rodney Gallagher, and Hudson Clement–all sophomores–each took a step forward in their natural progression (coach-speak for “they are growing up”). Preston Fox, now a junior, is a “lot stronger.”
Indeed, in his August 3 interview, Scott summarized the receiver room by saying “They’ve all gotten stronger.” He added the receivers are “able to create [more] separation and that just increases their confidence” because the group is strong enough to beat press coverage. This, Scott concludes, “allows them to buy in more to the techniques” the staff teaches them. Execution of the offense, as a result, should improve.
Returning Production Matters
Last season, the Mountaineers did not throw the ball often. They totaled fewer than 2,700 passing yards. The receivers accounted for about 2,000 of those. Notably, the receiver room returns about two-thirds of its production from last season. Returning production matters as much as the return experience. Indeed, that there is so much of it will help in some less obvious ways. According to Scott, “field position is huge for us.” The team focused heavily on it and won the field position battle more than they lost it last season. That focus continues in 2024.
“With the talent we have, you’re gonna see more of [the best players on the roster] on special teams.” This goes for the receiver room, too. With 11 scholarship receivers, five of whom are in at least their second season in the program, and two more of whom join as transfers with three to four years of experience, the abundance affords that luxury. With so much production returning, the Mountaineers can loan some of that production to special teams without sacrificing depth in the room.
What About the Fresh Faces?
Certainly, the fresh faces in the group include transfers Bray and Robinson. That said, we have heard enough to clue fans into this fact: one true freshman will make some noise this season. On DayDay Farmer, Brown reminded us during his August 7 interview that the Mountaineers really wanted to add him and beat out a lot of schools to get him in Morgantown. The why matters. “He’s elite with the ball in his hands,” Brown confessed. Scott simply added, “he’s going to be special,” when asked about Farmer.
What makes Farmer special, according to Brown, is his twitch and explosiveness. Because of those qualities, “he’s gonna earn some playing time,” according to Brown.
Adding this to the Mountaineer receivers growing up as they round through Fall camp, the group very well could be a hidden gem of the offense. While everyone looks at the run game (the zig), the Mountaineers certainly have the weapons to zag when needed.
