We conclude the position preview portion of our Fall camp coverage of the West Virginia Mountaineers by checking in with the safety position. After covering everything from the offensive line to the defensive line, we see Aubrey Burks leading the WVU safeties heading into the 2024 season.
Aubrey Burks Leading the WVU Safeties
After the 2023 campaign, Head Coach Neal Brown found himself in a precarious spot. With rumors outside the locker room that Burks might transfer out of Morgantown, Brown no doubt wanted to keep his most experienced member of the secondary one more season. We have no specific insider knowledge as to whether any real fire caused that smoke. That said, we know this: Brown and his staff certainly welcome Burks back for his final season.
In 2023, the Mountaineers saw 11 different players share 2,449 snaps across the three safety positions (spear, free, and cat). This season, WVU returns 60% of those snaps. Burks returns nearly half of those. In total, he brings 24 starts back to the secondary, offering the most starting experience in the room.
Burks Transitioning to Spear
Fans may notice some differences this season, though, as Burks transitions into the spear. Speaking about that transition in his August 3 interview, defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley said, “Moving Burks to spear allows him to play the way he needs to play.” Secondary coach ShaDon Brown added in his August 5 interview, “[Burks] is just slippery.” Brown added, “He’s a savvy football player.”
Leaning into that experience, Burks saw a need to show his versatility in his final season. Burks, however, minimizes any focus on his individual goals. In his August 5 interview, Burks told the media, “I know if we go out and win games what that’ll do for all of us.” Those wins, Burks added, will come “if we all work together during the season.” It seems that Burks’ motivation for moving into the spear position, then, comes more from his desire for team success. Indeed, Burks kept the reason for his move simple, “I like to blitz.”
The staff will still rely on Burks to play cat safety throughout the season, too, so they can give multiple looks. Situational football no doubt requires versatility. Who better to ask that from than the vocal leader of the defense?
Rounding out the Starters
Beyond Burks, the Mountaineers will undoubtedly rely on Anthony Wilson to continue manning the free safety spot. While Wilson has been dealing with some injury concerns this Fall, Brown assured the media in his August 17 interview, “Wilson will be out there on August 31.” Consider that a plus given Brown’s remarks to the media on August 7 when asked about Wilson, “He’s made a really big step for us.”
ShaDon Brown echoed that remark, “[Wilson] has improved a ton playing off coverage.” About Wilson’s improvements, Brown highlighted, “Wilson is a physical player, and I’m not going to take that away from him.” Brown admits that he has focused time on teaching Wilson how to be physical, which should help limit some of Wilson’s mistakes from last season.
As for the cat safety position now vacant due to Burks’ transition, WVU will likely rely on one of their two safety transfers, Kekoura Tarnue and Jaheem Joseph. Both have made plays during the Mountaineer scrimmages this Fall. Neal Brown, however, tells the media that both need to show more consistency. Perhaps more evidence of Burks leading the WVU safeties comes from his remarks. “Stop worrying about making plays. It’s about being consistent every day,” Burks offers to the young players. We expect Tarnue and Joseph to continue battling for this final safety spot.
Beyond the First Team
Beyond the starters, we hear plenty about some of the younger Mountaineers in the coaches’ remarks. Even Burks took a few minutes, in fact, to praise true freshman Zae Jennings, who, by all accounts, offers the staff a fearless defender. At this point, however, Jennings must still learn discipline, especially with his eyes, as he tries to get a jump on the ball. ShaDon Brown told the media as much, “If he makes a mistake, he makes it full speed.” Despite the inexperience, however, Brown adds, “I don’t know how, but the ball just finds him.” Even if not this year, it sounds like the Mountaineers certainly have a budding playmaker in Jennings.
Aden Nelson has also capitalized on his chances this Fall, and he’s made quite a few plays. Raleigh Collins and Josiah Jackson round out the likely contributors heading into this season.
Burks certainly thinks highly of this rotation (as many as eight to nine bodies across three spots). He told the media, “The depth that we have this year for … safety is a big advantage for us.” Hopefully, his optimism shows up on the field when the season opens.
