WVU Football Recruiting Update 4/20/15

There has not be a wild amount of movement on the recruiting front since the last update, but following the spring game this week we could see an increase in the activity levels. With only a week of practice time left, the coaching staff has its entire focus on continuing to develop the players on the roster.

That being said, it will be interesting to see how quickly recruiting may pick up quickly following spring ball particularly at the quarterback position. Quarterbacks tend to commit to schools fairly early in the process, and while Rex Culpepper is certainly in contention, he is certainly not the only one.

Two West Virginia quarterback recruits were in the Washington D.C. Elite 11 and apparently both performed extremely well. Both Dwayne Haskins and Jamie Newman were considered top performers at the event over the weekend. Both players have similar builds at 6'3" and over 200 pounds, but Haskins is definitely more of a pure passer while Jamie is more of a dual-threat QB. However, Newman's passing performance over the weekend was certainly enough to put him in top two consideration which bodes well for his future at the next level.

Haskins is a much more highly recruited player and will be a tough pull for WVU but not one that is out of the question. With an established pro-style type of play, Dwayne would remind fans a lot of Geno Smith, especially when including the frame, rating, and Elite 11 performance. Haskins is a 4 star with a .96 overall rating from Maryland and currently the main focus is early playing time, which is why WVU does not currently rank high on his list. The plethora of quarterbacks on the roster did not generate a lot of interest on his end and as he hopes to be committed by June, there may not be enough time to sway his opinion. Still though, stranger things have happened.

Newman released his top four which included West Virginia, and with his recruitment wrapping up soon as well it seems like Jamie is going to be the safer bet. Newman is 3 star prospect from NC but his performance at the Elite 11 certainly showed the dual-threat classification isn't from a lack of talent in the passing department but more a matter of his athletic ability. As of now I'm not sold that Newman will be a Mountaineer either, but the chances are still higher. It looks like his main concern is academics though and with Duke, Wake Forest, and Vanderbilt (Syracuse is also trying to get into the mix), the competition will be stiff.

There has also been a few murmurings about defensive-line prospects which hopefully could be a sign of future commits in that area. WVU is still in contention for Nick Coe (6'5" 4 star) can still be considered a top target along with Josh Brown, but his recruitment is a long way from over. Zander Zimmer is probably going to be the most likely commit as of now (3 star from FL), but the race is also not over for Zack Gilbert as he recently including WVU in his list of top schools.

Quarterback and positions along the line are two of the hardest areas to recruit so it bodes well that WVU is still in the mix for so many players this early on, but being the in mix rarely means commitments. The coaching staff will have to get after it following the spring game but hopefully a few players can be locked down early which will go a long way for inspiring trust in the talent of the class. And the more talent that can come along earlier, the more talent we will see join in down the line, particularly in other areas of need (e.g; wide receiver, etc.)