West Virginia Football Recruiting: Four-star receiver Rodney Gallagher commits to the Mountaineers

There are recruiting battles and there are recruiting battles. Rodney Gallagher's was the latter. For me, it played out like the famous Vince McMahon reaction meme - wait, there's a 4-star receiver in Uniontown? Man, he sure seems to be visiting a lot? Wait, is that him sitting next to Neal Brown at a basketball game? Oh my lord, the mad lad he actually did it!

On Wednesday, Gallagher decided to forego a congested June visit slate and commit his services to West Virginia, announcing his decision live on CBS Sports HQ.

Gallagher is the No. 97 overall rated prospect — and the No. 14 ranked wide receiver — in the 2023 recruiting class, according to 247Sports’ ratings.

The fact that Neal Brown and the Mountaineer staff have convinced another highly-rated local kid to stay home is noteworthy. The fact that they held off the blue bloods like Notre Dame and Penn State to do it is *chef's kiss*. The fight for his signature is far from over, but there's plenty of time to worry about that. For now, let's bask in the glow of his commitment.

On the field, it's hard to come up with a direct Mountaineer comp for Gallagher without feeling blasphemous, because my first impression of him is something of a 5'10 Tavon. I can't tell if he's quite as fast as Tavon (read: he gets tackled more than 0 times in his highlight tape), but those are the vibes I get from the body type and the way he moves with the ball in his hands - the body swerve, agility, and acceleration are all elite. The film of him playing receiver is mostly from his sophomore season, but it's apparent that his basketball background allows him to play bigger than his frame and attack the ball in jump ball and contested-catch situations. Gallagher will likely be a bit raw after playing quarterback as a junior and senior, but there's no doubt that he possesses the physical traits to be one of the most explosive guys on the team from the minute he sets foot on campus.