MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — In constant need of pass rushers, West Virginia hopes it landed one Wednesday with a commitment from Itawamba (Miss.) Community College defensive end Larry Jefferson.
The 6-foot-5, 230-pounder Jefferson is a three-star Rivals prospect who originally signed with Charlie Strong at Louisville in 2012. This time he chose West Virginia based on his strong relationship with running backs coach JaJuan Seider and spurned scholarship offers from Miami (Fla.), Kansas State, Maryland, South Florida and Iowa State.
Keenan Cummings of the Rivals website WVSports.com first reported the commitment Wednesday night.
Jefferson becomes West Virginia’s 20th commitment overall and the third defensive lineman of the 2015 cycle, joining Morgantown High defensive end Stone Wolfley and Florida defensive tackle Alec Shriner.
The Mountaineers’ recruiting class currently ranks 17th nationally, according to Rivals, and tops among the Big 12 schools.
Coming out of Banneker (Ga.) High School two years ago, Jefferson also held offers from Auburn, Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina and Virginia Tech.
Forced to go the junior college route upon failing to qualify, Jefferson made 32 tackles with 5.5 sacks and two forced fumbles as a freshman at Itawamba.
He will have three seasons to play two at West Virginia and plans to enroll in January. The Mountaineers currently have two seniors at defensive end, Dontrill Hyman and Shaq Riddick, along with sophomore Noble Nwachukwu and junior Eric Kinsey.