HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Spring Valley fullback/linebacker Jonah Wellman is one of the state’s 2017 senior football standouts getting set for the transition in the coming months to college football at the Division I level.
Wellman signed back in February with FCS Eastern Kentucky, choosing the Colonels over a preferred walk-on spot with West Virginia.
“It’s been great. It’s been my dream since I’ve been a freshman to play Division I football – it coming true is great,” Wellman said. “I fell in love with (Eastern Kentucky) and I knew that was where I wanted to be. The campus was nice, they have a whole new coaching staff and it’s just a good thing that they have going. I can’t wait to be a part of it.”
Wellman led Spring Valley in last year’s Class AAA state championship game with 94 rushing yards and a touchdown. In all, he totaled 421 rushing yards and seven touchdowns offensively during his senior season. Defensively, he entered that title game leading the Timberwolves with 88 tackles on the year, five sacks and a forced fumble.
“Eastern Kentucky wants me to play linebacker,” he said. “They don’t have a lot of linebackers right now. So they want me to come in and see what I can do with that.”
The Colonels went 3-8 a season ago are heading into the second year under head coach Mark Elder. Elder had been a longtime member of Butch Jones’ coaching staffs, including at Cincinnati and Tennessee.
“They have a good mindset about how they’re going to change the program around,” Wellman said. “Coach Elder is a really good guy and (linebackers) Coach (Chase) Gibson was the first one to give me an opportunity to play at that level and I really appreciate him for that. I like what they have going and I think we’re going to do something special in a year or two.”
Gibson, specifically, is a Marshall alum with connections to the Mountain State.
“That was one of the first things he told me when I first met him,” Wellman said. “They’ve been trying to get into West Virginia and he said that he loves getting (West Virginia) in-state kids to Eastern Kentucky.”
Wellman entered his senior season at Spring Valley standing-in at 6-foot-2, 215 pounds.
“I’ll have to adjust to the speed of the game and no matter what my role is — whether it’s practicing or getting in on Saturdays — I just want to help make the team better,” Wellman said. “I’m just going to enjoy it and I think it will really sink in when I get on campus.”