MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – In a way, senior tight end Trevon Wesco’s first career touchdown at Mountaineer Field was entirely appropriate.
For three years, he was an invisible part of West Virginia’s offense, used almost exclusively as an extra blocker. And on his long-awaited 33-yard touchdown reception from Will Grier, Wesco was an invisible man to TCU’s defense.
Despite being an impossible-to-miss 6-foot-4 and 280 pounds, none of the four Horned Frogs who could have stopped Wesco before he reached the end zone noticed him jetting down the sideline on a wheel route. The only thing that could have prevented him from scoring was the very center of the solar system.
“I did know how open I was. But the crazy thing was I couldn’t see the ball because of the sun,” Wesco said. “David [Sills] had dropped one previously and said ‘I couldn’t see it because of the sun.’ Then I go out there and I just see a tiny black spot at the last second.”
The score was but one piece of a massively productive afternoon for the Martinsburg native. Wesco finished the game with 86 yards on five receptions, making him the first West Virginia tight end to lead the team in receiving yardage since Josh Bailey did it against No. 1 Miami on Oct. 26, 2002.
Bailey’s performance was an anomaly, though – product of playing an all-time great college secondary led by Sean Taylor. West Virginia only competed six passes in that game, with Bailey grabbing two for 35 yards.
Wesco was the focal point for Will Grier, who threw for 343 yards against a defense that was only allowing 190 yards per game through the air. Not bad for a guy who came into the season with two career catches for seven yards.
“The culture’s definitely changing with the tight end. We’re definitely getting more involved in things,” Wesco said. “The better we do, the more we’ll be able to progress with the offense and help any way we can.”
As recently as this spring, such a thing would have been unthinkable on an offense featuring two potential Biletnikoff Award semifinalists in David Sills and Gary Jennings Jr. But Wesco’s ability and growth over the course of this season have forced the Mountaineers to re-wire their playbook.
“He and Jovani [Haskins] are playing at a really high level, so we continue to grow that package,” Grier said. “It will continue to grow. We love the way those guys play and the juice they bring in all aspects. They bring a whole new element to the game.”
Wesco’s newfound receiving prowess has not come at the expense of his blocking skills. He helped spring Jennings for an 8-yard touchdown in the third quarter, and had a few other crushing blocks in the running game.
“I just try to be an aggressive player and the most physical player out there,” Wesco said. “Hopefully people feed off me when I do that.”