MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — There is little question that linebacker VanDarius Cowan has the talent to make an impact at West Virginia. However, there still appears to be a question of whether he will.
Mountaineers defensive coordinator Vic Koenning made it obvious that there remains something to be desired about Cowan’s off-the-field habits.
“He’s got some work to do. He’s got a lot of work to do. We’ll see if he makes the turn,” Koenning said with his trademark candor. “There’s still a lot of things. He’s got some natural ability, but there’s still some things he’s got to work through to see if he can use his ability. We’ll see.”
Cowan has long been surrounded by more question marks than The Riddler.
The former four-star recruit was dismissed from Alabama last June after he was charged with third-degree assault for his role in a bar fight.
Maturity questions preceded his arrival in Tuscaloosa.
Cowan was dismissed from his high school team in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. for his behavior during a game. He was benched following an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, then caught on camera eating a hot dog on the bench and dancing during the game. As a result of getting kicked off the team, he was unable to participate in the U.S. Army All-American game, which he had been selected to play in.
In an interesting analogy, Koenning compared Cowan to his son’s car.
“I’ve got a son that bought a car, a foreign car,” Koenning said. “I’ve had to spend a lot of money on fixing stuff. I hope it keeps running. It can go fast, and it looks good. He’s driving that car here from Troy right now. I hope he makes it. And I hope Cowan makes it, too.”
Koenning indicated that there is no lack of effort being put into getting Cowan on the field.
“We’re spending an enormous amount of time on him,” Koenning said. “There’s a lot of investment.”
Should that investment pay off, the 6-foot-4 Cowan will be lined up at the Bandit linebacker position. Inside linebackers coach Blake Seiler senses he could be a special talent.
“He can run and he’s got great length for a linebacker. He’s got defensive end length,” Seiler said. “He’s the longest guy in the group by far.”
With Cowan, the Mountaineers would be able to get creative rushing the quarterback.
“He’s athletic and fluid enough that he can survive in space in this league at times,” Seiler said. “I think he can rush the quarterback too, and be a good blitzer.”
For now, Cowan’s counterparts at Bandit might have better odds at making an impact this season.
The plan is to work Exree Loe, Zach Sandwisch and Brendan Ferns at the position. Sandwisch stepped up to start at the Mike linebacker spot at the end of last season thanks to a rash of injuries at that position. Loe, a converted safety, was an impact special teams player as a redshirt freshman. And Ferns was expected to start alongside David Long last season, but tore his ACL during spring drills.