MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Football may be temporarily shut down, but West Virginia’s next recruiting class continues to grow.
The Mountaineers received their second Class of 2021 commitment this week as Hammond Russell, a defensive end from Dublin, Ohio, pledged to WVU on Good Friday.
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Russell is a 6-foot-3, 235-pound weakside defensive end whom Rivals rates as a 3-star recruit.
West Virginia lucked out on landing Russell in at least one regard. He had already taken two visits to campus prior to the massive shutdown created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Russell had to cancel a scheduled visit to Purdue on March 22 — to name just one example — and decided he liked enough of what he had seen at West Virginia.
Russell also fielded offers from Pitt, Michigan State and Georgia Tech.
Defensive line coach Jordan Lesley and tight ends coach Travis Trickett were Russell’s primary recruiters. He is projected to be able to either play as a hand-in-the-ground defensive end, or potentially at the bandit position that WVU had trouble filling last season.
West Virginia’s commitments for 2021
| Hammond Russell | Dublin, Ohio | 6-3, 235 | DE | 3-star |
| Will “Goose” Crowder | Birmingham, Ala. | 6-3, 192 | QB | 3-star |
| Wyatt Milum | Huntington, W.Va. | 6-6, 280 | OL | 4-star |
| Saint McLeod | Philadelphia, Pa. | 5-11, 190 | Safety | 3-star |
| Andrew Wilson-Lamp | Massilon, Ohio | 6-3, 175 | WR | 3-star |
| Viktor Wikstrom | Stockholm, Sweden | 6-3, 235 | TE | 3-star |