Notebook: Play of defensive line impresses Brown during scrimmage portion of practice

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Three weeks out from the annual Gold-Blue Game that concludes spring football, West Virginia went to work for the seventh time in an organized spring football Saturday inside Milan Puskar Stadium.

The Mountaineers were without one of two players in the mix to be the starting quarterback in 2023 as redshirt freshman signal-caller Nicco Marchiol was not on hand due to illness. As a result, Garrett Greene, the most experienced of WVU’s quarterbacks, worked with the first unit in an organized scrimmage officiated by referees from the Big 12 Conference.

“He hit some nice runs. He wasn’t as accurate passing as he had been to this point,” West Virginia head coach Neal Brown said of Greene. “He’d been really accurate and wasn’t as accurate today.”

Perhaps part of that can be attributed to the defensive line, which impressed Brown enough to the point he called it the unit’s best day of the spring.

“Sean Martin showed some flashes of what he can be, which is a great run defender and a guy that can apply some pressure in the pass game and with his speed and length, can push on the pocket,” said Brown, who also praised the play of defensive linemen Davoan Hawkins, Hammond Russell and Mike Lockhart.

Outside of Martin, Brown praised the efforts of several other players expected to be among the Mountaineers’ defensive playmakers on the edge — one with a wealth of experience and a pair of true freshmen early enrollees.

“[Jared Bartlett] is playing more efficient with his movement. He’s controlling his body better,” Brown said. “Josiah Trotter and James Heard flashed today. They missed some plays too, because they played a little bit out of control, but you saw some flashes from them.”

— — — 

One freshmen not among early enrollees but unquestionably a prized possession among this year’s recruiting class is Rodney Gallagher of nearby Uniontown, Pa.

April 1, 2023; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; West Virginia head coach Neal Brown with looks on with wide receiver Rodney Gallagher beside Brown during a spring practice inside Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen

Gallagher, labeled a 4-star recruit by several national recruiting services, will get his first look as a slot receiver in fall camp. While he’s not able to practice at present, there is an opportunity for Gallagher to get an early jump on his much-anticipated college football career this spring.

“It’s real clear what you can and can’t do. They can come to practice. You can do zoom meetings with them,” Brown said. “There’s ways to get them caught up. [Strength and conditioning director Mike Joseph] is able to give them a workout and they follow that workout now that he’s done with basketball. 

“We have a bunch of guys that do basketball and [fellow freshman wideout] Traylon Ray played basketball and now he’s in baseball. Mike and our staff do a good job with guys that are in spring sports to not overwhelm them. Rodney’s doing the program and I think you’ll see him gain weight. We have plenty of time for him to learn what to do. I’m not concerned about that.”

— — —

The likelihood of Gallagher seeing the field early is only increased by West Virginia having lost each of its top four receivers from last season, including a trio responsible for 1,921 of the Mountaineers’ 2,730 receiving yards.

Cortez Braham, an addition by way of junior college prior to the 2022 season, is the leading returning wideout. Braham hauled in 14 passes for 147 yards a year ago. 

Devin Carter, a 6-foot-3 fifth-year transfer from North Carolina State, is in the mix to lead a position where Brown says the team will need to add at least one more player.

“Cortez is coming along. Not his best day today but he’s been consistent,” Brown said. “We’ve caught the ball really to this point in spring ball. Cortez is going to be one of our most improved players when we get to the fall. Jeremiah Aaron has big play potential and he has to put it together and be an every down guy. Hudson Clement has had a nice spring to this point. Jarel Williams is getting better. Rodney’s going to have opportunities. He has to gain some weight and get stronger, but in fall camp, he’s going to have opportunities to help us in the slot. We need to go get one and add a receiver as well.”

— — —

Two of West Virginia’s most experienced players did not participate in Saturday’s practice. Offensive linemen Zach Frazier and Doug Nester worked on their conditioning and did not partake in contact periods due to minor injuries.

Nester is set to marry high school sweetheart Bryn Osburn next Saturday, with Frazier and fellow teammates Graeson Malashevich and Wyatt Milum serving as groomsmen. 

Like Nester, Malashevich and Milum are graduates of Spring Valley High School.





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