MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Part of the WVU football program for five decades as an important behind-the-scenes contributor, James “Jim” Galusky died last Sunday at age 84 after a short battle with esophageal cancer.
Galusky, also known as “Yerp” and a Masontown native, was a videographer for the Mountaineers football team under Frank Cignetti, beginning in 1976. He also worked with the WVU men’s basketball program from 1978-2007, but worked continuously with football through the shortened 2020 spring camp. Recording practices and games, Galusky’s recordings were used for scouting and game prep, as well as other highlights.
“I want to offer not only from myself, but our program, sympathy and condolences to Jim Galusky and his family,” WVU coach Neal Brown said Wednesday. “He was a tremendous Mountaineer and served our football program for five decades. We want his family to know that we’re thinking about them.”
Much of Galusky’s family was also involved at WVU in some way. His son Ernie is currently a color analyst for the WVU baseball team and coached as an assistant for the Mountaineers in the early 2000s.
Another son, Steve, worked with Bubba Schmidt on WVU’s equipment staff. Steve’s son Jimmy played on the WVU baseball team from 2015-18 after he was a standout at Preston High.
“He was Superman to his family and took care of all of us, which was always his No. 1 focus,” Ernie said. “He lived a really good life and if you talk to most people, they’ll always say how authentic he was as a man. You always knew where he stood with you. He woke up every day and did what he was supposed to do, and while this is a really hard time, we’re all pretty damn proud and blessed to have the times we did.”
‘Cautiously optimistic’
With the COVID-19 pandemic causing a shutdown of spring camp, Brown and the Mountaineers are in the sixth week of no face-to-face contact.
However, after discussions with the Big 12 and the higher-ups involved in the decision making, Brown is far from ruling out the possibility of the football season beginning on time in September.
“We’ve taken kind of a wait-and-see approach to not get too far out into the future,” Brown said. “I think where we’re making mistakes is making declarations for things that are really far down the road. Everything we’ve done with our league is focus on that May 31 date. Right now, I think we’re cautiously optimistic about playing the season on time. I’m sure it won’t be a normal fall, for what we think about as a normal football Saturday — I’m not sure we’re going to have that — but I am cautiously optimistic that we’re going to play.”
Injury update
While it’s difficult to keep up with injured players virtually, Brown said head football athletic trainer Vince Blankenship and his staff have been on top of making sure long-term injured players are progressing well.
The two biggest are defensive lineman Taijh Alston and linebacker VanDarius Cowan, both recovering from knee injuries. Alston was hurt in the second game last season at Missouri, while Cowan went down in his second game back against Iowa State after serving an NCAA-mandated suspension.
“VanDarius has done tremendous in his rehab,” Brown said. “Taijh has done well, as well, but VanDarius is much ahead of schedule right now.”
Brown also mentioned several players are recovering from offseason shoulder surgeries, most notably interior offensive lineman Chase Behrndt, who started at center and right guard last season, but all are on pace and progressing how they should.
Kenny Robinson earns second chance
Former WVU safety Kenny Robinson published an article last week on The Players Tribune, admitting to his mistake that led him to be expelled from WVU in 2019 due to academic misconduct.
However, after a successful short run in the XFL, Robinson was drafted in the 5th round by the Carolina Panthers in last weekend’s NFL draft.
“I’ve kept in contact with Kenny throughout and I’m happy for him,” Brown said. “He did a really good job with the article he wrote for The Players Tribune. He took ownership and I’m happy he gets a second chance. People deserve second chances. He paid his price, went to the XFL and now he has an opportunity to pursue his dreams, and I support him in that.”
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