MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Quarterback Scottie McBrien is likely the face of former WVU football players coming back to play his former school, though it’s not a pleasant memory for the Mountaineers.
McBrien played in 2000 for WVU, but when coach Don Nehlen retired and spread offense innovator Rich Rodriguez was hired in 2001, the writing was on the wall that McBrien may be the odd man out.
Instead, he transferred to Maryland, faced his former team three times with the Terrapins, beating WVU in all three matchups by a combined score of 123-31.
This Saturday, it won’t be as dramatic as a former starting quarterback, but the Mountaineers will go head-to-head with someone who used to be one of their own — Oklahoma State offensive lineman Josh Sills.
Sills, known for his mullet haircuts with bleach-blonde curls over the last three years in Morgantown, made his first start with the Cowboys last week against Tulsa. Starts are no oddity for Sills, who made 22 at WVU and appeared in 25 total games from 2017-19.
However, he missed most of the 2019 season with an injury, and after the season, entered the transfer portal with hopes of playing immediately somewhere else as a graduate transfer. On New Years Eve, Sills announced he was staying in the Big 12, playing for coach Mike Gundy and the Cowboys.
Between recovering from surgery and the COVID-19 pandemic, it took Sills a while to get back into playing shape when he first arrived in Stillwater.
“Josh has been really good for us and he’s come in and competed,” Gundy said. “It took him a while to get back in shape. He was off and then the virus hit. He went home and I think he hunted for three months, came back and then had to get in shape again. He likes to play football, he’s a leader, he’s a great person. We’re certainly glad he’s on our team.”
Gundy previously said Sills fits well in the culture at OSU — a Sarahsville, Ohio, native who likes to hunt and do other outdoor activities.
Last week against Tulsa, though, Sills was part of an offensive line that struggled in both pass protection and the running game, as the vaunted Cowboys’ offense mustered just 16 points against the Golden Hurricane. OSU gave up six sacks and Heisman-contending running back Chuba Hubbard was held to just 3.4 yards per carry.
Sills earned the start at left guard, but Gundy said there could be a shake up along the line heading into Saturday’s game against WVU.
Mountaineers coach Neal Brown took the high road when asked about Sills and the matchup this weekend.
“We wish him the best of luck,” he said. “I don’t want him to have a whole lot of luck in this game, but after that, I wish him the best of luck. I really hadn’t thought about it.”
But senior defensive lineman Jeffery Pooler, who arrived at WVU the same year as Sills in 2016, is looking forward to facing his old teammate.
“Its gonna be fun to play against each other,” Pooler said. “We’ve always been on different sides of the ball so we’ve always had a lot of different competitions throughout practice.”
