MORGANTOWN — One of Neal Brown’s biggest ploys on the recruiting trail since he was hired in 2019 was to transform the tight end room into one with quantity and quality.
The Mountaineers just lost Trevon Wesco, one of the most prolific tight ends in recent school history, to the NFL, and the rest of the group looked bleak, mainly filled with hybrid TE/fullback bodies, true freshmen and walk-ons.
Now, through two recruiting cycles, there are six tight ends, including five on scholarship. Brown even crossed international borders to find exactly what he wants, expecting an increased role from tight ends in his offense, something the Mountaineers haven’t significantly used since Don Nehlen, over 20 years ago.
The group is led by Mike O’Laughlin, now in his fourth year with the program. He’s missed most of fall camp with a leg injury, but is expected to be ready to go when WVU travels to Maryland for a Week 1 matchup on Sept. 4.
“From a mental and leadership standpoint, Mike has taken big steps,” tight ends coach Travis Trickett said. “That’s probably the biggest difference between Mike O last year to this year. No. 1 is probably leadership, and second is probably strength. He got a lot stronger this offseason. He worked his tail off for coach Mike Joseph.”
O’Laughlin played a big part in the Mountaineers’ offense last year, especially toward the end of the season. He didn’t have a catch through the first two games but ended with 15 catches for 137 yards, and hauled in a touchdown in the Liberty Bowl win against Army. Overall, he is easily the most experienced tight end on the team, appearing in 21 games over the last two years.
T.J. Banks came in the same recruiting class as O’Laughlin and has been limited with his production, hauling in four catches, including a touchdown last season at Texas Tech. Seeing O’Laughlin’s leap has been motivation for Banks to get better, according to Trickett.
“Going into this fall camp, seeing the steps behind Mike, and seeing Mike’s steps as well, because he needed to take some leaps also, was important,” Trickett said. “I wanted to see where T.J. was growth-wise. The biggest thing with T.J. is consistency. He’ll stick his face in there. Now, it’s just a repetition game. From a mental standpoint in terms of preparation, all that stuff has improved. He’s still working on those things, but it’s definitely improved, and that has shown up in practice. He’s probably taken more reps now than he ever has, and that’s a good thing.”
Charles Finley is a second year player, while Treylan Davis and Victor Wikstrom — a Sweden native — are true freshmen. Trickett noted Finley is up 12 pounds from when he arrived on campus last year but needs to continue to change his body into an atypical tight end frame. The newcomers are there physically but still act like first-year players.
“Treylan Davis is who we thought he was when we signed him — a physical guy and a road grader,” Trickett said. “Victor is obviously new to the United States and also college football. He has a lot of ability, but this is his first time away from home for a long period of time. He’s done a phenomenal job adjusting and picking it up at a rapid pace, though he’s a little further away, probably.”
The last is Eli Archer, a 6-foot-4 preferred walk-on from Huntington.
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