MORGANTOWN — While the future of West Virginia University football’s coaching staff remains unknown, the future of its roster can begin to shape up today with the start of the NCAA’s early signing period for football.
As of Tuesday night, recruiting website 247Sports.com listed 19 prospects in the 2025 recruiting class as hard commitments to the Mountaineers, even after head coach Neal Brown was fired Sunday afternoon following a 6-6 finish and a 52-15 loss to Texas Tech to end the regular season.
There had been 22 hard commitments on Sunday, but news of Brown’s dismissal led three to decommit from WVU’s signing class. Both Tampa, Florida, cornerback Serious Stinyard and Huntingtown, Maryland, defensive lineman Evan Powell decommitted Sunday. Then, on Tuesday, Cheshire, Connecticut, wide receiver Teriq Mallory announced that he had flipped his commitment from WVU to Florida State.
The rest of the group will be able to sign their letters of intent starting this morning. The 2025 class is heavy on two areas of need for the Mountaineers – offensive line and secondary. The Mountaineers have five offensive line prospects and four secondary prospects expected to sign with the team.
Of West Virginia’s five starting offensive linemen, four this season were seniors, including Outland Trophy semifinalist Wyatt Milum. So that position room will need replenished. On the defensive side, the Mountaineers featured one of the nation’s worst pass defenses, sitting near the bottom of the Football Bowl Subdivision in several key categories, including passing yards allowed per game (268.9) and opponents’ passer rating (158.13).
The highest rated prospect in WVU’s signing class, Upper Marlboro, Maryland, defensive lineman Taylor Brown, is still expected to sign with the Mountaineers. Brown is the only player among WVU’s commitments ranked nationally, sitting at 110th in 247Sports Top 247. He’s also considered the No. 16 defensive line prospect in the country and the No. 4 overall prospect in the state of Maryland. He also had offers from schools such as Memphis and Pittsburgh.
The class also will have a quarterback, Mentor, Ohio, signal caller Scotty Fox. Fox is 247Sports’ No. 50 QB prospect in the nation and also fielded scholarship offers from Boston College, Indiana, Kentucky and Minnesota, among others.
— Story by Derek Redd
