No matter how things went this season for West Virginia University’s football team, interim head coach Chad Scott could count on at least one thing. When he looked in the Puskar Building’s parking lot at 5:45 a.m., Wyatt Milum would be parked and walking toward the door.
Well, that was almost always the case. Scott admitted he’d see Milum roll in late every once in a while – at a tardy 5:46 a.m.
That consistency has been a gift for the Mountaineers in this 2024 season of ups and downs. It’s also why Milum will leave Morgantown as one of the most decorated offensive linemen for a program with a history of great players at the position – from Sam Huff and Bruce Bosley to Mike Compton and Rich Braham to Colton McKivitz and Zach Frazier.
Milum has the potential NFL future that all six of those WVU alumni either had enjoyed or currently do enjoy. Yet, even with professional possibilities on the horizon, he suited up Tuesday night for WVU’s season finale, a Frisco Bowl matchup with No. 25 Memphis. For him, it was the only fitting way to cap his Mountaineer career, that one last chance to wear old gold and blue with his teammates.
“I love the game of football,” he said, “just all the memories that you’ve had with your teammates outside of football or inside of football … the relationships that you built with everybody. Those are the memories that I’ll always have.”
Milum’s signing to WVU was a coup for former coach Neal Brown. He was the highest-rated recruit in any of Brown’s classes and one of the highest-rated recruits in WVU history. He was a starter on the Mountaineer offensive line from his freshman season, and became a constant along WVU’s offensive front. He has started 43 of the 47 games in which he has played and logged 2,951 snaps throughout his career.
The secret to that consistency on the field has been simple. Milum said it comes mainly from his consistency off the field. He has found a routine shown to him by Frazier – who now starts for the Pittsburgh Steelers – that keeps him healthy and in the lineup.
“It’s really helped me overall to continue my strength during the season and my body preparation,” he said, “just keeping my body healthy. This is a rough game. There’s a lot of hits on every play.”
His favorite parts of the process, he said, are the red light recovery bed, a dip in the cold tub and using compression recovery boots. The process of staying healthy almost becomes a second job on top of staying at the top of his game within the offense, but he said developing a rhythm to the day helps.
“After you do it a while, it becomes like a routine,” he said. “So … every morning I get here a couple hours before the meetings, and I do the light bed, I do my shoulder work, and then I go do rehab on whatever’s bothering me. So it really just turns into a routine. I just know what I’m going to do every day.”
Milum has been happy watching his teammates follow his lead. Now, he said, there are a bunch of players who will join him during those early morning sessions.
“Words can’t express how important he’s been throughout this,” Scott said. “He’s been phenomenal. He’s a guy who shows up, sticks to his routine, sticks to his habits.
“That’s an example that he’s showing to some of these younger guys who are talented and are coming up in the program,” he added. “This is how you lead. This is how you go about your business, so you can match that level of consistency on the football field and play the game at a high level.”
Milum has played the game at the highest level. On Tuesday, he was named to his fourth All-America team, earning first-team honors from the Football Writers Association of America. He also has been named a first-team All-American by Walter Camp and the American Football Coaches Association and a second-team All-American by the Associated Press.
Milum hasn’t allowed a sack over the past two seasons and has not given up a sack in 34 of his past 36 games. The 2024 Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year and Outland Trophy semifinalist has not allowed a quarterback hurry and just seven pressures this season. Pro Football Focus lists him as its third-rated offensive tackle, grading out at 90.1. His 84.2 run-blocking grade is sixth nationally in PFF’s ratings, and his 89.8 pass-blocking grade is fourth.
The NFL is likely Milum’s next destination and it could be a short wait. Some mock drafts have him going in the first round, and that number could increase as the draft process continues. Yet Milum wasn’t worried about that heading into the Frisco Bowl. The game was at the front of his mind.
The future will be just fine, he said, as long as he maintains the mindset he’s had during his WVU career.
“I think the biggest thing I’ve learned is just consistently,” he said, “just showing up every day ready to work. When good things happen, you’ve still got to work. If bad things happen, you’ve got to work.
“I really don’t pay attention,” he said of mock drafts, “because I’ve just got to worry about the now. It’s just my mindset. I really don’t try to think about the other stuff until it happens, Hopefully it happens, but I’ll worry about that when that time comes.”
-Story by Derek Redd
