COMMENTARY
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — This season for West Virginia was all about establishing a culture under new head coach Neal Brown, and taking major lumps in the process.
Most knew this was going to be a rough year from the start — between losing a lot of talent to the NFL and transitioning to a new coaching staff, this season has lived up (or down) to its preseason billing.
Which, of course, is not necessarily a bad thing. Growing pains are a part of the process, and “Trust the climb” has been uttered more times than anyone can count for the Mountaineers (4-6, 2-5 Big 12).
But prior to today’s game against Oklahoma State at Mylan Puskar Stadium, 18 seniors will run onto Mountaineer Field for the last time as part of a class that has seen the highest of highs and lowest of lows. While everyone outside the West Virginia program is looking toward the future, these players will not be a part of it, so while this season has not gone well in terms of on-field success, that doesn’t mean these seniors were not a critical part of it.
This group is headlined by offensive lineman Colton McKivitz, who has been a model of consistency throughout his career and is everything a coaching staff wants in a player. After redshirting in 2015, he’s played in every game the last four seasons, rotating between left and right tackle. After toying with the idea of entering the NFL draft last year, he decided to come back for his senior season to help the transition from Dana Holgorsen to Neal Brown.
Saturday, after being honored, will be his 45th-straight start. After he’s done in a Mountaineers uniform, his college career is not over — he will participate in the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., with a chance to show off for pro scouts.
“There are always emotions with football, whether it’s good, bad or whatever, there are emotions,” McKivitz said. “Every game is special, but obviously this one is going to be a little more — just the meaning behind it of having five years here and how fast it has gone. It’s going to mean a little more, a little extra. I’m sure the parents will be a little more emotional than me during the game, but I’m sure after I’ll feel a little.
“I mean, it’s the last one.”
Running back Kennedy McKoy is another who’s been an important piece to the offensive puzzle of the last four seasons. While he was never the featured back, McKoy got significant playing time from the start as a true freshman in 2016, compiling 2,136 yards and 22 touchdowns the last four years.
While his senior year hasn’t gone the way many expected, McKoy’s been a consistent presence in the WVU backfield.
Others offensively include offensive lineman Kelby Wickline, who stuck around despite his father, former WVU offensive line coach Joe Wickline, being let go when the new staff arrived, and George Campbell, who is a grad transfer from Florida State. In his one season in Morgantown, Campbell has been a touchdown-maker — of his 14 total catches, six have gone for scores.
The defense will take a much bigger hit with 13 of the 18 seniors on that side of the ball. It has several four- and five-year veterans, including two Morgantown High alums. Shea Campbell was a walk-on safety who weighed just 209 pounds prior to the 2015 season.
He transformed himself into a middle linebacker, and because of his dedication and willingness to learn a new position, earned a scholarship and played a vital role the last two seasons. He has 67 total tackles, including 7 1/2 for loss, in his career.
Stone Wolfley bounced around from offense to defense during his tenure, but has settled in to a defensive end role toward the end of his career. Mainly a special teams contributor, Wolfley’s played in 34 games the last four seasons.
Reese Donahue, an Ona native, has exuded state pride since the stepped foot on campus prior to the 2016 season. The defensive end has been a mainstay on the Mountaineers’ front-7 the last four seasons, appearing in 46 games and tallying 100 tackles, including 12 for loss.
“Lots of memories on Mountaineer Field,” Donahue said. “A lot of people, fans at least, they see what happens on game day and the memories you make on game day, but a lot of the memories that surround football aren’t really what happens on the field during those 60 minutes you play. It’s about the grind in the offseason with your brothers and your teammates. So I think the primary portion of my memories are going to be from that.”
One memory Donahue will surely never forget is proposing to his girlfriend, Sarah Moore, at midfield after the Mountaineers beat Kansas in 2018.
Cornerback duo Keith Washington and Hakeem Bailey has been a critical part of the 2019 WVU defense, helping bridge the gap of inexperience behind them. Linebacker Quondarius Qualls, and safeties Josh Norwood and Deamonte Lindsay, have played important roles this season, as well.
Defensive end Reuben Jones, a grad transfer from Michigan, left his mark at West Virginia in his lone season in Morgantown. The same can be said for punter Josh Growden, who ended up having his best season in college after coming over from LSU, being named a Ray Guy Award finalist.
Long snapper Rex Sunahara, as position rarely recognized, is one of the best at the craft.
While this group may get lost in the shuffle with the season being Brown’s forgiven year, its contributions certainly weren’t lost on the head coach.
“This senior class has been extremely resilient,” Brown said. “We’re extremely young, and I think some of our struggles are because of that. The thing I really appreciate about this senior group is that a lot of these guys are playing the best football of their careers — Colton McKivitz, Hakeem Bailey, Keith Washington, Josh Norwood, and those are the ones just right off the top of my head. Those guys have been invested, and I really appreciate that.”
