MORGANTOWN — The Stills family has left quite a mark on the West Virginia football program.
Father Gary Stills, an All-Big East linebacker in the ’90s, is second all-time with 26 sacks; older brother Darius Stills was a consensus All-American defensive tackle in 2020; and on Saturday, little brother Dante Stills became WVU’s all-time leader in tackles for loss with 48.5.
“I didn’t know how far I was until (the Milan Puskar Center) was re-done,” Stills said Tuesday. “I didn’t even know what the record was until they put it up (on the wall) two years ago. Then I started chasing it and I realized I have a chance.”
Stills passed former Mountaineers Grant Wiley and Julian Miller on his way to the top of the list.
“It means everything just knowing that those guys were great players and put everything they had into this program,” said Stills, a fifth-year senior. “It’s an honor, I’m blessed to be able to do it here at home wearing West Virginia.”
Stills, a Fairmont native, secured the record when he sniffed out a TCU screen pass during Saturday’s 41-31 loss. He was able to grab TCU running back Kendre Miller for the record-breaking TFL.
“I was going inside and then I realized that I wasn’t getting touched and then I actually almost fell; I stumbled but I regained my feet,” Stills explained. “Then I noticed the ball was in the air and then I just tried to tackle him.
“At first, I didn’t really know how to feel once I made the play but once I got up I started smiling and I realized now I’m at the top.”
It was a play that Stills does not think he would have made as a younger player.
“I might have fallen,” he admitted. “I feel like I’ve definitely grown from June 1, 2018, when I moved in.”
While owning a career record at a program with as much history as WVU is an accomplishment in and of itself, Stills said he feels that he is far from a finished product as a football player.
“I still feel like I can still improve on so much of my game, I still feel like I have to do more for the team,” Stills said. “But at the same time, it’s definitely some type of validation. It feels great to know that people understand and people enjoy me making those types of plays.”
Stills is in his fifth season playing for the Mountaineers. He has five tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks through eight games this year, far from the 15 and seven he put up in 2021, but stats often do not tell the full story of how well a defensive lineman is playing.
“I never look at stats, I look at how you play the position that you’re asked to play,” defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley said. “Dante’s going to be a pro, he’s a pro player and he has a pro skill set.”
Gary Stills was a third-round draft pick and played 10 seasons in the NFL and Darius Stills signed an undrafted deal with the Las Vegas Raiders. Lesley believes Dante has what it takes to follow in their path to be a professional.
“Something we’ve always talked about with him is playing within his fundamentals and his scheme while using his size, athleticism, power and speed,” Lesley explained. “He has such a unique combination of all of those things and that’s what’s going to give him the opportunity to play at the next level.”
Stills has at least four regular season games left in his college career. With the tackles-for-loss record wrapped up, his next goal is to add five more sacks to his 21.5 career total so he can surpass his father’s mark of 26.
“He called me and congratulated me,” Stills said of his father’s reaction to breaking the record. “I told him I’m going to try and pass him in sacks.”
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