Funny thing about this day is all the buildup and all the anticipation has turned National Signing Day into a made-for-TV occasion. And right now, at 11 a.m., the 11th hour, it’s nearly finished at WVU.

Nineteen players have already sent in their NLIs and two more are on the way, meaning there are  but a handful of additions remaining out there. The Mountaineers don’t have a whole lot left to do. Fun day, exciting day, crazy day, but I’d suggest practicing patience. Use the past as a guide.

They’ve lost one player (J.T. Washington to Arizona) and didn’t get a few that were on the fence (Joel Caleb to Virginia Tech, Deaysean Rippey to Pitt, Dan Gray to Florida, Teko Powell to Illinois). Nate Smith will probably join Washington and change his mind for Temple. Schyler Miles will pick between Florida, WVU and Kansas later today. Adam Pankey picked WVU over Pitt and Deontay McManus stuck with WVU, in case you were nervous about either.

Lots of places to go to for news and updates today, but WVU has done something new this year. Check out the signing day homepage with a chat!

WVU has a number of “three star” players on board and has a mostly even split of offensive and defensive players. A bunch of linemen, on both sides, and receivers, which we thought would be goals. My favorite so far? Try Will Johnson, a 6-foot-7-in-cleats tight end from Minnesota who picked the Mountaineers over schools with a longer legacy of NFL players.

“I could have gone to one of those places known for tight ends, like Iowa, but I knew there’d be a bunch of guys who’d look just like me and would all do the same things,” Johnson said. “West Virginia is going to use you to create mismatches. They’ve got different ideas for how they use you and to make you more versatile and help you get to the next level.”

The other schools to offer Johnson a scholarship have an NFL legacy. Iowa has Kansas City’s Tony Moeaki, Buffalo’s Scott Chandler, Oakland’s Brandon Myers and Indianapolis’ Dallas Clark in the NFL. Miami has New Orleans’ Jimmy Graham, Carolina’s Jeremy Shockey and Greg Olsen and Tampa Bay’s Kellen Winslow Jr. Minnesota’s Matt Spaeth plays for Chicago.

WVU has Anthony Becht, a first-round pick in 2000 and the product of a completely different offense. Johnson said this is a completely different time in the NFL.

“What I’ve noticed most about NFL tight ends is they’re starting to become drafted earlier and teams are using tight ends as big-bodied receivers,” he said. “They create matchup problems rather than just being the third tackle who catch five-yard routes.  That’s what I like about West Virginia. They’re going to do the same things and use guys like teams use Vernon Davis or Rob Gronkowski or Dallas Clark, who I think started this all.”