It’s not that the junior doesn’t have the size, skill and speed of Charles Sims to actually complete the comparisons to the former running back. It’s that West Virginia’s offense doesn’t need one person to do and be so much. Sims was a revelation in 2013, but he was the product of a necessity the Mountaineers no longer possess.

They don’t have known game-changers at receiver and they are trusting a starting quarterback who played a little more than two games last season, but the offense is not as barren as it was in 2013, when Sims was the most productive player because he was the most reliable player.

“I think it was harder for him with him being the only player and teams being prepared for him and him having to carry the load still,” Smallwood said. “I think this is much more to my advantage.”

What Sims accomplished in 2013 deserves more attention than it received, and it never received much because a quiet young man spent one year on a team that went 4-8. The story line was more about the health and performance of the quarterbacks than it was what Sims achieved despite the obstacles.

The Mountaineers cherished what Sims did but would prefer it never happens that way again.

“He was a more mature guy and he could handle the pressure of knowing every game he had to be successful for us to win,” Seider said. “Wendell, he can maybe put up half the numbers Charles put up because he’s got a Rushel Shell back there and he’s got other receivers. The load isn’t as big. He doesn’t have to carry the whole thing.”