Freshman running back Kennedy McKoy, a bright spot so far this spring, is not at WVU's practice today. "He's at prom," Dana Holgorsen said.

— Mike Casazza (@mikecasazza) April 9, 2016

“I always let those guys go back for their prom,” the head coach continued. “A couple of them were gone for prom last week. A couple of them will be gone for their prom next week. The deal I make with our early enrollees is that they get to go home and do that.”

Of course, there’s a catch for the freshmen who enroll in January. “I make them bring back pictures. I want to know what their date looks like, and I want to know what they wore.”

McKoy’s absence is minor, and we’re right to forgive him for being a kid, but that’s two Saturdays in a row that he’s missed, and that might not be a lot when we’re talking about 15 practices, but feel for Ja’Juan Seider.

The guy who had the best and/or most crowded room in the building the last few years now has thinning numbers. “I just worry about what I’ve got, like a kid who grew up maybe not having a lot. You appreciate what you have and make the best of it.”

That said, he really missed McKoy Saturday, because Seider and the Mountaineers really like the freshman.

Shell said he’s “probably better than Wendell his freshman year.” Coach Dana Holgorsen said he’s “way, way, way” better than the Mountaineers expected.

“You never think a kid can come in and pick things up as fast as he did,” Seider said. “He’s like a kid who’s been here and redshirted and has been in the program, but he wasn’t good enough or you didn’t need him to play right away. Now his opportunity is here, and it’s like this kid has been here.

“He understands everything we do in the slot, he understands everything we do in the backfield. He’s got great ball security. He’s not afraid to block. He understands, ‘OK, make my identifications, there’s who I’m responsible for.’ He understands when the offensive line slides and when he has to change his eyes. He may be as far along as any kid I’ve ever coached.”