Karl Joseph enrolled in January of his freshman year, and early in his first round of spring football with West Virginia, it was apparent he’d be a player from the start.

“You can pencil him in to play a good bit,” Coach Dana Holgorsen said. “He is mature, he is physical and he is not scared. Sometimes it takes guys a couple of years before they are physically ready to play or mentally ready to play. Whatever it is, it was an easy adjustment for him.”

Yet Joseph, a true freshman safety from Orlando, Fla., who has been on campus barely three months, doesn’t know why he is a big deal. He would be more disappointed if he wasn’t already in position to play a lot at the bandit position.

“I knew I’d be able to compete,” he said. “Football is my passion. I love to play and it drives me to get better. I like to watch film by myself sometimes to correct my mistakes so I already know what I did wrong before my coach tells me. You’ve got to be driven by it.”

Sure enough, Joseph started at free safety in his first game with the Mountaineers, and he’d start all 42 games he played in gold and blue. He was at the beginning what he was at the end: Quiet, confident and the last player you’d worry about before or during the game.