WVU has dismissed RB Donte Thomas-Williams. He was suspended for spring football for conduct detrimental to the team.

— Mike Casazza (@mikecasazza) May 16, 2016

We knew this was coming, and Marcus Simms was wearing No. 8 in the spring. Meanwhile, how about that 2014 recruiting class?

That 21 player group was ranked No. 40 by Scout and Rivals and No. 38 by 247Sports. Ten of the 21 are gone early.

Thomas-Williams was the second-best recruit, and all he gave West Virginia was 15 touches and 50 yards. The best player in the class? Another hyphen bearer in Dravon Askew-Henry. Pretty good.

After that? Skyler Howard is in his third season and the second as the quarterback. Yodny Cajuste looks like a gem at left tackle. Xavier Preston spent the spring as a second-team linebacker behind Justin Arndt, but he has a future. William Crest is still finding his way. Ricky Rogers is an excellent dancer who has not yet contributed.

Dontae Angus hasn’t played, and I don’t think I saw him once in the spring. Fellow offensive lineman Amanii Brown is a reserve and has played only sparingly. He was a high school recruit. Sylvester Townes was a junior college transfer, and he, too, has barely played. Jaleel Fields is a defensive lineman who had a good spring. (To be fair to the linemen, this is about the time those guys are projected to contribute.)

Linebacker Edward Muldrow was a junior collage transfer who played his two seasons and at times did nice work, but many others are gone for different reasons. Receiver Jacob McCrary and offensive lineman Justin Scott never made it to WVU. Linebacker Davonte James enrolled in January and left in the spring. Offensive lineman Walter Rauterkus enrolled in the summer and then left before preseason camp started.

Safety Daejuan Funderburk was dismissed in January after he was arrested during the Cactus Bowl trip. Receiver Lamar Parker left the team after the regular season and before the Cactus Bowl. Tyree Owens was dismissed in September after he and two other players were involved in a fight in which he was stabbed. Cornerbacks Keishawn Richardson and Jaylon Myers left the team after one season.

You never get everyone to stay and you rarely ever get everyone who remains to be valid contributors. You do hope you hit more than you miss and you pray a couple of those hits leave the park. In an ordinary scenario, WVU would be just about out of misses — 10 of the originals are still with the team — and in their reality the Mountaineers need some big hits from those who remain.