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And on Aug. 5, Ron Crook addressed left tackle

August 6, 2015 by Mike Casazza

Big day for Ron Crook here and an interesting day for the left side of the offensive line, which Dana Holgorsen touched on in his presser.

We touched on this way back in Part 5 of the 2015 in 15 Countdown, and it’s topical enough that offensive line coach Crook had to discuss it yesterday. Hey, Kyle Bosch has a long way to go and it’s been a while since he played in a game. And right now, he’s not one of Crook’s best five linemen … but he’s part of a particular conversation, a complex one that involves the Michigan transfer, redshirt freshman Yodny Cajuste and junior Adam Pankey and ponders a switch at left guard and left tackle.

But after three days of camp, here’s where it stands:

“That’s a conversation we’re going to have and there might come a point where we do that,” Crook said. “Right now we have five guys set that we think are going to be the five, but if [Bosch] is one of the best five, then it becomes how do we get the best five out there? If Adam has to go back to tackle, that’s what he’s got to do.”

This isn’t a bad thing, by the way. And it might not happen. Cajuste hasn’t veered off this somewhat prolific path he’s been on, and Bosch is an asset. Crook hasn’t wavered, either. From as far back as learning Bosch was good to go this fall, he’s maintained that this is far more of a convenience than a controversy for the line.

Dana Holgorsen rounds the bases

by Mike Casazza

Seriously, he basically says there isn’t much to cover today, and then covers everything. Quite a performance.

Eventful press conference

by Mike Casazza

I’ll post the whole thing later, I promise, but Dana Holgorsen was on point today. I’m not sure he wanted to be there in the sense it’s the fourth day of camp and he’s talking to inquiring minds after just three practices, but I’m certain he meant to make the most of his time. Witness!

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No more Sims comparisons, OK?

by Mike Casazza

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.”

Assistant coach interviews

by Mike Casazza

We got a little busy here yesterday, and that pushed the highly anticipated assistant coach transcript — courtesy WVU, to be clear — to today. Dana Holgorsen speaks at noon, and then Bob Huggins has a final pre-Bahamas presser at 1 p.m. We’re busy once more, but we’ll keep it full here.

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Gee, why might that be?

August 5, 2015 by Mike Casazza

Oh, Steven Smothers committed today. He’s probably the top recruit in WVU’s reputable 2016 class. Just one of the best players in Maryland, rated interchangeably as one of the top 50 “athletes” and one of the top 50 receivers in the nation and part of the Scout.com top 300 at No. 138. He and Tavon Austin are tight — Austin introduced Dana Holgorsen to Smothers when Smothers was a high school freshmen — and Smothers is similarly electric with the ball.

News before camp best news of camp

by Mike Casazza

You’ll remember earlier this year Jaden Seider, the son of West Virginia running backs coach JaJuan Seider, was diagnosed with Hodgkin nodular lymphoma and promptly started chemotherapy.

Last Thursday, four days before the start of a preseason camp at WVU that featured his father overseeing a loaded backfield and his uncle beginning his college career as a freshman offensive lineman, Jaden learned he’d knocked out cancer.

Today, a relieved JaJuan Seider said his son is doing “awesome” and getting back to what was once normal.

“He never really had any symptoms, but when it’s just in your mind and you still know you’re dealing with it, you want that sense of peace and for it to be over with so you can just concentrate on being a kid,” he said.

Shelton Gibson: Traveling man

by Mike Casazza

Shelton Gibson wasn’t allowed near the football team in 2013. Jacky Marcellus was redshirting. For one reason or another, the natives of Cleveland and Immokalee, Fla., became friends, likely because of the struggle they shared being kept away from the game they loved. When the team would travel and Marcellus was left behind, he’d hang with Gibson. They’re roommates today.

A while later, they’d add to their unfortunate fraternity. Gibson was struggling as he transitioned back into football after he was away for two semesters. Marcellus was soon dealing with a torn ACL that kept him on the shelf last season. Then there was a long-haired quarterback working with the scout team after spending the previous year in junior college. He was from Fort Worth, Texas, and WVU was his third college and his third time zone in a year.

The story of how Skyler Howard more or less forged this now inseparable bond with Gibson and Marcellus is pretty funny, and it served as the stepping stone for where they are now. Howard is the starting quarterback, Gibson a starting wide receiver and Marcellus a promising prospect splitting time and opening eyes as a running back and slot receiver. That they did so well in the spring is no surprise.

Gibson’s ascent, though, is worth noting because he’s literally put in the mileage to make this happen.

It’s such a bond, in fact, that Gibson went home to Texas with Howard after those spring drills in 2014. Gibson and slot receiver Jacky Marcellus made the trip to Fort Worth and it was anything but a vacation.

“I’d take them out to my old high school field,’’ Howard said. “It was 117 [degrees] one day. You could see the heat rising off the turf.’’

“It was hot, man,’’ Gibson said. “He had me out there running [deep routes] all day. I was like, ‘Skyler, I’m from Cleveland. I can’t do this.’ ’’

Gibson’s trips haven’t been limited to Texas with Howard, either. He’s made two trips there, but also went this year to Delaware to work out with fellow receiver Daikiel Shorts and freshman QB David Sills.

“We’d do beach workouts and we even went out on a golf course and threw,’’ Gibson said.

There’s a reason, of course, that all these quarterbacks want to work out with Gibson. As Holgorsen said, he might be the fastest pass-catcher he’s ever coached, and that’s quite a lengthy list that includes, among others, Michael Crabtree, Justin Blackmon, Tavon Austin and, most recently, White and Alford.

For the record, Gibson said the fastest 40-yard dash time he can recall was a 4.32 at a camp at Duke when he was in high school. His school records in the 100 and 200 meters at Cleveland Heights High School are 10.67 and 21.35, respectively. By comparison, James Jett’s best 200-meter time in high school was 21.39.

And don’t think that Gibson’s ears didn’t perk up when he heard of Holgorsen’s comments about his speed.

“I think about that every day now,’’ Gibson said. “And it just makes me want to run even faster.’’

The history of Adam Pankey

by Mike Casazza

Here’s Adam Pankey playing against Baylor last season. Not a surprise. Pankey actually played more snaps than anyone else on the roster last season. But then again, he’s actually playing against Baylor.

Oh, he’s played the Bears twice, including his collegiate debut on the road on that miserable night in Waco in 2013. Pankey, who missed the first five games recovering from a major injury sustained in the spring, shuffled onto the field late in the game and lasted but a few plays.

“My brother told me I was probably the first offensive lineman to ever get a targeting call made on him,’’ Pankey said. “So I guess that’s something to hang my hat on.’’

It came during the 2013 season, one that Pankey missed much of while recovering from surgery. When he did finally get to play, it was in a mop-up role in the absolute low point of that season for West Virginia, a brutal 73-42 loss at Baylor.

On one of his first snaps, Pankey pulled as a lead blocker. He delivered a crack-back block to a Baylor lineman and led with his helmet. By rule, it had all the ingredients of targeting, which was designed to protect offensive players from vicious hits by defenders. Both he and coach Dana Holgorsen later agreed that it was the right call to make.

It was just so unusual to see it happen to an offensive lineman.

“I can’t say that I’ve ever heard of it happening,’’ Pankey said. “But at least it means I was being physical.

“It taught me I have to be more under control and aware of how I’m hitting somebody. And I have to remember what I’m hitting with, too — my shoulders and not my head.’’

Player interviews

August 4, 2015 by Mike Casazza

The second day of preseason practice was the first day with the players. Read what they had to say below.

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