Most recently, we looked at how the Mountaineers have been remaking their offense after bringing back Head Coach Rich Rodriguez this offseason. Rodriguez soon made a big splash in the assistant coaching ranks by poaching new defensive coordinator Zac Alley from Oklahoma. With Alley now at the helm, the Mountaineers are trying to shed the poor performance of the last two years as West Virginia overhauls its defense.
West Virginia Overhauls Its Defense
When we look at how West Virginia overhauls its defense this offseason, we must begin with Alley. Rodriguez focused a lot of attention on bringing in the best defensive coordinator he could afford. Alley has a high price tag, but that affords the Mountaineers a gifted young coordinator from the Brent Venables tree.
Philosophically, Alley looks to create chaos to dial up negative plays and turnovers. To do so, he relies on fundamentally sound cornerbacks so that he can mask pressure elsewhere and overwhelm opposing offensive lines. Several positions across the defense, including his box safety and bandit, require broad skill sets. He also expects his defensive ends to fall back into coverage to mask designed pressure from the linebackers and safeties. Alley has rotated between the 3-3-5 and 4-2-5 base schemes, creating a need for athletes who can work in multiple positions.
To make all of this work, Alley focuses heavily on fast, physical, and aggressive playmakers on defense. Fans will welcome the revamped look and philosophy of the defense. Last season, the Mountaineers averaged just five tackles for loss per game and forced less than a turnover per game. Predictably, they finished 110th among FBS teams in points per game surrendered. In 2020 and 2021, when they averaged more than seven tackles for loss per game and greater than a turnover per game, the units fared much better. Fans can expect Alley’s defense to produce similar to the 2020 and 2021 units than the ones from the last three years.
Looking at the Defensive Line
While West Virginia overhauls its defense, we look at the defensive line. Regardless of whether Alley employs a four-down or three-down front in Morgantown, he certainly needs plenty of bodies on the line to rotate. This position group returns the most production from 2024, probably with good reason. While the unit underperformed against preseason expectations, it offered the Mountaineers their most consistent play on defense last season.
The unit’s anchor, Sean Martin, graduated, and he will be tough to replace. While the unit lost a few other bodies, none loom nearly as large as Martin. Perhaps not surprisingly, the Mountaineers only brought in one transfer across the traditional defensive line. They did bring in some edge-rushing linebackers who may play end from time to time, and we will discuss that soon. Instead of focusing on the portal, West Virginia brought in six new players from the high school and junior college ranks.
Returning players like Hammond Russell, Asani Redwood, and Edward Vesterinen will be counted on to take a few steps forward. Some younger players like Makai Byerson, Elijah Kinsler, Taylor Brown, and Nate Gabriel will be counted on heavily.
Let’s Talk Linebacker
Linebacker is an interesting position group under Alley, and it may take some time for us to understand how Alley will utilize this group here. Despite losing talented players in Trey Lathan and Jeremiah Trotter, the Mountaineers concentrated a lot of their efforts through the transfer portal in this room. Indeed, based on the additions, the group may prove more talented in 2025 than last season.
The additions begin with Chase Wilson from Colorado State and Jimmori Robinson from UTSA. Wilson features a well-rounded skill set, proving dangerous off the edge, in the open field, and coverage. Over his last two seasons, he amassed 205 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, three-and-a-half sacks, two interceptions, and three pass breakups. He fits the mold of the versatile edge rusher/linebacker Alley utilizes to great effect in his defense.
Robinson earned AAC Defensive Player of the Year honors last season at UTSA. During the season, he racked up impressive numbers, including 17 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles. Robinson definitely fits Alley’s disruptive philosophy and should become a fan favorite quickly.
Of course, the Mountaineers also return veteran performers like Reid Carrico and Ben Cutter. They also added three true freshmen, two of whom enrolled in time to contribute to Spring camp.
Now for the Secondary
In each of the last two seasons, the Mountaineers failed to bring consistent pressure into the backfield. Before the 2024 season, the prior staff said they focused on bringing in cornerbacks they could trust in single coverage for precisely this reason: to bring more pressure. Mission failed.
Alley places a premium on trusting his cornerbacks and disguising pressure to allow one of his safeties to assist. Because of this, the Mountaineers brought in more transfers in the secondary than any other position group. Indeed, they added nine transfers to the cornerback and safety rooms. The staff also added seven players to the rooms as true freshmen. Three of them will participate in Spring camp.
Leading this group are Justin Harrington from Washington, Jordan Walker from UT Chattanooga, Fred Perry from Jacksonville State, and Michael Coats Jr. from Nevada. Harrington, Walker, and Perry come in as safeties, and Coats comes in as a cornerback. The additional safeties allow the staff to shift Keke Tarnue to cornerback if they see fit. Otherwise, Devonte Golden-Nelson from Akron, Jordan Scruggs from South Alabama, Jacolby Spells, and Jason Chambers from Appalachian State will battle for the second cornerback and nickel cornerback spots.
It is safe to say that the new staff was not comfortable leaning on just a few bodies in the secondary, instead relying on competition to find the best six to seven to play the majority of snaps. Given the severe lack of depth in the secondary over the last several years in Morgantown, fans should be thrilled to read this figure. In total, the secondary features 26 different players heading into 2025. All but four of them should participate in Spring camp.
As West Virginia overhauls its defense, this much is clear. Alley and his staff place a premium on sharpening the secondary play through competition.
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