From the looks of things, it appears the Mountaineers got themselves a pretty good set of wide receivers last February.

 

During spring ball, when it seemed like every other question the offensive coaches answered was about the wide receivers, there was a fair level of uncertainty about how that position was going to shake out.

 

Who is going to replace Kevin White’s 1,447 yards and 10 touchdowns? Or Mario Alford’s 945 yards and 11 scores?

 

Good questions, for sure, but the coaches’ responses were usually the same – it will eventually work itself out in the fall.

 

Well, it’s working itself out right now.

 

The three new wide receivers running around out there have been pretty impressive so far, so much so that all bets are off on who is going to be in the starting lineup on Saturday, September 5, when the Mountaineers lift the lid on the 2015 season.

 

There is Ka'Raun White, Kevin’s younger brother, who has taken his big brother’s path to Morgantown through Lackawanna Community College.

 

There is freshman Gary Jennings from Hokie-Cavalier country down in Stafford, Virginia, and then there is freshman Jovon Durante (pronounced like Kevin Durant the basketball player) from the Fast-Twitched-Athlete Capital of the World, South Florida.

 

All of them have their distinguishing characteristics.

 

White is a clone of his big brother, right down to the middle-of-the-back-length dreads hanging out of his helmet. Jennings looks to me like the second coming of Shawn Foreman, another Old Dominion force for the Mountaineers in the late 1990s. And Durante, well, I’m not sure West Virginia has had a player quite like this guy (back in the day we used to see players just like Durante wearing a Miami Hurricane uniform when West Virginia was playing in the Big East).

 

One assistant coach told me the other day Durante reminds him of Reidel Anthony, a former first-round draft pick from Florida. Durante can get from zero to 60 faster than a souped-up Camaro.

 

“He made a catch the other day across the middle and we had three linebackers around him and he jumped, stuck his foot in the ground, and he was already full stride,” said another assistant. “I’ve never seen that before. What’s different about him (from the others) is he can go from step one to full speed right away.

 

“Gary Jennings is a strong, powerful kid for a freshman,” this same assistant said. “He doesn’t look like a freshman – he’s got strong hands and he can use his body to keep (defenders away from the football).

 

“And Ka'Raun is a lot like Kevin,” he continued. “You can’t put that tag on him right now, but if you go back to two years ago when Kevin first got here and compared them, this one might be better – at this point. He’s very smooth.”

 

All three are definitely packed with potential, which to coach Dana Holgorsen can sometimes be a dangerous thing to say.

 

“If they develop then they will be as good as any of the other ones we’ve had, collectively,” he said. “I like their bodies. I like the talent. If you go back and really figure out why Kevin White had the year he had, he developed and took the next step, there is no question about that.”

 

Holgorsen admits he can’t recall the last productive first-year receiver he’s coached. It hasn’t happened at West Virginia. It didn’t happen at Oklahoma State, and it didn’t happen at Houston either.

 

For that matter, think back to Kevin White’s first year at WVU in 2013 or Tavon Austin’s first season in 2009 – both were ordinary by any standards.

 

“Across the country there has been some guys that have emerged as freshmen, so who’s to say these two kids can’t,” said Holgorsen. “Without putting undo pressure on them, they have a chance. They have as good a chance as any of the other guys we have lined up, so we will see what happens.”

 

The guy working with them on a daily basis, wide receivers coach Lonnie Galloway, has seen enough of them to get a pretty good understanding of what they can do. Now what he wants to see is if they can do it on a consistent basis and under difficult circumstances.

 

Just about any player can do something once, the average guys do it sometimes, the good ones do it most of the time and the great ones do it all of the time.

 

Which category will these guys fall under?

 

“You can’t run the routes we run 12 yards when they’re supposed to be 15, even though you ran a wrong route the ball finds you and you make a play. It’s like, ‘Coach I made a play.’ ‘Yeah, but you didn’t run the proper route.’ They need to be consistent,” explained Galloway. “This is a physical game and I need to see this day in and day out and push it.”

 

There are other things these guys still have to master, too, such as getting used to the running part in Holgorsen’s up-tempo, high-speed offense.

 

“As soon as we hit the field we are running,” said Galloway. “How mentally tough are they going to be? That’s the biggest challenge playing at this level because it’s going to go wrong, it’s just a matter of when it’s going to go wrong.”

 

Whether or not these guys are ready right away to get the football on a regular basis remains to be seen, but having them out on the field has certainly been a big upgrade to the position. Galloway has several more options to consider now than he did last spring, which means he’s got several more options to use throughout the game.

 

There were instances last season when White and Alford got worn down in later games and the Mountaineers couldn’t attack defenses the way they did earlier in impressive offensive performances against Maryland, Oklahoma, Baylor, Texas Tech and TCU.

 

With these new guys, there should be more than enough wide receiver depth to get West Virginia through those late October, November games when injuries can become a big factor.

 

“The kids are honest,” said one assistant coach. “They are going to tell you who is making plays. Once you hear the same names keep popping up it means they are really doing something.”

 

And White, Jennings and Durante are the three names you keep hearing about.

 

White was brought in to play right away, and it looks like Jennings and Durante have performed well enough to put themselves in the mix this year, too.

 

“They are not redshirting,” said Holgorsen, “but whether they end up being the go to guys or not, there is still a lot of practice and a lot of days ahead to figure all that out.”

 

Stay tuned.

 

Enjoy your weekend!