WVU’s McKivitz Named Big 12 Co-Offensive Lineman of the Year, Paired With Stills on First Team
December 04, 2019 04:10 PM | Football
| WVU's First Team All-Big 12 Selections | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Colton McKivitz, Sr. | OT |
| Darius Stills, Jr. | DT | |
| 2018 | Yodny Cajuste, Jr. | OT |
| Trevon Wesco, Sr. | TE | |
| David Sills V, Sr. | WR | |
| David Long Jr., Jr. | LB | |
| Kenny Robinson Jr., So. | S | |
| 2017 | David Sills V, Jr. | WR |
| 2016 | Tyler Orlosky, Sr. | C |
| Rasul Douglas, Sr. | CB | |
| 2015 | Nick Kwiatkoski, Sr. | LB |
| Nick O'Toole, Sr. | P | |
| 2014 | Kevin White, Sr. | WR |
| Karl Joseph, Jr. | S | |
| 2013 | Charles Sims, Sr. | RB |
| 2012 | Tavon Austin, Sr. | WR |
| Stedman Bailey, Jr. | WR | |
Darius' younger brother, Dante, was recognized on the All-Big 12 Second Team, along with senior cornerback Keith Washington II and senior safety Josh Norwood.
McKivitz had his best overall season in 2019 despite playing on an inexperienced Mountaineer offense that ranked at the bottom of the league in scoring, total offense and rushing offense.
When WVU was able to run the ball, it was usually to McKivitz's side, however. The Jacobsburg, Ohio, resident made 47 career starts during his brilliant four-year career and heads into the offseason as one of the premier offensive tackle prospect in this year's NFL Draft.
McKivitz has already accepted an invitation to play in the 2020 Senior Bowl and will also likely participate in the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis in March.
He goes down in WVU history as one of the school's top offensive tackles. McKivitz shared the Big 12's top offensive lineman award with Oklahoma center Creed Humphrey.
McKivitz was twice named an honorable mention All-Big 12 choice.
"Colton, to me, is a dude," West Virginia coach Neal Brown said earlier this year. "He prepares like a dude, he plays like a dude and he leads like a dude."
"He's definitely the best player on the film when you flip on our film offensively," West Virginia co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Matt Moore added. "He's a lot more aggressive than he was in the past. He plays a lot harder, and he's really developed his leadership skills."
The Stills brothers, Darius and Dante, were probably the most disruptive brother tandem this conference has seen since the Selmon brothers terrorized Big 8 teams in the mid-1970s at Oklahoma.Darius produced seven sacks, 14 ½ tackles for losses and 47 total tackles during a breakout junior season in Vic Koenning's new 4-2-5 defensive scheme. Previously, Darius spent two years playing in West Virginia's 3-3 stack system that was more beneficial statistically to second- and third-level players.
Dante, a sophomore, was equally impactful this season with seven sacks, 11 ½ tackles for losses and 24 tackles in 12 games.
"He's one of the best players we've played against … he's everything that I thought he was going to be and his brother (Darius) – lights out," Baylor coach Matt Rhule said following his team's 17-14 victory over the Mountaineers.
TCU coach Gary Patterson also was impressed with Darius and Dante, mentioning both of them specifically when discussing his team's offensive difficulties in a season-ending 20-17 loss to the Mountaineers.
"They've been getting pressure on everybody they've played against, the Stills brothers and that group," Patterson said. "That's what they do. They're good players."
The Mountaineers finished second in the Big 12 and 27th nationally with 33 sacks. Darius and Dante will be the cornerstones of West Virginia's 2020 defense, and both should garner All-America consideration next summer.
Meanwhile, seniors Keith Washington II and Josh Norwood concluded their Mountaineers careers on a high note. Washington intercepted a team-best three passes and tied with senior Hakeem Bailey for the team lead with nine pass breakups in 2019.
Washington, a Copiah-Lincoln Community College transfer from Prattville, Alabama, made six interceptions, broke up 18 passes and was in on 63 tackles during his two outstanding seasons at WVU.
Norwood, another junior college transfer who hails from Valdosta, Georgia, had a breakout year before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury making an interception in the Kansas State victory.
The safety finished the season third on the team in tackles with 64 while also breaking up six passes and accounting for 2 ½ tackles for loss and one interception. His two-year Mountaineer totals show 128 tackles, 17 pass breakups and 6 ½ tackles for losses.
The selections of McKivitz and Stills to this year's All-Big 12 First Team represent 17 total for the Mountaineers since West Virginia joined the conference in 2012.
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