MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Don't think for a minute West Virginia University director of athletics Shane Lyons doesn't appreciate the value of recruiting.
 
He understands all too well that recruiting is the lifeblood of any successful athletic program, and that's one of the big reasons why he unveiled the Climbing Higher campaign in the summer of 2018.
 
Now, a little more than two years later, Mountaineer football is beginning to reap the benefits of what's taking place over in what has basically become a rebuilt Milan Puskar Center.
 
Approximately $55 million has been invested in that facility, and today's football signing class is a byproduct of Lyons' commitment to having first-class facilities.
 
It starts with Neal Brown and his hard-working staff, of course, but it also includes the area where these guys work and where their players will call home for the next four or five years.
 
Lyons, a visitor during this morning's Mountaineer Football Signing Day Show, presented by WVU Medicine, discussed his vision for the program moving forward.
 
"Several years ago, when I first came here and discussed my vision for the football program and what it can be and with the facilities, it's now finally coming to fruition," he said. "I really think it's a game changer. (Facilities) are not the only thing that entices these young men, but it's part of what we're doing as a program. This has to show the parents and the prospects that we are investing in this program."
 
Lyons continued,  "So when we talk about recruiting and the schools we are going up against – the Ohio States, the Penn States, the Virginia Techs, the Marylands in this area - and nationally with some of the schools you see with some of these kids we're signing, we're going up against some of those blue bloods, and that's what I love about this staff. 
 
"We don't care who is recruiting you – we're going to go after you and show them what we have to offer, show them our culture and what we're all about, and I think the future continues to be bright with some of the prospects we will be able to get.
 
"I play a part in it, but they play a big part in bringing those young men to Morgantown," Lyons added.
 
Lyons said his initial conversations with Brown when he hired him nearly two years ago centered on renewed emphasis on recruiting West Virginia and its neighboring states.
 
In that regard, Brown and his staff have really delivered so far with this year's class.
 
"When we talked about putting a radius around Morgantown and going back into some of these states that we needed players from, that's Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, the Washington D.C. area, and they've focused a lot on that," Lyons said. "Now we'll go south. Some of these young men are from Florida, Miami, Georgia, Alabama, but the other thing I think is important is going after those young men from West Virginia. Neal made that very clear. If there is a young man that can play at this level we're going after them to sign them. We have a couple we've signed in the last couple of years (from West Virginia), and we'll continue to focus on that as well."
 
Lyons, who is chair of the NCAA Division I Football Oversight Committee, admitted the recruiting challenges this year in the midst of a once-in-a-lifetime worldwide pandemic have been enormous.
 
But out of these difficult circumstances, he believes there may be a silver lining or two when things finally return to normal.
 
"We had to change the way we are doing things, and the coaches did a great job of virtually meeting these prospects and working through that," Lyons said. "Everybody was on the same page. We didn't have a disadvantage compared to another institution. Technically, across the country in all sports, it's a dead period. What that means is prospective student-athletes can't come on campus and so, how do you talk to these student-athletes? How do you use the virtual aspect to give tours of the campus and tours of the facilities? 
 
"What is interesting is you are going to see changes nationally in the recruiting calendar. If there has been anything positive – and there have been very few things positive that has come out of this pandemic – but for college athletics, we can maybe do more from a recruiting aspect of using technology than we ever have before," Lyons added. "Because of this, I think you are going to see some changes in recruiting calendars in the future."
 
Overall, Lyons said he's very pleased with what has transpired so far today.
 
"This class is shaping up to be a really good one. Before I got down here, based on the star ratings which have been around now for 20 years or so, we're ranked 21 right now based on who we have signed so far," he concluded.