MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Earlier this month, West Virginia University partnered with The Seeker to improve its players' pass-catching skills. 
 
The Seeker, developed by Monarc, is touted as the world's "first robotic quarterback" and will allow players to utilize the technology on their own without the aid of another player throwing them footballs.
 
It can also be used for punt and kickoff returners as well.
 
Coach Neal Brown believes this new technology will help his young wide receivers corps improve their pass receiving skills while reducing the wear and tear on his quarterbacks' arms during the summertime.
 
With the new WVU Seeker, Mountaineer players can now catch game-like passes on their own any time of the day.
 
"We've had some issues over the last two years of consistently catching the ball, and some of those are down the field," Brown explained recently. "You've only got limited throws from a quarterback, so now the receivers have an opportunity to work on their own between themselves.
 
"They can run routes and from a timing perspective, the throws are very similar like it's coming from a live arm," Brown added. "I'm excited about it. I think it's going to be a benefit when we get into the season because it's not going to put the stress on the quarterback's arm."
 
Of course, nothing beats the timing that is established between a quarterback and his receiver. Also, each quarterback throws a unique ball with some guys throwing balls that are harder to catch than others based on the tightness of the spiral or the amount of spin on the football.
 
But, as Brown mentioned, you don't want your quarterbacks having a dead arm midway through training camp getting the receivers the repetitions they need to become better pass catchers.
 
This new Robo-QB technology is resourceful and creative way to accomplish both objectives.
 
It also has a pulse-tracking system that can be utilized to maximize individual repetitions.
 
Brown mentioned during Big 12 media days earlier this month that big plays in the passing game is an area of West Virginia's offensive attack that needs improving. He said it's a function of many different things besides receivers just getting open and catching the football.
 
"The easy thing to say is, 'Hey, we've got to get better at throwing the deep ball.' Well, there are so many things that go into that," he explained. "You've got to protect longer so your offensive line has got to play better.
 
"Those shots down the field take a longer time, which usually means you've got to keep a running back and a tight end in so you've got a running back and a tight end have to protect better as well," he added. 
 
Brown believes for West Virginia's offense to take the next step in 2021, it's down-field passing game has to become significantly better.
 
"Your receivers have to win and separate and go up and get 50-50 balls," he said. "On top of that, the quarterback has got to be accurate so I think for our offense to take the next step is we've got to be more explosive in the passing game."
 
Brown listed multiple ways to do that.
 
"You break tackles, you win in space and the things fans recognize the most are shots down the field and so we've got to do that," he said. "As an offensive staff, we've got to call more of those, too. It's through repetitions. The coaching staff needs confidence in guys making those plays and making those throws, and the quarterbacks and receivers gain confidence with their success through those repetitions."
 
Last spring, Brown said he made it a point to emphasize to his quarterbacks and receivers that they need to put in the time to improve the down-field passing aspect of West Virginia's offense
 
"That means the receivers are going to have to put a little more tread on the tires. They're going to have to run a little bit more, which is something they've got to understand and the quarterback has got to practice it," he said.
 
Brown continued, "We hit some in our spring game, and we hit some in our scrimmages and we're better at it. Hopefully, when we start practice (on Aug. 6) the guys worked on it in the summer and they're improved, but it's not something that's going to change overnight."
 
With the help of this new Seeker technology system, perhaps the process can be accelerated a little bit.