Spring Valley’s Nester Settling In After Taking The Long Road Home

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Kenova's Doug Nester found West Virginia University much more welcoming to him the second time around.

The former ESPN 300 recruit once verbally committed to Ohio State, but eventually changed his mind and signed with Virginia Tech following his senior season at Spring Valley High. Nester played 19 games over the last two seasons for the Hokies, including making seven starts at right guard last season, but he said earlier this week he wasn't totally sold on how he was being utilized in Blacksburg.

He had remembered having a really good visit late in the recruiting process with new West Virginia coach Neal Brown, and although it didn't change his mind on signing day, it did leave a good impression upon him.

"I have a bunch of high school friends here in Wyatt Milum, Graeson Malashevich, (Owen) Chafin and just a bunch of people that I've grown up with, so this was a pretty obvious choice for me," Nester said Monday afternoon.

Surprisingly, Nester said he had very little contact with the prior coaching staff despite being one of the top offensive line prospects from the country in a home state that typically produces just a handful of Division I players per year.

There were actually two high-level offensive line prospects from West Virginia during Nester's senior year, the other being Darnell Wright who played just up the road from Nester at Huntington High and ended up signing with Tennessee.

"I never got much communication from the previous coaching staff, but whenever Neal Brown got here their first stop was to meet me and Darnell back in Huntington," Nester said. "That was big for me and played a big role in me coming back here."

Nester spent this past spring rotating between guard and tackle before eventually finding a home at right tackle. At 6-foot-7, 321 pounds, Nester is one of West Virginia's biggest offensive linemen and beefs up a unit that has been inconsistent at best during Brown's first two years at West Virginia.

Nester said it's been a different experience all-around for him here since transferring last winter.

"In the winter, it was basically like being an incoming freshman again, learning to trust all the new guys, getting to know everybody again and a whole new coaching staff and strength staff. It was a pretty difficult process," he admitted.

Having Malashevich here certainly helped, and West Virginia's addition of the touted Milum during the December signing period was another familiar face for Nester.

Graeson's father, Billy, coached Nester in pee-wee football and also helped out when Nester played at Spring Valley High.

"His family is basically my family. We've grown up together ever since I moved down to Kenova," Nester said.

Brown said Nester has been much more confident and assertive in fall camp than he was during the spring, mostly because of his humble nature.

"He wanted to make sure that he earned his spot," Brown said last week.

"I'm pretty comfortable now," Nester admitted. "I've got the playbook pretty much under wraps right now. There are still a few things I have to get used to, but the playbook was pretty difficult. I like guard a lot more than tackle really."

He added, "I think it's definitely easier than tackle just because we're on an island most of the time out there, but also I've been playing guard ever since I was about seven years old. It's always been my most comfortable position."

Nester said the techniques he's learning here are much different than what he learned during his two seasons at Tech. There is more emphasis on footwork and hand placement here, where at Tech he said it was more about simply moving defenders out of the way.

He explained.

"It's basically a little bit different offense," he said. "Everybody you play with is going to be different in how they move and how they step, so trying not to step on toes or anything is basically the hard part. Getting used to the people you are playing beside is always something you have to get used to.

"Here it is much more detail-oriented to our blocking styles," he added. "I've been coached up a lot more on just the finer details of my game that I needed to improve. Coach (Matt) Moore has been working with all of us, and I've definitely seen my game improve in the finer details of pass pro(tection); my striking was really bad, and I'm still trying to improve it. My inside toe, trying to keep it square during pass pro – just little things like that I need to improve upon."

Nester said another subtle difference has been the demanding nature of West Virginia's strength and conditioning program. He admits that was another big adjustment for him.

"The strength staff here is amazing," he said. "The strength staff is a little bit more 'you've got to prove it to us that you can be here' - which is great. I love that."

There is a possibility of two Spring Valley High players playing alongside each other once Milum gets a better handle on things. The true freshman tackle oozes with potential, which Nester said he noticed right away when Milum was a young player at Spring Valley.

"Before our first game at Spring Valley when we played together, I told him that he could be a guy just like I was, and after our first game he started getting Division I offers. After that I told him, 'I told you so,'" Nester said, adding he just needs to refine the finer parts of his game. "I think he's a very capable player if he puts his mind to it."

Nester is sharing an apartment right across the street from Milan Puskar Stadium with Malashevich, Jarret Doege and Zach Frazier. He said Doege was one of the first players to welcome him when he transferred, and the quarterback actually helped him move his things into his new apartment.

During the spring as he got to know Frazier a lot better, he ended up getting a place with all of them. He said some summertime trips to the golf course solidified their friendships. Nester admitted Doege is probably the best golfer of the four, with Frazier probably ranking second, but he said he hits the ball the farthest.

"Sometimes with a little slice," he chuckled. "It's just great living with those three guys. There is always fun going on in the house."

There should also be a lot of fun this year going on out on the football field as well, particularly on Sept. 18 when Nester's old football team comes to Milan Puskar Stadium. His immediate goal, however, is to prove to his teammates and coaches that he can get the job done at right guard this fall for the Mountaineers.

"I try to be a humble guy, but you have to have that confidence that I am a first-team guy and coming into here I wanted to try and prove that to everybody and not just come here and be given a spot," Nester concluded.

West Virginia wrapped up day five of fall camp earlier today at the Steve Antoline Family Practice Facility with another split-squad practice.

The Mountaineers are scheduled to have a sixth straight practice before taking Thursday off. The team will have some light practice work on Friday leading into Saturday's officiated practice inside Milan Puskar Stadium that will be closed to media and the general public.

Tickets for the 2021 season remain on sale and can be purchased by logging on to WVUGAME.com.

Schedule

Spring Valley’s Nester Settling In After Taking The Long Road Home

Players Mentioned

Zach Frazier

Graeson Malashevich

Wyatt Milum

Doug Nester

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