MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – One of the young players who showed up during West Virginia's disappointing 30-24 loss last Saturday at Maryland was redshirt freshman Sean Martin.
 
The Bluefield resident earned some unsolicited praise on Tuesday afternoon from coach Neal Brown and defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley.
 
"I thought Sean Martin played really well in his first serious game action," Brown said.
 
Later, Lesley said basically the same thing.
 
Martin, at 6-foot-5, 280 pounds, is one of the tallest and longest defenders on the team. He played little last year as a true freshman, appearing in the final five games of the season with a high of six defensive snaps against Texas, so getting him on the field last Saturday at Maryland was a positive development in his career.
 
Martin thought things went pretty well once he settled down.
 
"I got through the first drive and after that I just felt comfortable playing the game," Martin said. "I wasn't really nervous. The first two plays, I saw the fans and it opened up my eyes a little bit."
 
What kept Martin's eyes open was going up against Maryland's talented left tackle Jaelyn Duncan, an honorable mention All-Big Ten choice a year ago. Martin admitted Duncan was a lot bigger than he anticipated after watching him on film.
 
"He was way bigger than the Big 12 tackles," Martin laughed. "He was a lot wider – way wider."
 
Martin was the Mountain State's top prospect two years ago coming out of Bluefield High. He was a two-time all-state choice who originally committed to North Carolina during his senior year before changing his mind when Neal Brown got the West Virginia job.
 
Some persistence from Lesley and an assist from Fairmont center Zach Frazier also helped steer Martin to WVU.
 
"What made me decommit was when coach Lesley was still recruiting me and I was talking to Zach a little bit and he told me he was committing so I thought, 'Maybe I need to change my decision,'" Martin recalled. "Then, I just waited until I felt like this was the best place for me as my senior year went on."
 
Martin led the Beavers to a 12-2 record and a berth in the Class 2A state championship game where they lost to Bridgeport. He produced 102 tackles, eight sacks and four forced fumbles as the state's most dominant defensive player.
 
Last year, most of his action came on special teams with just a handful of snaps taken at defensive tackle while he continued to adjust to the college game.
 
Now much bigger at 280 pounds, Martin said he put in a lot of time in the weight room during the offseason to build up his body.
 
"This summer I really had to dedicate myself to working out," he admitted. "I didn't go home as much, and I did two workouts a day to make sure I got stronger and was ready for the season."
 
Right now, Martin is playing outside at defensive end with senior Dante Stills and sophomore Akheem Mesidor manning the two interior spots. He said he believes his long arms are his best attribute at this stage of his career, although he admits he's still getting adjusted to playing defensive end.
 
"At D-tackle, the game comes faster to you and at D-end you have more time to adjust to see what the tackle is going to do instead of reading the guard and seeing what the guard is going to do," Martin explained.
 
With a Power 5 game now under his belt, Martin said he's prepared to build off of last Saturday's performance and continue to improve.
 
"I've just got to make sure my preparation continues to be good and take it game by game, stay focused and stay humble," he said.
 
Lesley believes Martin got a lot out of the Maryland game that will eventually pay big dividends down the road.
 
"I put Sean Martin out there against a second-round draft pick offensive tackle, well, he's going to be better in the long run because of that," Lesley pointed out.
 
West Virginia (0-1) opens the home portion of its schedule this Saturday against Long Island University in a game that will kick off at 5 p.m. and will be televised on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
 
Brown noted Tuesday afternoon that last year's seniors who can make it on Saturday will be recognized before the game.
 
"We've got our first home game with fans, it's a 5 o'clock kickoff, which I think is a friendly time for our fans," Brown explained. "It gives people from out of town plenty of time to get here and experience tailgating again, and I hope they will."
 
Family Day tickets are still available and can be purchased by logging on to WVUGAME.com or by calling the Mountaineer Ticket Office toll-free at 1-800-WVU GAME.