Woods Coming Into His Own After Transfer

MORGANTOWN -- When the West Virginia University football team boarded the plane back to Morgantown following Saturday's win over TCU, a sense of jubilation wafted through the aircraft.

Guys were smiling. It was hard to find somebody not in a good mood, according to defensive back Charles Woods, and Woods is a big reason why.

With the Mountaineers' secondary depth dwindling, Woods has seen an increased role in recent weeks. Against the Horned Frogs, he ended the night with five tackles, a fumble recovery and an interception -- earning the Dallas native the title of Big 12 Newcomer of the Week.

"It was very special because that was one of my first times actually playing back in Texas since high school," Woods said. "It was just special (with) my mom being able to see (and) my family able to see me play. It was definitely special, especially to get the win on the road."

Making an impact for a Power 5 football program has been a long time coming for Woods, who transferred to West Virginia this offseason.

Woods saw little interest on the recruiting trail coming out of high school, saying Tuesday that he "didn't pass the eye test." He would end up at Illinois State in the FCS level, eventually earning All-American honors during his sophomore season.

But following his second year at the school, Woods felt some bumps in the road and felt the need to make a change. After briefly being committed to SMU, he announced his transfer to WVU in April.

In Morgantown, the Mountaineers were eyeing fixes to a defensive secondary full of holes. Two of the previous season's top playmakers, Tykee Smith and Dreshun Miller, departed the program, leaving gaps to be filled.

Through the season's first half, Woods saw limited action as the backup to starting spear Scottie Young, but was quickly turned too as the team's secondary became depleted.

Young dealt with the injury bug. Safety Kerry Martin opted to enter the transfer portal. An already thin group was becoming thinner, with the Mountaineers seemingly grasping at straws to fill the void.

But Woods, who has seen more snaps in recent works, has proven to be a savior in the secondary. Seeing an increased role around this point of the season fit in exactly with the blueprint of defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley, who said it takes around that much time to get comfortable with a change of scenery,

"Charles is a transfer. It doesn't matter where you come from, every system is different, and it takes time to get accustomed to that system," Lesley said. "I think it's always that, anywhere from (that) fourth to sixth game where when it clicks, it clicks. I think Charles is a guy who's in that situation."

After starting cornerback Nicktroy Fortune went down with an injury in the first half, Woods was leaned on even more. For the benefit of the Mountaineers, he showed up.

"No matter how it goes, you've gotta prepare like you're the starter or that you're going to play because you never know when your opportunity is going to show up," Woods said. "I don't really spend too much time on that because that's not my choice to make. I just prepare every week and get ready to play when my name is called."