Blocking Earning Trevon Wesco More Playing Time
Ferns, Qualls may play against Texas
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MORGANTOWN -- Ask redshirt senior tight end Trevon Wesco the secret to his playing time and the former Musselman High School standout will answer it without a second's thought.
"Oh, my blocking, of course," Wesco said during Tuesday's presser. "My blocking is what is getting me more playing time. The better I block, the more I play."
A fact backed up by West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen.
"I've said this before, but it's not just the five guys up front that have to block," Holgorsen said. "Trevon (Wesco) did a heck of a job blocking in the Baylor game. We didn't have that from him - or any of our perimeter people at Iowa State and we all saw what happened - when they block the way they did last Thursday night then our running game will become very effective."
That doesn't mean, however, that the Martinsburg native is only on the field to block.
"His (Wesco) blocking makes the defense move differently and it allows him to get involved in the passing game because they just can't rush five or six people and leave him alone," offensive coordinator Jake Spavital said. "And, he has improved tremendously as a receiver."
Not that Wesco hasn't had the ability to catch the football. During his freshman season at Lackawanna College he hauled in five passes for 47 yards.
"I've always had faith in my ability to catch the football," Wesco said. "Now, he (Will Grier) is looking for me more and I've been catching everything he throws my way so that builds up the confidence a quarterback has to have in you."
That includes hauling in three Grier passes in WVU's 58-14 victory over Baylor.
"Yeah, I caught three passes and Jovanni (Haskins) caught three passes. When's the last time that has happened here?"
In other game news:
∫ Holgorsen announced that former St. Clairsville standout Brendan Ferns and Northwest Mississippi Community College transfer Quondarius Qualls have been released by team doctors to begin practice this week.
"I could if I wanted to," Holgorsen said.
"We'll see how those guys practice. The two long-term guys that have been hurt for six months are now ready to play. We have to go out and practice - I'm not saying they're playing or starting or any of that.
"We have to go out and practice and see how it looks. If they help us, then we play them. If they're not ready to go, and they can't help us, then we won't play them.
"Tonkery is in the same boat, (Derrek) Pitts (Jr.) is in the same boat, Joe Brown is in the same boat. We have guys coming back, whenever they are ready to roll is when we'll put them out there. That's no different than any other team in the country at this point in time."
Ferns and Qualls are both returning from ACL surgeries while Bridgeport's Tonkery has missed the last two games. Pitts, who has four pass break ups to his resume, did not play against Baylor.
∫ With a victory Saturday afternoon over the Longhorns, Holgorsen will tie former-Mountaineer head coach Rich Rodriguez for second place in all-time wins at WVU.