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18 May 2010
MORGANTOWN - Monday was the first day incoming players could report for West Virginia's football program.
Almost all of them will wait until separate reporting dates next month, but Coach Bill Stewart was happy to see safety Travis Bell, quarterback Barry Brunetti and cornerback Ishmael Banks on campus and giving themselves the best chance to play right away.
"Anytime you have a young man come in and reap the benefits of an entire summer here, that speaks volumes," Stewart said. "It's a really, really big advantage for them. Now, that's not a slam on anybody else. Some (high schools, prep schools and junior colleges) aren't out yet. Some guys will have to wait until June. But for these three guys, it's big. They're impact players."
The arrivals of Bell, Brunetti and Banks represent something special for WVU. Not only do the coaches believe they can help in their first seasons, but the Mountaineers had to wage unique recruiting battles to get them to commit.
The 6-foot-2, 190-pound Bell committed to WVU based on his relationship with former director of recruiting Doc Holliday, but switched to Marshall when Holliday became the coach there.
"He also offered by Florida, Florida State, LSU, Miami and Rutgers," Stewart said of Bell, who had 10 interceptions as a senior at Florida's Glades Central High. "This kid is a hell of a football player."
In the end, it was WVU getting Bell's signature on national signing day.
"We position-recruit now more than we ever did before because of the small numbers we take," Stewart said. "Had (safeties coach) Steve Dunlap not developed a relationship with Travis Bell early in the process, we may not have gotten him after Doc left. Doc was his recruiter, but not his position coach.
Steve had a relationship with him and that's what kept him away from all the schools down there."
Brunetti, a 6-foot Parade Magazine All-American from Memphis, Tenn., also committed early in the process. Quarterbacks coach/offensive coordinator Jeff Mullen spent part of last summer on the road evaluating 15 quarterbacks and eventually got pledges from Brunetti and Jeremy Johnson, from Silsbee, Texas.
Acting on the advice of his family, Brunetti still took his recruiting visits until the end and had strong feelings about an opportunity at Mississippi State.
WVU was never worried.
"We thought he was solid," Stewart said. "I knew what a character young man he was when he looked me in the eye last summer, when he came here with his dad and uncle, and told me competition is what got him excited. When I saw that in him, I said, 'OK, he's coming.' The guy doesn't fear competition. Some youngsters want a promise you won't recruit anyone else. Not this guy. When he shook my hand, I knew.
