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23 June 2010
VIENNA-Spring drills are over - ditto for the annual summer camps - but recruiting has become a full-time job for West Virginia University head football coach Bill Stewart and his assistants.
The third-year leader of the Mountaineers was back in Wood County Tuesday playing golf and talking football with members of the local chapter of the 1100 Club at the Parkersburg Country Club
"Any time I get the opportunity to come back to the Mid Ohio Valley, I jump at it," explained Stewart. "This area has always been very supportive of the Mountaineers and today is no different."
Supportive is right.
Started nine years ago, the group has grown to the point where Tuesday's event included 44 golfers and the dinner that followed had more than 60 members in attendance.
"I'm surprised at how we have been able to sustain it (the 1100 Club)," explained Dave Righter, who is the President and CEO at 1st Neighborhood Bank. "Over nine years, the club has raised more than two million dollars statewide.
"More than $310,000 was raised in 2009 and the Parkersburg chapter will be over $75,000 for this year."
The monies raised go for one purpose and one purpose only-recruiting.
"It (the 1100 Club) has become the lifeblood of our recruiting," added Stewart. "We would not be able to do the things we do today without the support of these chapters and Parkersburg's is one of the most active ones we have."
Case in point was one recruiting trip taken by offensive coordinator Jeff Mullin.
"Jeff (Mullin) was able to see 15 players on one trip last year," explained Stewart.
"We signed two players from that trip, one was a top 11 quarterback (Barry Brunetti) and the other (Jeremy Johnson) was getting offers from every college in Texas, but went with us."
