West Virginia football: 3 Mountaineers with the most to prove in 2020

What more could a player have to prove after leading his team in receptions (69) and receiving yards (677) as a redshirt freshman? A lot, actually, but only because that player, Sam James, oozes All-American potential.

He dealt with some drop issues, but his volume was incredibly high for a first-year starter. That’s not to excuse the drops, but considering the circumstances — being a freshman, in a new system, with an inexperienced quarterback — James’ shortcomings were never due to a lack of effort.

In eight of the Mountaineers’ 12 games, James recorded five or more catches — including a career-high 14 receptions against Texas Tech. He turned those catches into 223 yards, too, for an average of 15.9 yards per catch. This type of production earned James an All-Big 12 honorable mention as a first-year starter.

There’s one big area of James’ game he’ll need to improve to solidify his position among the conference’s best: his ability to reach the endzone. It all doesn’t fall on his shoulders, though, as the Mountaineers had some big bodies that demanded redzone targets. But James only scored twice all season, a number he’ll need to triple or quadruple to even enter the realm of his potential.