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West Virginia Football: Mountaineers shouldn’t be overlooked in 2021

By Phil Poling

AMES, IA - DECEMBER 5: Head coach Neal Brown of the West Virginia Mountaineers argues a call in the first half of the play against the Iowa State Cyclones at Jack Trice Stadium on December 5, 2020 in Ames, Iowa. (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images)
AMES, IA - DECEMBER 5: Head coach Neal Brown of the West Virginia Mountaineers argues a call in the first half of the play against the Iowa State Cyclones at Jack Trice Stadium on December 5, 2020 in Ames, Iowa. (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
(Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images) /

‘Eer defense reloads after key departures

The Mountaineers allowed under 300 yards per game last season, just one of five teams to do so. But the 2021 unit will look completely different following the departures of Darius Stills, Tykee Smith, Dreshun Miller, and Tony Fields.

RELATED: 5 Breakout WVU Football Players

Dante Stills is still in Morgantown patrolling the defensive line, along with 2020 sack-leader Akheem Mesidor. That tandem alone will cause issues for opposing offenses, but they’re a deep unit with Taijh Alston, Jordan Jefferson, Sean Martin, and Jalen Thornton ready to take snaps.

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Linebacker Josh Chandler-Semedo tallied 69 and 64 tackles the past two seasons, respectively, but he’ll be expected to improve on those numbers this fall, particularly after Fields’ departure for the NFL. He’ll have other upperclassmen like VanDarius Cowan and Exree Loe flanking him, so it shouldn’t be too big of an ask.

The secondary is where things get tricky for the Mountaineers, though. Alonzo Addae and Nicktroy Fortune return from last season’s No. 1-ranked pass defense, but coordinator Jordan Lesley is stuck replacing Smith and Miller.

He’s got the players in Sean Mahone and Scottie Young, who’ve combined for over 40 starts and 300 tackles the past couple of seasons. Young, of course, arrived last August via Arizona and the transfer portal but played just two games for the Mountaineers. With those upperclassmen plus guys like Kerry Martin, Daryl Porter, and JuCo-transfer Charles Woods, West Virginia’s defense shouldn’t take a major step back. Expect this defense to compete at the highest level.

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