Ka’Raun White will become a star for WVU football team
Ka’Raun White’s star status will be brightening each day he steps on the field for the WVU football team. He is a senior now and will make this year one to remember.
Ka’Raun White doesn’t quite have the size of his older brother, Kevin, but he is an inviting target for new WVU football quarterback Will Grier. Former WVU football quarterback Skyler Howard and Ka’Raun were solid on their hookups and developed their relationship on and off the field for the past two year.
For Will Grier to step in and be given the reigns of the offense, and to have a seasoned receiver like Ka’Raun White, he will be in good shape. Their relationship has grown in the offseason and that will continue to grow once the games get here.
Head coach Dana Holgorsen is pleased with Grier’s development with White, because they will be the two biggest parts of the WVU offense. But Holgorsen also likes where Grier stands with the other receivers on the team.
"“I’m anxious to see where it goes,” Holgorsen said in his weekly press conference. “I think we have three receivers that have an opportunity to be in that conversation. Some of that is going to depend on Will’s mentality on who he looks to and who he throws to and what happens when he does.”"
The three receivers Holgorsen refers to are White, Gary Jennings and, more than likely, David Sills. White stands out above the rest because of his track record with the team.
He has two years under his belt, but Ka’Raun White really emerged as a true deep threat last year as he had 583 receiving yards and five touchdowns. He first arrived in Morgantown in 2015 and did not have any touchdowns.
But an injury towards the end of the 2016 campaign hindered White’s true development. Even in the offseason, he was slowed by his right leg. After rehabilitation, though, White has been able to have a productive season.
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Ka’Raun White is aiming to have a senior season like his older brother, Kevin. Kevin White, now with the Chicago Bears, caught 109 passes for 1,447 yards and 10 touchdowns in his senior campaign back in 2014.
Kevin had a height and overall size advantage over his brother, Ka’Raun. Kevin was able to jump up and get the jump balls in the back of the end zone unlike any receiver in WVU football history has before. Ka’Raun doesn’t have that unique jumping ability.
Ka’Raun does have sure hands and can run fast routes to get open, which will help him in his final season of college football. One game won’t define the Mountaineers’ season, but it could set the tone for White as he moves forward.
Dana Holgorsen looks to Kevin White’s first game of his senior year. That was a tough match up, much like the WVU football team’s tough match up against Virginia Tech. White and the 2014 Mountaineers had to take on No. 2 Alabama.
Kevin White caught a 19-yard pass from Clint Trickett to give the WVU football team its first touchdown in the second quarter against Alabama. He finished with nine catches for a game-high 143 yards.
“Nobody knew about Kevin until that first game,” Holgorsen said. “So, what happens on game day, I’m anxious to see myself.”
Next: Adam Shuler must stay healthy for Mountaineers
Time will tell if Ka’Raun White will reach the same heights of his older brother, Kevin. But don’t be surprised if Ka’Raun duplicates Kevin’s numbers, here, in his senior year.