One former WVU football player who transferred out of the program after the spring season in 2025 decided to take a step down to a smaller level of college football and return closer to home while remaining in-state – and this past weekend, he showed exactly why the move was the right choice with an electric performance in Week 1 of the season.
Former Mountaineers' wideout and Princeton, W.Va native Dom Collins decided to move to the Division 2 level after leaving WVU but remained inside the state and settled in at Concord (WV), which is just up the road from where he grew up. Collins had a standout game against UVA-Wise last week in his debut for the Mountain Lions, hauling in seven receptions for 186 yards and two touchdowns. He also added three kick returns for 87 yards as Concord secured a 37-29 win to move to 1-0.
.@ConcordFootball Final
— CUMountainlions (@cumountainlions) August 31, 2025
Concord 37
UVa.-Wise 29
Passing: Tyler Mizzell (24-for-35, 388 yards, 3 TDs)
Receiving: Dom Collins (7 rec, 186 yards, 2 TDs), Que Moore (4 rec, 67 yards, TD)
Defense: Xavier Ellison (10 tkls), Nehemiah Scott (9 tkls, 5 PBUs), Ar'Terrian Godfrey (2 INTs) pic.twitter.com/UAzBaG5MuK
Collins is a former Kennedy Award and Randy Moss Award winner in high school, and saw action in the WVU 2025 Gold-Blue Spring Showcase after redshirting as a freshman. He then parted ways with the Mountaineers.
Collins is not the only WVU football tie-in to the program at Concord, as current Mountaineer and fellow West Virginia native Jarod Bowie played for the Mountain Lions in 2022, where he was a finalist for the Harlon Hill Trophy – the Division 2 equivalent of the Heisman Trophy. Current WVU assistant offensive line coach Derek Dressler also previously played at Concord.