To say that it's been a good year for the West Virginia Mountaineers is an understatement. As a whole, the entire athletic department has been at the center of attention for much of the year, due in large part to the combination of the women's basketball team and the baseball team.
The women's basketball team go things off to a strong start with the Big 12 Women's Basketball Tournament Championship and a host seed in the NCAA Tournament in the spring, and then the baseball program, not to be one-upped, brought both the NCAA Regional and NCAA Super Regional rounds to Morgantown on the way to their first-ever College World Series appearance.
Leading the way for those teams were two faces that are now quite recognizable to WVU fans: Jordan Harrison and Gavin Kelly. And while both are having exciting summers due to reasons aside from their WVU connections – with Harrison making her WNBA debut while Kelly sets records for the US Collegiate National Team – they were also each recently honored for their contributions for the Mountaineers last season.
Jordan Harrison, Gavin Kelly nominated for Big 12 Athlete of the Year Awards
On Wednesday, it was announced that both Kelly and Harrison were nominated for the Big 12 Athlete of the Year Award.
2025-26 Big 12 Athlete of the Year Nominees: West Virginia Mountaineers
— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) July 22, 2026
⭐️ Jordan Harrison | @WVUWBB
⭐️ Gavin Kelly | @WVUBaseball pic.twitter.com/VZdEG70nMa
Harrison earned the nomination after being the driving force behind WVU's success on the hardwood, averaging 13.1 points, 5.2 assists,3.3 rebounds, and 3.2 steals per game. After the season,she was named an All-Big 12 First Team selection, the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, an honorable mention All-American and a finalist for the Naismith College Player of the Year award.
Kelly, meanwhile, was one of the most prominent stars at the head of WVU's thrilling College Wolrd Series run, earning First-Team All-American honors and being named an All-Big 12 First Team selection.
He made 63 starts for the Mountaineers, leading the team in batting (.382), home runs (19), RBI (63), runs (70), hits (96), on-base percentage (.477), and slugging percentage (.725). He also tied the single-season program record for home runs, and was the top-earning athlete on the NIL Store nationally in June.
Looking at the numbers, as well as the role they played on wildly successful teams for the Mountaineers. there is no doubt that both Harrison and Kelly are well-deserving of being named Athlete of the Year. But even if they fail to earn the finalaward, just having both nominated continues to spotlight the massive success currently being experienced by the WVU athletic department.
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