West Virginia football prepared to begin spring practice

With flowers in bloom and warm weather in the air following the darkness and chill of the winter season, spring is often welcomed with open arms by many. That includes West Virginia Head Football Coach Neal Brown.

"It's one of my favorite times [of year]," Brown said during a press conference Friday.

For Brown, though, the excitement that surrounds the season has less to do with the change in weather and more to do annual Spring Football practices for his program. The Mountaineers are set to begin their spring sessions on Monday, March 25, and will conclude with the annual Gold-Blue Spring Football Game on Saturday, April 27 at Milan Puskar Stadium.

"It's a great opportunity to teach, you don't really have the pressure of getting prepared for a game, practices, you're not going back to back," Brown said. "So it's always been one of my favorite times."

Brown is excited for fans to see the progress made since the 2023 season closed in December with a 30-10 victory in the Duke's Mayo Bowl. He praised the different support staff members within the program for the progress made.

"We've had a productive winter, and I really give a lot of credit to our support areas," Brown said.
"You're going to notice some significant difference in bodies -- in body compositions and body weights."

Brown said a priority this spring season will be making sure the team improves in the small areas of the game, which he felt hindered the team last fall.

"This is a real focus on fundamentals," he said. "We made strides last year, but we've got to continue to grow, and one area we really have to do that is from a fundamental perspective."

The coaching staff will also use these practices to see exactly where both older and newer players sit in terms of their ability to potentially move up the depth chart and see playing time for the Mountaineers this fall.

"It's a personnel evaluation," Brown said. "We're not necessarily going to come out of this with who the starters are going to be, but we need to find out who we can count on."