MORGANTOWN - You can't call yourself a fan of Mountaineer football and not know the names Tavon Austin and Stedman Bailey.
Two receivers that look to make their names as much of a household name as West Virginia's top two pass catchers during last season's 10-3 Orange Bowl championship season will be freshmen Dante Campbell and Jordan Thompson.
"I'm just excited to be playing football again," said Campbell, who was redshirted last fall. "I haven't played in about a year, so I'm just excited to go out and step onto the field."
Thompson's trip from Katy High School in Katy, Texas, began in January when he elected to enroll early so that he could participate in spring drills and get a head start on adjusting to WVU coach Dana Holgorsen's wide open offensive attack.
"You just want to show your talent," Thompson said. "You want to show that you can contribute to the team's success. You want to show that they (the offense) needs you."
Both accomplished that feat following spring workouts and enter August camp among the three deep at inside and outside receiver, respectively.
"I just want to get me a lot of playing time," continued Campbell. "Catch me a lot of balls and help the team out."
The problem both players are facing, however, is that the player ranked ahead of them on the Mountaineers' depth chart - Austin, Bailey as well as senior J.D. Woods - will be difficult to beat out.
"You've got to be hungry for the ball at every practice, you know," explained Campbell, who caught 43 passes for 639 yards and seven touchdowns as a senior at East Ridge High School in Clermont, Fla. "I want it (the ball) just as much as them, but they are the starters and I have to work behind them."
Austin, an All-American selection as a return specialist, led the team with 101 catches for 1,186 yards and eight touchdowns while Bailey was the team's leader in yards with 1,279 on 72 receptions and a team-high 12 touchdowns.
And, as if those two were not enough, senior quarterback Geno Smith has a few more returning targets as well.
Junior Ivan McCartney finished third on the team with 49 catches for 585 yards and a trio of touchdowns, while Woods hauled in seven for 67 yards and redshirt senior Ryan Nehlen added five receptions for 64 yards and one touchdown.
"It starts with gaining Geno's trust," explained Thompson, who finished 2011 with 66 catches for 1,117 yards and 17 touchdowns.
"Knowing that Geno can rely on you to catch the ball and make plays. If you are open, Geno is going to hit you."
That trust is built during spring drills and summer workouts that include 7-on-7 encounters with the Mountaineers' secondary.
"We (the offense and the defense) have really been getting after one another this summer in 7-on-7," Thompson said. "All of us understand that we are working toward earning playing time and we know that the harder we work now, the better our chances will be to see playing time during the season."
It also gives both an opportunity to learn from some of WVU's top pass catchers - Austin and Bailey.
"I play behind Tavon. I watch him during his reps and he teaches me what to do when I run my routes,'' Campbell said. ''He tells me what I am doing wrong. I learn from him.''
But, not so much that WVU's top receivers could find themselves watching their freshmen counterparts from the sidelines.
"They (Austin and Bailey) are great teachers," Campbell said. ''It's competition every day. I'm going to push them and they are going to push me."
That's a feeling echoed by Thompson.
"Tavon, Stedman and J.D. told me when I first got here to just relax and have fun," Thompson said. "They understand that I want to play just as much as they want to play, but they also know that competition makes all of us better."
