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WEST LIBERTY -- With spring drills well under way on the hilltop, West Liberty head football coach Roger Waialae has released the Hilltoppers' 2022 recruiting class.
They're still working through the paperwork for a few recent commits but Waialae and his coaches have already landed one of their larger recruiting classes in recent years. A total of 23 incoming freshmen and collegiate transfers have cast their lot with the Black and Gold, some of whom are already on campus participating in spring drills.
"Recruiting always begins at home with the OVAC and the tri-state area," Waialae said. "Starting from there, our coaches were able to expand that footprint somewhat and I think it paid off with one of the more athletic and versatile classes we've had. We'll be bringing in a few more guys before the start of fall practice but we have definitely raised the talent level within our program."
The Hilltoppers had to work through some significant graduation losses but the large group of newcomers along with anticipated debuts from some talented redshirt freshmen eases those concerns for the veteran head man, who pointed out that the Hilltoppers' talent search was focused on quality as well as quantity.
"The raw numbers are good and the overall quality is very good, especially on the defensive side," Waialae said. "Defensive line was the biggest immediate need with only one guy back (All-MEC defensive end David Gilcreast) who played significant minutes. We have five really good redshirt linemen returning so the cupboard isn't bare but we needed to restock. The goal for this year wasn't just to replenish our talent and depth where graduation hit, it was to create competition at those spots in the spring and fall."
Waialae filled a couple of important special teams holes with a pair of transfers from the California juco ranks in kicker Justin Kaplan and long snapper Jake Maggio. A solid receiving corps also gets a boost from graduate transfers C.J. Turner (New Hampshire) and Chris Charles (Robert Morris).
The depth and talent in the quarterback room also picked up a pair of transfers in former Wheeling Park all-stater Alex Dunlevy (W.Va. State) and Geno Pellegrini (Robert Morris) while Anthony Barmer (Compton JC) provides another viable option at a running back spot that was hit hard by the injury bug a year ago. Jay Johnson is a sophomore linebacker transferring in from Clarion (Pa.).
"The transfers, especially the grad transfers, obviously have a head start with that college experience under their belts," Waialae said, "but we think a high percentage of the freshmen have the potential to come in here and compete for playing time and even a starting job in fall camp.
"One of the things that really jumped out at us on tape was how many of our freshmen showed the ability to play at a high level on both sides of the football. That kind of versatility is a tremendous asset to a program so a major priority for us in August will be finding the best fit for them."
The Hilltoppers are approaching the midway point of their spring practice sessions, leading up to an April 14 Black and Gold scrimmage under the Thursday Night Lights.