A Product Of Perseverance, Jahiem White Is Ascending At WVU
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MORGANTOWN -- It was a rainy day in Morgantown
A lot like Tuesday, which goes to show you that everyone really does talk about the weather but does nothing about it, for this rainy day was back when Jahiem White was a high school sophomore, not yet even grown into the body that now serves him at 5-feet, 7-inches and 190 pounds.
He'd come to one of the WVU football camps, and Chad Scott, himself just getting situated into his job as running back coach, saw White. It would prove to be one of the first steps in changing WVU from a pass-happy team to the happy-to-run team it now is.
"There was a downpour here and there might have been 50 kids here, but he was a bigtime standout," Scott remembered Monday after White had placed himself among the nation's top freshman running backs with a 204-yard rushing performance against Cincinnati that he complemented with a 75-yard touchdown reception.
He began recruiting him right there.
"From that point we built a great relationship and offered him a scholarship," Scott said.
Of course, Scott knew that this kid from York, Pennsylvania, would not be kept secret for long, but he wasn't worried about someone coming in and spiriting him away during the recruiting process.
"No, he's a relationship person. He's from a relationship family," Scott said.
He knew not only what kind of person he was but what kind of football player he was.
"I've been with him from Day 1. I recruited him, so I knew the kind of talent he had," Scott said.
White, of course, committed to WVU and came in early. With a stacked running back room, they nursed him along. Not that he couldn't play well. It was his practice that would slow his development.
"It's always tough on freshmen knowing how to practice, how to simulate practice as a real game, how to stay locked in and focused and also understanding pass protection," Scott explained. "Where he has progressed big time in pass protection is in what he's looking at."
"So he's not looking pre-snap at a different linebacker and feeling confident in pass pro or a run play."
White learned to focus in practice, to take after it as a game.
"These last two weeks he's been better," Scott said. "Focus isn't natural. I tell these guys you have to be intentional about it."
His improvement and some nicks and bumps to CJ Donaldson helped make the decision easy, and White's playing time increased.
You might think that what he has done surprised everyone, but it didn't. The coaches had been chirping about his ability all year.
WVU has a trio of skilled freshmen who have them licking their chops for next year to get here as soon as this year is over in White and wide receivers, Rodney Gallagher and Traylon Ray.
"Jahiem got here early, so he is a little further ahead. They are all three good friends, which is coincidental. They all have high talent. They've all worked and bought in," Neal Brown said.
"Rodney is a guy is a multiple sport athlete who has to continue to get stronger. This off-season is going to be big for him and he knows that. He really has to work on his craft running routes. He hasn't had to do it a lot, but he's shown that he can make plays with the ball in his hands," Brown continued.
"He can break tackles. He's elusive. When he learns and understands route running, he has a chance to be special."
"And Traylon Ray has really come on. He didn't get here until the end of June, so he hasn't been in college very long. This off-season and spring will make him a really different guy. He'll put on 10 pounds and get faster and I think he has a chance to be an elite outside receiver."
As for White?
"The sky's the limit for the kid. He just has stay humble, stay hungry like I told the kid the other day. Keep the circle tight, stay connected to the people who have been with him from the beginning," Scott said.
Scott says he's sure that the success White is enjoying won't go to his head.
"He sent me a video clip a while back of him making a move on a guy when he was in Pop Warner. He's used to having success and making plays. He's not a kid who isn't used to that so he understands how to handle it," Scott said.