Coaches Caravan Stops In Wheeling
Baker, Kellogg, New Hire DeVries Among Faces At Annual Meetup
Kim North WHEELING - What a difference a year makes. Just ask West Virginia University Athletic Director Wren Baker.
Last year at this time when the BMAC's WVU Coaches Caravan rolled into OhIo County, Baker was only a few weeks into his new position with the Mountaineers and had just hired Mark Kellogg as the new women's basketball coach. Then, it happened.
It being Bob Huggins' slip of the tongue on a Cincinnati radio show that ignited a firestorm that eventually led to his dismissal as the men's head basketball coach.
Baker was one of several WVU dignitaries that attended the annual caravan stop - the fifth on the spring tour and last in the Mountain State - Friday night inside the jam-packed Glessner Auditorium at Oglebay Park.
"It's important for us to get out to different areas of the state for events like this," Baker said. "Especially because there is no other Power 5 school in the state and there is no pro team in the state. "We just want to get out and connect with the people and let them get a chance to meet and talk with some of our coaches."
The tour began on Monday in Manassas, Va., then headed to Glade Springs, W.Va., on Tuesday. Martinsburg on Wednesday and Parkersburg on Thursday led the Mountaineers to Wheeling. The tour ends next Monday in Charlotte, N.C.
"We've got a lot of great alums in the Charlotte area. The Mayo Bowl allowed us to find out just how many there are down there. It's important for us to try and add them to our fan base."
When Huggins was dismissed several months later following a DUI arrest, he had assembled a really good recruiting class, but many left via the transfer portal as he was dismissed.
Baker knew he had to act fast. He hired Josh Eilert, a Huggins assistant who had been on the bench just one year of an 18-year career, as an interim coach. When that didn't work out due to several factors, Baker went looking and found Drake's Darian DeVries.
"It's been terrific. The people have been very welcoming, both to me and my family," DeVries said Friday night. "I've been busy getting after it on the recruiting trail.
"The situation I came into wasn't ideal, but it was what it was," he noted. "We kind of hit the ground running. We're happy with the guys we've currently got on the roster and we're working hard to finish putting it together."
And busy he should be as just one Mountaineer - Ofri Naveh a 6-6 sophomore forward - is returning from last season.
"The transfer portal has been a big recruiting tool," DeVries added. "It's kind of a quick fix. You don't have to go through a rebuild that could take a year or two. You can get healthy quickly."
DeVries said he expects nothing but good basketball from the Big 12.
"I grew up in Iowa around the Big 8, Big 12 and Big 10 so I have a great understanding of the league and what it is. I think it is the deepest league in the country and when you look at the preseason rankings for next year, you see five (Big 12) teams in the top 10. It's an awesome basketball league and a big part of why I wanted to be at West Virginia and compete for Big 12 titles."
Kellogg's hiring proved fruitful as he led the Lady Mountaineers to a superb season in his first in Morgantown. They won 25 games and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament when they fell to Caitlyn Clark and Iowa.
In addition to Baker and DeVries, other WVU coaches making an appearance were Chad Scott (offensive coordinator) and Blaine Stewart (tight ends) representing the football program; head wrestling coach Tim Flynn; and Kellogg.
Baker was presented with a check for $12,000 from BMAC Chairman John S. Marshall. Proceeds will be used for the BMAC Scholarship that is annually presented to a WVU student-athlete from the Ohio Valley.