Rick Trickett is back in the room, and West Virginia is clearly betting big on what that means for its offensive line.
The Mountaineers tore up that group after a miserable 2025, replacing Jack Bicknell Jr. with Trickett, one of the most respected offensive line coaches in football. And when Trickett and Rich Rodriguez have worked together before, the ground game has been as good as it gets.
Over nine seasons, that partnership produced a .693 winning percentage, 5.3 yards per carry, 8.6 wins per season, 590 rush attempts and 3,111 rushing yards per year, plus 34 rushing touchdowns annually. On a per-game basis, those teams averaged 48 carries, 252 rushing yards and 2.7 rushing scores.
West Virginia’s projected front has a lot of moving parts, but it also has a clear identity: size, experience and a few linemen who have already shown they can hold up in pass protection.
At left tackle, Carsten Casady is the name to watch. After splitting time at center and right guard at UConn in 2024, he moved to right tackle in 2025 and allowed just 27 pressures with no sacks.
The expectation here is that his experience makes him a fit to protect Mike Hawkins Jr.’s blindside, though it also wouldn’t be a shock if WVU keeps the freshman on the right side and leaves Casady there. Either way, the zone-heavy system he played in last season should make the transition smoother.
Nick Krahe looks like one of the anchors of the whole operation. Thrown into the fire a year ago as the starting left tackle with only 30 in-game reps behind him, he ended up being the Mountaineers’ most productive and reliable lineman. He’s expected to be a major part of the improvement this fall, especially in the run game, and there’s real belief he’s taken a big step forward.
Wes King brings the kind of interior stability that can change a line. Over three years as a starter, he has allowed just 31 pressures and no sacks, while being flagged only 12 times and drawing more than one penalty in a game just twice.
He’s technically clean, handles fronts well and generates steady push. Landen Livingston is still in the mix, but King is the favorite to win the center job.
Amare Grayson is another familiar piece for Trickett. He has history with the new line coach from a similar offense at Jax State, and that familiarity matters.
Grayson may be one of the newer faces on the roster, but he plays like someone who already knows the system inside and out. He communicates, keeps guys accountable and functions like an extension of the coach on the field.
At 6-foot-1, he’s a little undersized, but that hasn’t shown up in his play.
Then there’s Kevin Brown, who sounds like the kind of freshman coaches dream about. He’s described as a freak of nature and built to play right away. The expectation is that he’ll be part of a short list of true freshmen who have started on the offensive line in West Virginia history, and that could happen as soon as September 5th.
Cam Griffin gives WVU a valuable backup option, even if he doesn’t crack the starting five. He’s played all five spots during his career, with 540 snaps at left guard, 314 at left tackle, 155 at right guard, 124 at right tackle and 85 at center. That kind of flexibility is gold for an offensive line coach.
West Virginia also has more depth than it did a year ago, and some of that comes from players who have already proven they can protect the quarterback. Landen Livingston was the highest-graded pass blocker on the team last season, giving up just five pressures, three hurries, one QB hit and a sack.
The offense struggled through the air, but that wasn’t because of him. No matter who wins the center battle, the Mountaineers should feel better knowing they have seven linemen they can trust.
The right side has its own competition. Malik Agbo arrived from Texas at 300 pounds, dropped to 275, then put the weight back on this offseason and is now at a healthier 301. That gives him a better shot to get on the field after the staff felt he was too light for heavy snaps before.
Devin Vass is another lineman who kept the sack column clean last season. The Kansas State transfer did solid work in his first year as a starter, though Big 12 play exposed him at times. He allowed eight combined pressures against Baylor, Texas Tech and TCU.
Deshawn Woods, meanwhile, came through Wyoming and Butler CC before landing at West Virginia. He’s been steady in pass protection and should be better in the run game with Trickett coaching him. He’s also up 20 pounds from the start of last season.
Josh Aisosa didn’t get many chances last year, logging just 47 snaps. Eighteen came in the win over Robert Morris, 14 in the loss to Utah and 10 in the loss to Texas Tech. This fall will tell whether he can work his way into a backup guard role.
West Virginia’s depth chart also includes Trevor Bigelow, Raymond Kovalesky, Andreas Hunter, Lamarcus Dillard, Camden Goforth, Rhett Morris, Aidan Woods and Jonas Muya, giving the program a deeper group to sort through as camp unfolds.
In Other News...
No Big 12 Game Means More To West Virginia Than Pitt
West Virginias move to shift its 2027 game against Ohio into Week 0 has done more than tidy up the schedule. Athletic director Wren Bakers announcement immediately stirred fresh talk about the Backyard Brawl, because any opening on the calendar naturally invites a look at whether Pitt could be brought back into the mix sooner than expected.
The idea is easy to understand for Mountaineer fans, who still treat the rivalry as one of the programs defining games even after the move to the Big 12. But an earlier renewal would still require changes to existing agreements, and the schedule shuffle alone does not make it likely. For now, the Brawl remains the kind of game West Virginia wants back, even if the path to getting it is still complicated. [Read more 🡒]
WVU Freshmen Are Already Threatening To Shake Up The 2026 Depth Chart
West Virginias 2026 roster picture is already getting a little crowded in the right places, and that is exactly why a handful of true freshmen are worth watching. The Mountaineers have uncertainty across several spots, from the secondary to the defensive front and even along the offensive line, which has opened the door for young players to push for roles sooner than expected as they develop through the offseason.
The most interesting part is how varied those paths look. One freshman defensive back could work into the rotation, a young lineman is close enough to sniff meaningful snaps, and a safetys outlook shifted after a spring move elsewhere on the roster. There is also a running back situation that may not fully sort itself out until later, while one offensive lineman has a real chance to be in the mix right away depending on how the early competition shakes out. [Read more 🡒]