Pittsburgh (Pa.) Aliquippa 2026 linebacker Daiveon Taylor has been committed to West Virginia since April but has continued to build strong bonds with the coaching staff.

And the Rivals.com three-star prospect made multiple trips to Morgantown in June to further solidify that.

Taylor, 6-foot-2, 213-pounds, made the trek down for a one-day camp as well as the Mountaineers first 7-on-7 tournament in June and was able to showcase his improvement in front of the coaches.

“They like everything I’m doing. My hips got better, and I move better,” he said. “They were just giving me some pointers on playing linebacker.”

Inside linebackers coach Jeff Koonz, along with area recruiter tight ends coach Blaine Stewart have been the primary points of contact for Taylor but he also had plenty of time to talk with head coach Neal Brown.

“I feel like the relationship has gone great and it’s only getting better,” he said.

The Rivals.com three-star prospect has been no stranger to Morgantown over the course of his recruitment and a big reason for that has been his ties with the West Virginia coaches. That has made him feel welcomed.

“I love it, they make me feel at home,” he said.

Taylor had been the lone member of the 2026 class until Kingston (Ga.) Cass 2026 quarterback Brodie McWhorter jumped into the boat and the two have already built a strong bond. The pair plan to both be active when it comes to recruiting other key targets into the class moving forward.

“Me and Brodie are very close, and we are recruiting others,” he said.

Taylor next plans to return to West Virginia July 25 for the cookout on campus in order to spend even more time with the coaches and put his recruiting cap on to potentially add more to the group.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) – With the success of their online RN nursing program, West Virginia Junior College is starting a new program that they say will give students the best of both worlds.

“Hospitals seem to really need practical nurses, so we started the idea around West Virginia with West Virginia Junior College creating an online practical nursing program,” said Kelly Pauley, Director of the Practical Nursing Program.

The college says the new program will allow students to get in-person, hands-on experience with labs and clinicals – while still being able to take their classes virtually from the comfort of their own home – or on the go.

“You know some of our students go to baseball games, park in the lot, you know, and get to watch their baseball game of their child while also studying for their tests,” Pauley said.

The college says the program takes 12 months and students will earn a diploma in practical nursing – and be prepared for their licensing exam. Whether its the online or in-person program, Pauley says their goal is to teach their students to be great nurses.

“That’s our main goal here is to really make sure that we are bringing out people who will be able to take care of me someday and you and our community,” Pauley said.

Copyright 2024 WSAZ. All rights reserved.

The Big 12 Football Media Preseason Poll was released on Tuesday, with West Virginia football finding itself roughly in the middle of the pack in the new-look Big 12.

Of the 16 teams slated to compete in the conference this season, WVU was voted to finish seventh-overall and received zero first-place votes. While not a pick to be among the league’s worst programs this season, some could perceive the prediction as a slight, considering the Mountaineers finished in a tie for fourth-place last season and return a number of impact players from a team that ended the season 9-4 with a Duke’s Mayo Bowl victory.

However, such preseason polls can mean very little in the long run. For example, WVU was picked to finish in last place amongst 14 teams in the conference last season, which as previously mentioned did not play out as the polls expected. Last year, head coach Neal Brown and his staff used the dismal prediction to motivate his team — if this year’s roster sees themselves as a Big 12 Championship competitor after last season’s solid performance, the same could be done again this year.

The full poll can be found below, with the teams and vote totals listed in order from first-to-last.

2024 Big 12 Football Media Preseason Poll

First-place votes in parenthesis.

1. Utah (20) 906

2. Kansas State (19) 889

3. Oklahoma State (14) 829

4. Kansas (5) 772

5. Arizona (3) 762

6. Iowa State 661

7. West Virginia 581

8. UCF 551

9. Texas Tech 532

10. TCU 436

11. Colorado 400

12. Baylor 268

13. BYU 215

14. Cincinnati 196

15. Houston 157

16. Arizona State 141