West Virginia
West Virginia defensive lineman Tomiwa Durojaiye commits to FSU football
Watch: FSU football head coach Mike Norvell talks Thursday practice.
Watch: FSU football head coach Mike Norvell speaks to media following practice.
Florida State football continues to cash out in the NCAA transfer portal, landing its seventh commitment since Saturday.
West Virginia defensive lineman Tomiwa Durojaiye announced his commitment to FSU on Tuesday.
He is the Seminoles’ third defensive lineman addition out of the portal joining Colorado State transfer Grady Kelly – who committed on Sunday – and Georgia transfer Marvin Jones Jr, who announced his commitment on Dec. 18.
“I’m excited to be adding Tomiwa to the Nole Family,” FSU head coach Mike Norvell said in a press release announcing the signing. “He is a great playmaker who has just scratched the surface of what we believe his potential is. He’s going to be a wonderful addition to our defensive front as he combines explosive movements with great size, strength and intelligence.”
“He will be an impact player who will help uphold the standard of our Seminole defense. Tomiwa is a great young man who has a very high ceiling within our program.”
The 6-foot-4-inch, 278-pound redshirt freshman played in all 13 games for the Mountaineers this season, recording 23 tackles, six tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and a quarterback hurry.
This was his lone season at West Virginia as he transferred in from Kentucky.
During his one season at Kentucky, he saw action in three games and didn’t record any stats. He’s a native of Philadelphia and attended Middletown High School in Middletown, Delaware, where he was named the 2021 Delaware 3A Defensive Player of the Year.
During his career, he totaled 58 tackles, 25.5 tackles for loss, 10 sacks, two forced fumbles and two pass breakups. Durojaiye helped Middletown to a 2021 DIAA Class 3A state title.
He was a 3-star prospect and ranked as a No. 2 Class of 2022 player out of Delaware. He originally committed to Kentucky over Vanderbilt, Georgia Tech, South Carolina and Northwestern.
Durojaiye joins a defensive line room made up of, Dennis Briggs, Darrell Jackson, Joshua Farmer, KJ Sampson, Daniel Lyons, D’Nas White, Jamoire Flagg and Kelly. There were a handful of defensive line exits including Fabian Lovett (NFL Draft), Malcolm Ray (transferred to Rutgers) and Ayobami Tifase (transfer portal).
FSU also graduated Braden Fiske who left a major impact on the line in his lone season at FSU.
FSU Football 2023 Winter Transfer Tracker
Transfers in:
Marvin Jones Jr., DL, Redshirt sophomore – Georgia
DJ Uiagalelei, QB, Jr, Quarterback – Oregon State
Jalen Brown, Fr., Wide receiver – LSU
Earl Little Jr., R-Fr., Defensive back – Alabama
Grady Kelly, R-So., Defensive lineman – Colorado State
Jaylin Lucas, Jr., Running back – Indiana
Davonte Brown, 4th-Jr., Defensive back – Miami (FL)
Malik Benson, Jr., Wide receiver – Alabama
Tomiwa Durojaiye, R-Fr., Defensive lineman – West Virginia
Transfers out:
CJ Campbell, RB, Redshirt sophomore (Florida Atlantic)
Preston Daniel, TE, Redshirt junior
Dylan Brown-Turner, LB, Freshman:
Markeston Douglas, TE, Redshirt Junior (Arizona State)
AJ Duffy, QB, Redshirt freshman (San Diego State)
Bless Harris, OL, Redshirt senior (TCU)
Rodney Hill, RB, Redshirt freshman
Tyler Keltner, K, Redshirt senior (Oklahoma)
DJ Lundy, LB, Redshirt junior (Colorado)
Malcolm Ray, DT, Redshirt junior
Daughtry Richardson, OL, Freshman (Florida Atlantic)
Qae’shon Sapp, OL, Freshman (Louisiana Monroe)
Thomas Shrader, OL, Redshirt junior (Appalachian State)
Ayobami Tifase, DL, Redshirt freshman (Georgia Tech)
Tate Rodemaker, QB, Redshirt junior (Souther Miss)
Gilber Edmond, DE, Redshirt junior
Goldie Lawrence, WR, Freshman
NFL Draft declarations
Keon Coleman, WR, junior
Jaheim Bell, TE, Redshirt junior
Trey Benson, RB, Redshirt junior
Jarrian Jones, DB, Redshirt senior
Fabien Lovett, DL, Redshirt senior
Johnny Wilson, WR, Junior:
Kalen Deloach, LB, Redshirt senior
D’Mitri Emmanuel, OL, Redshirt senior
Tatum Bethune, LB, Redshirt senior
Akeem Dent, DB, Senior
Renardo Green, DB, Senior
Jack Williams covers Florida State athletics for Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at jwilliams@tallahassee.com or on X @jackgwilliams.
Losing to Kansas State wiped away all hope for West Virginia to make the NCAA Tournament. That seems to be the clear consensus in the Mountain State, but is there actually still a chance? Well, I guess so.
ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi still has West Virginia listed as a team to consider, the second team outside of the “next four out” grouping.
Lunardi’s current NCAA Tournament bubble
Last Four Byes: Missouri, Texas A&M, Texas, Ohio State
Last Four In: SMU, Santa Clara, New Mexico, Indiana
First Four Out: VCU, Auburn, Virginia Tech, Cincinnati
Next Four Out: San Diego State, USC, California, Seton Hall
Next: Stanford, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Arizona State
How is this even possible?
Short answer? I don’t really know.
My best guess as to why? Two things: the respect for the Big 12 and the opportunities left on the table, and two, an incredibly weak bubble.
Should West Virginia beat UCF on Friday, it will give the Mountaineers a 9-9 record in Big 12 play. That’s not as much of a guarantee to make the dance as having a winning record, but still, it’s an impressive mark, especially when, in this instance, they would have wins over Kansas, BYU, and sweeps over Cincinnati and UCF.
If you ask me, they still have too many bad losses for it to matter. I mean, even if they got red-hot out of nowhere and made it to the Big 12 championship game next week, is that enough? Potentially, but that’s a big IF.
The one thing WVU does have on its side is the number of Quad 1 wins, which they have five of. Virtually every other team in college basketball that has a minimum of five Quad 1 victories is expected to make the tournament. In that previously mentioned scenario, they would add at least one more Quad 1 win in the conference tournament, giving the committee something to think about.
The bubble is just incredibly weak, though. Like, how in the world is Auburn, who is 16-14 currently, the second team out of the field? Cincinnati, which WVU swept and has the same record as, is the fourth team in the “first four out” grouping.
At this point, the only path I see is for the Mountaineers to cut down the nets in Kansas City — good luck with that. We could be having a very different conversation if they didn’t lallygag their way through the first 30 minutes of the games against Utah and Kansas State.
Buckle up, Upshur County. Starting Friday, March 6, law enforcement officers across West Virginia will step up seatbelt enforcement as part of a statewide Click It or Ticket campaign running through March 23.
The West Virginia Governor’s Highway Safety Program (GHSP) announced the high-visibility mobilization as a warm-up to the national seatbelt campaign in May. The goal is to ensure every occupant — front seat or back, driver or passenger — is buckled on every trip.
“During this mobilization, law enforcement officers across West Virginia will be out in full force. They will be strictly ticketing drivers who are unbuckled or who are transporting children not properly restrained in car seats,” said Jack McNeely, Director of the GHSP.
The numbers behind the campaign are sobering. In 2023, 40% of passenger vehicle occupants killed in West Virginia crashes were unrestrained. The state’s seatbelt usage rate has also slipped — from 91.9% in 2024 to 91.6% in 2025.
Rural drivers face elevated risk despite a common assumption that country roads are safer. In 2023, 65% of the state’s traffic fatalities occurred in rural areas, compared to 35% in urban centers.
Under West Virginia law, wearing a seatbelt is required. A citation carries a $25 fine, though McNeely says the real point isn’t the penalty.
“Click It or Ticket isn’t about the citations; it’s about saving lives,” he said. “A ticket is a wake-up call. It is far less expensive than the alternative — paying with your life or the lives of your family and friends.”
For more information about the West Virginia Governor’s Highway Safety Program, visit highwaysafety.wv.gov or call 304-926-2509.
CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WCHS) — A West Virginia man accused of threatening to attack President Donald Trump and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement workers was federally indicted this week.
Cody Lee Smith, 20, of Clarksburg was indicted on two counts of threats to murder the president, one count of influencing and retaliating against federal officials by threat of murder and one count of influencing a federal official by threat of murder, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of West Virginia.
Smith is accused of making a series of public posts on Instagram encouraging and threatening the murder of Trump, those who support him, Israelis and “all government officials,” the news release said.
The indictment also alleges that Smith sent a direct message via Instagram to Donald J. Trump, Jr., stating he would kill his father by cutting his “jugular.”
In a phone call with the ICE tip line, Smith also threatened to kill ICE agents in Clarksburg and employees staffing the tip line.
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Smith faces up to 5 years for each of the presidential threat charges and faces up to 10 years in federal prison for each of the remaining counts.
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