West Virginia is adding some experience to its secondary.
Former Georgia safety JaCorey Thomas arrived in Morgantown Monday after committing to the Mountaineers, giving West Virginia another experienced option as it aims to improve its defense.
Thomas, a former four-star recruit, spent the past four seasons at Georgia and brings plenty of experience from one of the top programs in the country. Read more: JaCorey Thomas gives WVU another veteran option in the secondary.
Thomas still has to clear the eligibility process
While Thomas is now in Morgantown, his arrival does not mean he is immediately ready to take the field.
During his weekly press conference Tuesday, head coach Rich Rodriguez said there is still an eligibility process that needs to play out before Thomas can officially be added to the depth chart.
“There’s still a lot more still to be,” Rodriguez said. “It’s kind of like Jason Chambers. You know, there’s still another, I think, court hearing or something that’s going on and some more things that got to happen before he’s officially going to get ready on the depth chart.”
Thomas also has not practiced with the Mountaineers yet.
“He hasn’t practiced. He hasn’t done anything yet,” Rodriguez said. “He just got in town yesterday.”
That means Thomas will have to get up to speed quickly if he is going to contribute this season.
WVU sees fit at safety
West Virginia is coming off a season-opening win over Coastal Carolina, but the Mountaineers gave up 377 passing yards to Chanticleers quarterback Deuce Bailey.
Adding a player with Thomas’ experience could give defensive coordinator Zac Alley another option in the secondary.
Related: Five takeaways from WVU’s Week 1 win over Coastal Carolina
Rodriguez said West Virginia was interested in Thomas, but the situation had to make sense from both an eligibility and football standpoint.
“You don’t want to put all the time and effort in bringing somebody in, and they’ve got no chance of being eligible or what have you,” Rodriguez said.
The fact that Thomas had not signed an NFL contract also played a role in making the move possible.
Thomas participated in an NFL camp after going undrafted, but ultimately returned to the college level. Rodriguez said WVU needed to make sure Thomas could enroll and have his eligibility approved before moving forward.
“It had to be somebody that, hey, one, you can get in school at this date, and two, there’s not going to be this question on whether he’s eligible or whatever,” Rodriguez said. “It’s got to be something that’s got to be approved by all parties involved.”
Experience could help Mountaineers
Once that process is completed, West Virginia has a clear idea of where Thomas can fit.
“Safety, yeah,” Rodriguez said. “We basically had three safety positions.”
The Mountaineers have several different responsibilities within their safety group, giving Thomas the opportunity to potentially play multiple roles once he becomes available.
The biggest question will be how quickly he can learn the defense.
“Yeah, how much can you learn, right?” Rodriguez said. “It depends on how much you can learn in a quickly, short period of time.”
For now, Thomas will have to wait.
He has arrived in Morgantown, but he still has to clear the remaining eligibility hurdles. In addition, Thomas has to learn West Virginia’s defense and work his way onto the depth chart.
If everything falls into place, the Mountaineers will have another experienced defensive back available as they trek through the 2026 season.
