No Need to Worry About Tight End’s Debut: The Blame is on Me – Great

VIDEO: Spring Stock Risers: Kole Taylor

Only quarterback Garrett Greene, center Zach Frazier, left guard Tomas Rimac and right tackle Doug Nester played more snaps for West Virginia in the season opener than tight end Kole Taylor. So of course we’re talking about his playing time following 62 snaps in his debut after transferring from LSU and joining the team in January.

“Probably a little too many,” head coach Neal Brown said. “But he’s definitely going to be a weapon for us.”

Taylor, who was targeted three times and caught two passes for 31 yards anf two first downs, wanted more. Not more targets, more catches or more yards, though.

“I wish I was in the run game a little more,” Taylor said.

The Mountaineers had 33 designed run plays, and Taylor was in the lineup for 28. On the first short-yardage situation of the game, though, he came out and backup left tackle Nick Malone played tight end, something he’s done in the past and something that’s apparently required this season.

On many occasions when Taylor and tight end Treylan Davis were on the field together, Davis was attached to the line and Taylor was detached or even in the slot, which is a nod to his 6 foot, 7 inch frame and the mismatches it presents but also his status as a run blocker.

The staff has hounded Taylor about his mechanics and his pad level in particular. Brown, who lured Taylor from the SEC with a pledge to make better use of the tight end in the passing offense, has been relentless about fundamentals and consistency.

“I’ve never had a coach on me more than he is,” Taylor said. “Some days I get a little frustrated with it, but I need it. It’s good he’s always on me like that.”

Brown said Taylor should have had two more catches when he was open in the middle, and a handful of catches for 50 or 60 yards are reasonable and achievable weekly benchmarks. Taylor isn’t concerned about starting off under. Going over isn’t his priority. He isn’t even worried about preseason chatter about using the tight end fading into a different reality.

“They’ve done a good job holding up their promises,” he said. “It’s on me. If I get open, they’re going to throw me the ball. If I get open, they’re going to call plays for me.”

And the more he improves as a blocker and the better he manages that part of the game, the more he’ll be on the field and the further he can go with a fresh start at WVU.

“I never like being called just a pass-catching tight end or just a run-blocking tight end,” he said. “I think as a tight end, you have to do everything. You’ve got to be able to do everything, especially if you want to play at the next level and be a productive tight end for your team where you’re at. For me, if I wanted to be a pass-catcher, I’d just be a receiver, and if I wanted to be a blocker, I’d just be a lineman.”