Top Five Realistic Players West Virginia Could Land in the Transfer Portal

Morgantown, West Virginia – The transfer portal officially opens tomorrow. Instead of being able to leave a school at any time, players now have to enter the portal within set dates. The first window opens tomorrow, December 5th, and closes 45 days later on January 18, 2023.

West Virginia has several key holes to fill and Neal Brown and his coaching staff will be responsible for filling those needs prior to the start of next season. Here are the players that the Mountaineers are most likely to target in the coming weeks:

Jonquis “JQ” Hardaway, CB, Cincinnati – Former 4 star quarterback out of Alabama, Hardaway recently entered the transfer portal after Luke Fickell left the program for Wisconsin. West Virginia offered Hardaway out of high school and is very interested in getting him on this second go around.

Gilbert Frierson, CB, Miami – A graduate transfer, Frierson started all 11 games and finished with 53 tackles, including nine tackles for loss, two sacks, four pass breakups and a fumble recovery in 2020. Last season he started three of his 12 games and finished with 41 tackles, 3 1/2 tackles for loss and a sack.

Nick Oliveira, OL, Cincinnati – Another former Cincinnati commit, Oliveira, a 6’5 280 pound offensive tackle was recently offered by the Mountaineers. Oliveira is a New Jersey native so West Virginia will have to battle Rutgers for his services.

Deandrae McCray, Wide Receiver/Running Back, Austin Peay – McCray, a talented athlete out of Tallahassee, Florida, had 75 receptions for over 1,000 yards and nine touchdowns this last season. West Virginia recently offered.

DJ Oliver, Running Back, USF – 6’0, 240 pound running back from Port Saint Joe, Florida, Oliver was recently offered by the Mountaineers after USF’s former head coach Jeff Scott was fired.