MORGANTOWN, West Virginia — Moments ago, Neal Brown and his coaching staff got tremendous news as freshman All-American offensive lineman Xavier Bausley announced to YouTube personality Mountaineer Paul that he is returning home to play for the West Virginia Mountaineers!
Bausley, a Dunbar, West Virginia native, visited Morgantown this weekend and immediately fell in love with the family atmosphere at WVU. Bausley recently entered the portal after playing his freshman season under Rich Rodriguez at Jacksonville State. While at Jax State, Bausely started 11 games at right tackle and was a key part of an offensive line that led the Gamecocks to 5th-best rushing offense in FBS during the regular season.
In addition, Bausley was a 2023 CUSA All-Freshman Team member and was selected to the Freshman All-American team. Bausley, a 6’5 315 pound redshirt freshman, played high school football at South Charleston High School in Charleston, WV and led the Black Eagles to the 2020 West Virginia Class AAA state title, while also earning All-State honors on the offensive line.
Since entering the transfer portal, Bausley was heavily pursued by multiple programs but cut his list down to Pitt, Kentucky and West Virginia. Bausley visited Pitt and enjoyed his time there, but reportedly dropped the Panters from contention for his services after they fired their offensive line coach this weekend. Bausley informed The Voice of Morgantown that he absolutely loved his official visit to West Virginia University, but still intended to take a visit to Kentucky. Following his trip to Kentucky, Bausley made his decision to play for the Mountaineers.
Bausley will have 3 full years of eligiblity remaining and will likely compete to be the starting right tackle for West Virginia for the 2024 season.
Breaking News: @BausleyXavier has just told me he is a Mountaineer! Video to come in 10 mins. pic.twitter.com/vVabddCKpm
— Mountaineer Paul (@PaulMountaineer) January 7, 2024
