Several Mountaineers Recognized By Big 12 for Individual Play

In an ironic turn of events, several Mountaineers , including a departing player, have been named Big 12 individual award winners.

Wyatt Milum earns the honor as Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year, following his offseason hype with a season that will help get him in the NFL.

Milum is the third Mountaineer to win the lineman of the year award (Yodny Cajuste, 2018; Colton McKivitz, 2019) and the first outright winner. He has played in 47 games, started 43, and has been used on 2,951 snaps over his four-year career. This season, he has helped WVU rank No. 9 among Power 4 schools in rushing yards per game (192.7). WVU is one of two FBS school with three players to have at least 600 rushing yards. In 2023, he helped the Mountaineer rushing attack claim the No. 1 spot among Power 4 schools, averaging 228.9 yards per game

Milum also has not allowed a sack in 34 of the past 36 games in which he played, including not allowing any over the past two seasons. He was named a semifinalist for the Outland Trophy, given to the nation’s best interior lineman.

In 2024, Milum also has not allowed a quarterback hurry and only seven pressures. PFF College lists Milum as its No. 3 offensive tackle in the nation, grading out at 90.1. His 84.2 run-blocking grade is No. 6 and his pass-blocking grade (89.8) is No. 4. The offense has run for at least 140 rushing yards in 26 of its last 28 games since 2022.

In addition to Milum, Josiah Trotter, who announced his plans to transfer to a new school on Wednesday, is the Defensive Freshman of the Year.

Trotter, WVU’s first Big 12 Conference Defensive Freshman of the Year, played in all 12 games and started 11. He was the nation’s leading freshman tackler with 92 tackles, including 36 unassisted tackles, assisted on a sack, four tackles for loss, give quarterback hurries, two pass breakups and an interception. He also was WVU’s second-leading tackler and was the team’s leading tackler in five of 12 games this year. He finished with four double-figure tackle games and had a career best 12 tackles against Iowa State and Cincinnati. He also recorded at least one tackle for loss in three games, had a season-high 1.5 tackles for loss at Cincinnati and registered an interception at Oklahoma State.

WVU LB Josiah Trotter to Depart West Virginia, Enter Transfer Portal

And last but certainly not least, TJ Jackson has been named a member of the First-Team All-Defense.

Jackson played in all 12 games in 2024, starting nine after transferring for the 2024 season. He finished the regular season with 38 tackles, including 20 solo stops, 6.5 sacks, 13.5 tackles for loss and a fumble recovery. He is currently No. 1 nationally in run defense grade (90.6) by PFF College and tied for No. 25 nationally (82.3) among edge rushers overall. He is currently ranked No. 5 in the Big 12 in sacks. He had a season-high six tackles against Pitt, Kansas and Arizona and finished with at least one tackle for loss in eight games and had at least one sack in six games. His top performance of the season was at Pitt where he finished with a career-best four tackles for loss, tying him for fourth-best in school history and the most in a games since 2018.