West Virginia Native Cyrus Traugh Impresses Coach: ‘We’re All Excited’

WVU fans always love a homegrown kid who earns his spot. It was what once made Hudson Clement’s story one to celebrate in West Virginia. Parkersburg native Cyrus Traugh may have a shot to enhance his own legacy within the state in 2026.

Traugh will forever be appreciated in the state for his success in high school at Parkersburg South – he earned the Randy Moss Award as the top high school receiver in the Mountain State as a senior. But that was high school. To truly become a West Virginia legend, Traugh needs to make an impact as a Mountaineer at WVU, something that could be realistic possibility this fall.

“We’re all excited about Cyrus. We say earned success here, and that’s a kid who came in at 168 pounds when he got here, and now he’s up above 200,” said WVU wide receivers coach Ryan Garrett about a fall camp practice on Friday, August 21.

Traugh only saw action in two games in 2025 – Robert Morris and Kansas. However, with the possibility of an increased role, Traugh gives the Mountaineers a quality receiving target with multiple seasons of eligibility remaining.

As far as his journey to this point, WVU didn’t offer Traugh during his initial recruiting cycle — although new head Rich Rodriguez did from his old position at Jacksonville State — so the 5-foot-11, 193-pound receiver committed to Youngstown State instead. After playing in two games as a reserve in 2023, Traugh broke into the starting lineup and earned FCS Freshman All-American honors with the Penguins in 2024 before making the jump to the Power Four level at West Virginia.

Find more coverage of the WVU football program at WV Sports Now.

For a related story, Cyrus Traugh wins the WVU walk-on award during the spring period.