WVU HC Neal Brown Offers ‘Not That I Know Of’ if Other Players Will Transfer

MORGANTOWN, W.Va – A question that had to be asked of West Virginia head coach Neal Brown based on recent events received an honest response.

Towards the end of his weekly press conference on Tuesday, Brown was not only asked about the loss to Kansas State and the upcoming matchup with Oklahoma State to close the season, but the controversy over cornerback Charles Woods deciding to transfer, something that the player announced an hour before kickoff on Saturday. “Not that I know of,” Brown offered when asked about if he expects any players to sit out the game for a reason that is not due to an injury. This was about if he expects a repeat of the Woods chaos to occur again. Wide receiver Kaden Prather was also a late surprise scratch, but Brown made sure to let everyone know he was hurt. He may play this week.

Brown then added a side comment that it’s crazy he can’t provide better than a “not that I know of” reply to that question. The reason for this question stems from the confusion over the Woods situation. A clearly agitated Brown dropped a “he shut it down” remark in reference to Woods during his postgame press conference after the game. He also mentioned that he heard Woods posted something on social media about it and that he tries to protect the players.

WVU HC Neal Brown Fires ‘He Shut it Down’ Shot at Departing CB Charles Woods

Woods released a statement, detailing his side and explaining why he made the decision to play his final year of eligibility, which he earned because of an injury plagued season, elsewhere instead of returning to West Virginia. However, Woods did no directly respond to Brown’s comments in that message. He just said he wished he could have finished the season with his teammates, but that it was “out of his control,” granted that could simply be about the NCA rules and losing the year if he played those games.

A source close to Woods then told WVSN that Brown actually knew that Woods was planning to transfer on Monday of last week, begging the question if the WVU head coach was actually surprised by the news, like many assumed, or just upset at how the player choose to handle things.

Source: Neal Brown Knew of Charles Woods’ Decision to Transfer Days Prior to Announcement

Either way, Brown’s “not that I know of” response really speaks to how no player is ever fully locked into a program with a cloud of uncertainty hanging over it. This recent situation seems to have caused Brown to wonder about what his players may do, especially since he admitted that his best players will have options during the same press conference.