WVU’s Reid Carrico has royal football roots | News, sports, jobs

West Virginia linebacker Reid Carrico cuts around a sack during a tackling drill. (Photo by Kevin Kinder/BlueGoldNews.com)

MORGANTOWN — There was so much going on this first half of West Virginia’s football season that transfer Reid Carrico was left reeling while the media was busy writing about Penn State and Pitt, Garrett Greene and Jahiem White and Wyatt Milum missed opportunities and lost games and the status of head coach Neal Brown.

And that says nothing about a redshirt freshman with the pedigree of a thoroughbred named Josiah Trotter.

Under normal circumstances, Carrico’s arrival would have been worth more because, like Trotter, he came from the premier class of football.

Trotter, of course, is the son of former All-NFL linebacker Jeremiah Trotter, who played for the Philadelphia Eagles, while Carrico’s royal roots trace back to the school he transferred from, Ohio State.

Ohio State is, of course, one of those schools around which the history of college football is written, along with Michigan, Penn State, Alabama, Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Texas and several others.

It plays in the biggest stadiums, is part of the biggest rivalries and opens its recruiting doors to 4 and 5 star recruits.

It lives in another world. So when someone transfers from Ohio State to Morgantown, you expect them to be a special player, and that’s the same with Carrico, who came to town for his fourth season of college football and helped with that to play advantage for WVU’s defense and special teams.

“He obviously has a lot of physicality, but his style of play, his effort and his toughness make him a really nice addition for us. “He gives us a bit of an advantage when he’s involved, especially in bigger sets.” said defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley.

Last week was one such week as WVU played Kansas State, a big, raw, physical group that came to town as the second-ranked rushing team in the country and was overrun by the Mountaineers’ ground defense, with Carrico a big one had day.

“We moved him, in the middle, on the edge” Lesley continued.

“He provided some pressure on the offensive edge, which we need in a game like this when we’re sold out to stop the run.”

He and Trotter give the Mountaineers an old-fashioned, hard-hitting linebacker set when they’re on the field, and it showed time and time again.

But perhaps what’s most interesting, especially when sitting between 3 and 4, is the way Carrico compares life in the West Virginia football program and life at Ohio State.

Of course, WVU has its own proud history and a wonderful facility and fan base, but is there really a difference between life here and life in college football’s penthouse?

“Ohio State, of course there’s a little more glitz and glamor.” Carrico began. “And this is probably more of a development program where you find people that can last a year or two.

“You don’t get these freak shows that come in and are ready to physically leave right away. I would say those are probably the biggest differences.”

The Mountaineers have done a pretty good job with this type of player over the years. It fits the culture of the state and the people who live in it. Remember, West Virginia mines coal, not gold, but diamonds are mined from coal, right?

“In terms of culture and the close team spirit and camaraderie, there was no real difference. West Virginia, we have a tight team like we had at Ohio State,” Carrico said. “That appealed to me and that’s why I’m here.”

Carrico grew up in Ironton, Ohio, just a few miles across the border from West Virginia in Ohio, and somewhat returned to his roots after his time in Columbus, Ohio.

“Coming to Morgantown after living in Columbus for the last three years is a big difference. There are about a million, two, or three million people living in the Columbus area. And then here, I don’t know, there’s no such thing,” he said.

“I come from a small town. 10,000 people live in Ironton. It’s kind of nice to go to a place where things are a little slower. I’m okay with that.”

In a way, that’s what drew him to Morgantown in the first place.

“There are more players here from my area that I already knew, like Wyatt Milum, Treylan Davis, Bryce Biggs, Doug Nester, Graeson Malashevich.” he said. “Everyone came from my area. When you have people you already know, I was excited to play with people I knew.”

And it certainly wasn’t a step down from Ohio State, as he opened his WVU career at home in front of an insanely packed house at Penn State and then dove headfirst into the deepest pool WVU swims in after the UAlbany game to Pittsburgh for the Backyard Brawl against Pitt.

To West Virginians, this is the greatest show in the world, but around Columbus they believe the Ohio State vs. Michigan rivalry has them beaten.

How does Carrico see this, having been involved in both?

Is the intensity the same?

“West Virginia and Pitt took a break in the rivalry, but now it’s back to where it once was.” he said. “It was definitely a hostile environment when we went up there this year. The most hostile environment I’ve ever been in was when we went to Ann Arbor in 2021, but going to Pittsburgh this year was definitely in comparison. It’s a great rivalry.

“Basically I traded the game against one big rival for another. Now it’s all about beating Pitt.”