With spring drills under way and the lion’s share of the 2008 recruiting class signed, one would think West Virginia University head coach Bill Stewart and his staff would be done with the recruiting aspect of their job.

Wrong.

In fact, Stewart and his staff already have started getting commitments for the Class of 2009.

A pair of Virginia high school standouts—Logan Heastie and Tajh Boyd—have ended speculation where they will continue their football careers by committing to Stewart and his “new look” Mountaineers.

Heastie is considered by some scouting services as the No. 1 junior pass-catcher in the country. A senior-to-be at Great Bridge High School, he chose the gold and blue over Florida, USC and Penn State.

Boyd, a senior-to-be at Phoebus High School in Hampton, Va., threw for 2,046 yards and 25 touchdowns as a junior. Other schools showing interest in the 6-foot-2, 210-pounder included Virginia Tech, Tennessee and ‘that school up north (Michigan)’.

But, it doesn’t end there.

Since national letter-of-intent signing day, WVU has shored up its needs for depth at the running back position by signing Glendale (Ariz.) Junior College ball carrier Zach Hulce and receiving a verbal commitment from Leuzinger High School (Lawndale, Calif.) senior Mark Rodgers.

The gold and blue also returned to Hargrave Military Academy—the same school where prized running back recruit Terence Kerns called home last season—and received a verbal commitment from cornerback D.J. Thomas.

So much for playing the waiting game.

The pro-active stance being utilized by Stewart and his assistants has got to make Mountaineers feel secure in what they hope will be another run at a national championship game berth.

With the question marks surrounding the tailback position as well as the growing concerns over a secondary ravaged by the loss of several key members including Ryan Mundy and Eric Wicks, it speaks well for WVU’s 32nd head coach that he isn’t going to play a ‘wait-and-see’ game with two positions that appear to be of crucial need for 2008.

Just as important is the fact new recruiting coordinator John ‘Doc’ Holliday has the assistants utilizing as much time as possible beating the bushes for any athlete they feel might contribute to the continued success enjoyed by the gold and blue over the last several seasons.

• On another note, what a candid time I spent talking with WVU Athletics Director Ed Pastilong.

It’s refreshing to deal with a school administrator who isn’t tripping over his or her own tongue while telling the media what they think we want to hear.

Pastilong was as real as real can get on the topic of the Mountaineer sports programs and his decision to step away in 2010. As a fan, it is comforting to know the head of your athletic program gets just as upset over a devastating loss as do the fans who shell out all of that money every year.

Not once during our nearly hour long session did WVU’s top athletic administrator shy away from a question or ask to have an answer stricken because it might not have been the “politically correct” one to give.

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