Former WVU athletes recall fond memories

BLUEFIELD — Once a Mountaineer, apparently always a Mountaineer.

Even though Quincy Wilson, Darius Nichols and Meghan Morris have completed their athletic eligibility at West Virginia University, they’re still very involved with their alma mater.

All three visited Bluefield on Thursday as part of the three-day “Summer Blitz with Oliver Luck”, as the new WVU athletic director toured the state with former WVU athletes, current coaches and the Mountaineer Athletic Club to meet Mountaineer fans.

Wilson, for one, thinks Luck was the right man to replace Ed Pastilong as the school’s 11th athletic director since 1904.

“He’s big time, he has a proven track record of things he can get done,” Wilson said. “The university is at a point right now where we are on the national stage in basketball and football and we are just going to keep growing strong with that.”

Even though all three athletes have moved on — although Nichols is working as a graduate assistant in men’s basketball — they haven’t forgotten the support they received as Mountaineers.

“I am just happy to be here amongst the fans,” said Wilson, a standout running back at West Virginia from 1999-2003. “I played seven years ago, but they think about it like it was last year.

“They are Mountaineer fans and they are the greatest fans in the world.”

All three athletes shared memories of their time at West Virginia, and what it still means to them.

“I want to stay in athletics and do everything I can to support them,” said Morris, a standout gymnast, who graduated in December. “All four years was absolutely the best time of my life.

“Just to be able to be a part of the Mountaineer family and to know that you have that many people around you that support you.”

Nichols, a native of Radford, Va., played basketball for the Mountaineers from 2005-08. He knew from his first recruiting visit that West Virginia was the final stop for him.

“When I came on a visit here I knew this is the place I wanted to be,” Nichols said. “Even after I made my decision, schools tried to sway me out of my decision, but I just loved it here when I came. It was kind of like home.”

It wasn’t Wilson’s first trip to Bluefield. He enjoyed a stellar prep career at Weir, running for 3,262 yards and 47 touchdowns as a senior. A visit to Mitchell Stadium was part of that experience.

“In high school we played Bluefield down here in a playoff game,” Wilson said. “It hasn’t been since then that I have been back so it is good to be back.”

He continued his gridiron prowess at West Virginia, and is still the eighth leading rusher (2,608 yards) in school history. Among his more memorable highlights was a remarkable run for a touchdown against Miami in 2003.

“I’ve got a lot of memories, but probably the Pitt game, I had my best career stats against Pitt my senior year and, of course, the play in Miami was my signature highlight right there,” said Wilson, who literally ran over a Miami defender to score a late touchdown. “Beating Virginia Tech at Virginia Tech, the first time I had played in a game.

“There are just so many memories, but I think we can go on and on.”

The same goes for Nichols, whose Bobcats played tiny Council in the 2001 Group A state championship game, with the Cobras winning by 15. What he remembers most at WVU doesn’t revolve around games or stats.

“I have a lot of memories, but probably the best memories I have are hanging out with teammates and just being around guys going through the same thing that I was going through,” Nichols said. “That was some special guys, and now they are some of my best friends.”

He was — and still — part of an ultra-successful program at West Virginia that continued its ascent with a visit to the Final Four last season.

“It has gotten better and better every year,” said Nichols, who is hoping for a future in coaching. “Now expectations are high, which is a good thing, and it is only going to get better and better.”

While gymnastics doesn’t receive the attention of football or basketball, Morris said they were just as important to the Mountaineer Athletic Club and the funds raised to keep the WVU program running on its own funds.

Luck said the school was one of just 14 Division I programs that is completely self-sufficient, without needing financial assistance from the school.

“To be able to perform and have all those people in the stands just cheering for you just knowing they don’t just support football, they’re not just supporting basketball, they are there for gymnastics, which isn’t a typcial mainstream sport,” Morris said. “All of these people around here, all of these supporters and donors, they make sure they come out and support everyone, which is good.”

Wilson had a brief career as an professional athlete, playing in the NFL with Atlanta and Cincinnati, followed by a stint in the United Football League. He recently returned from Germany where he was playing football, and is now back in Morgantown working in industrial sales.

“Football is one of those games where you have to use your time when you get it,” Wilson said. “I got four years out of it. You want to play eight, but that is how the cookie crumbles sometimes.

“I got my chance to play. I accomplished everything I wanted to do in life and now it is time to get back in here and give back.”

While Wilson appears to have played his final game, that doesn’t mean he won’t cherish what he was able to accomplish.

“You can’t even explain it,” said Wilson, pointing at a young boy attending the WVU function at the Bluefield Elks Lodgs. “I remember when I was his size, all I wanted to do was play in the NFL, but to actually accomplish what you wanted to do is hard to describe. It was a dream come true.”

—Contact Brian Woodson

bwoodson@bdtonline.com

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