By Mason Linker
JOURNAL REPORTER
Jared Barber didn't need any special connection to fall in love with West Virginia football.
Barber — a standout middle linebacker and rising senior at Davie County High School — clicked on his television one Saturday afternoon and watched the Mountaineers play. He was smitten.
"They flew around, hit people in the mouth and play smash-mouth, and that's what I like to do and how I like to play," Barber said. "That's what caught my eye. I started sending them film."
But Barber (6-2, 220) still took a cautious approach. He received an offer from West Virginia early in the spring, but did all his homework before recently committing to the Mountaineers. He can sign the binding national letter of intent in February.
"I am pumped," Barber said. "I couldn't be more happy. I worked for this ever since I was a little kid, working out with my twin brother (Jacob), and it's like a dream come true. I don't think it's hit me yet. I've wanted to be a college football player, working hard and busting my butt every day. The commitment part is here, and I am so pumped I can't really describe it."
Advertisement