Why Jaylen Anderson Opted to Stay at WVU and Battle

Running from adversity is not in the West Virginia running back's DNA.

West Virginia redshirt junior running back Jaylen Anderson. / Christopher Hall

When players began to hit the portal at the end of the 2023 season, many expected to see West Virginia running back Jaylen Anderson on the list of players looking for a new home. CJ Donaldson built on what he did as a freshman and Jahiem White exploded onto the scene midway through the year and became one of the most electrifying players in the Big 12.

Anderson had some bright moments at the beginning of the season, but his production took a big hit once the Mountaineers reached conference play. His third carry of the Houston game resulted in a fumble for a loss of eight yards, recovered by WVU. The following week in the first half of the UCF game, Anderson fumbled the pitch on a hook and ladder and didn't see another offensive snap until the bowl game.

At the end of the season, Anderson sat down one-on-one with running backs coach Chad Scott and instead of pleading for more playing time or thinking about entering the portal, he owned his mistakes and understood that he could still have success in Morgantown.

"The best thing about Jaylen was his self-awareness," Scott said. "He's really aware of the way he's played, the way he's practiced, the way he's prepared and understood that he hadn't put his best foot forward as far as a consistency standpoint. He's shown flashes in practice and in games, but has not shown the consistency in practice for those habits to carry over in the game and play at a high level. He's aware of that, I've always been honest with him. It wasn't a situation where he thought one thing and was told something different which caused him to want to leave...he wanted to hang around because he understood that he hadn't put his best foot forward and his best ball is ahead of him. He's had a phenomenal offseason, best offseason since he's been here."

Every day is critical for Anderson. He has to continue to push his way onto the field and with CJ Donaldson getting limited reps in the spring, he'll have every opportunity to prove he belongs and then some. If the staff feels confident about the work he puts in over the next month, he'll position himself nicely to be RB3.

"Big, no doubt," said head coach Neal Brown when asked how big of a spring this is for Anderson. "And he knows it. He's talented, he really is. He's been more consistent in the winter. He's been more coachable. This is a big (spring for him). He's plenty talented enough to play here and take on a bigger role, but he has to go out and do it. It's more of a consistency. There's been some real highs, but there's been some real lows. He's capable and we want him to be successful here. He just has to go out and make it happen."

In today's era of leaving the moment you lose out on playing time or see your role decreased over the course of a season, it's refreshing to see guys like Anderson who aren't afraid to face adversity head on and stick around.