Ranking the Top Seven Signees in West Virginia's 2025 Recruiting Class

Evaluating some of the best incoming talent for the Mountaineers.

WVU Athletic

West Virginia signed 21 players on Wednesday, which marked the start of the early signing period. It was quite an impressive day, considering they were able to hold on to most of their commits, flip a four-star commit from North Carolina, and add another four-star cornerback without having a head coach in place.

As things stand, who are the best players in West Virginia's 2025 class? Here are my top seven.

7. LB Michael Hastie

Hastie is a tackling machine. He's recorded over 100 tackles in each of his last two seasons of high school ball, combing for 281 total stops, 159 of which came this year. He has some work to do from a pass coverage standpoint, but he plays the run exceptionally well. Depending on what the room looks like next fall, there's a chance Hastie will play a sizable role on defense as a true freshman.

6. S Chris Fileppo

Much like Hastie, Fileppo is a heck of a tackler. The first thing that stood out to me on film was the level of physicality that he plays with. My initial thought was: That's no safety. That's a dang linebacker. The expectation is that Fileppo will make the transition to linebacker at WVU, assuming his frame fills out.

5. RB Deandre Desinor

Desinor is small, shifty, and speedy, but don't overlook his physicality. He likes to run through people just as much as he can run around them. Once he reaches the outside, he's an incredibly tough tackle. Blazing speed, but can stop on a dime and leave defenders on skates with his ability to change direction. Not quite the same player, but there are some similar characteristics to Jahiem White in his game.

4. CB Dawayne Galloway Jr.

Galloway has arguably the highest upside of anyone in this class. The only reason he's fourth on this list is because he's still a bit raw. It's going to take a couple of years before he can truly insert himself into the mix at corner, but once he does, there's a possibility that he can be an All-Big 12 caliber talent.

3. DL Taylor Brown

Fast, twitchy, athletic defensive lineman that runs like an outside linebacker. It'll be interesting to see if he still has that level of speed when he packs on a little more weight. He may have been considered West Virginia's highest-rated recruit by other outlets, but many Power Four schools still overlooked him. A true hidden gem here for the Mountaineers.

2. OL Eidan Buchanan

Talk about a large human being...Buchanan will ARRIVE at WVU at 6'9", 330 lbs. I'm not sure that he plays as a true freshman, but if he doesn't, it won't take much longer for him to crack the rotation. He mostly played tackle but could kick inside to guard if needed. Due to his length and wingspan, he'll likely stay put as an anchor on the edge. Assuming his development goes as planned, he has the NFL in his future.

1. DL Amir Leonard-Jean Charles

Charles can play essentially anywhere across the defensive line but is best suited to play the 3-technique, 2i, or 0 (true nose). Another massive human that can take up a lot of space and muddy up things in the run game. He does a good job of pushing the nose of the pocket, making life challenging for the quarterback. If he continues to develop as a pass rusher, he'll be an early-round draft pick before it's all said and done.

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