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Freshman quarterback Nicco Marchiol was met with loud applause and cheers when he first took the field for the Gold-Blue Spring game on Saturday. While still a high school student, he is already a fan favorite.
His arrival in Morgantown was highly anticipated after quarterback struggles and uncertainty for the past few years. Even with the recent commitment of JT Daniels, Mountaineer fans were eager to see Marchiol take the field on Saturday.
Marchiol was impressive during his time on the field. He kept his composure in the pocket and used his legs when needed. Neal Brown spoke on his development leading to the Spring Game.
“I thought Nicco had some flash plays,” Brown said. “He’s got really good ability, but he’s a high school senior.”
From a passing perspective, Marchiol kept it short and quick with a lot of out-breaking routes. His longest pass of the day was a 27-yard throw to Grayson Malashevich. On the play, Marchiol kept his composure, stepped up in the pocket and delivered a dime to Malashevich on the run.
Marchiol’s feet were involved in almost every play on Saturday. In the passing game, he was utilized in several bootleg play designs and made some good throws on the run.
Marchiol did a good job of taking advantage of holes in the defensive-line to make plays with his speed as well. His dual-threat ability showed on his last drive of the second quarter where he ran the ball in from seven yards out on a designed passing play.
That drive, which included the 27-yard pass to Malashevich, was by far the true freshman’s best to of the day. He finished the game, throwing for 75 yards, on 10-for-19 passing. He also totaled 26 rushing yards on nine attempts.
While it is noticeable he is a young player, Marchiol showed promise when he was on the field on Saturday. Brown said he will have opportunities to continue to get better.
“He’s going to be a lot better in fall camp,” Brown said. “The summer player practices are going to be critical for him because he’ll get reps going fast people and the more reps he gets, the better he’s going to be.”
Photo by Wesley Shoemaker
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