Rapidly gaining recognition nationwide and seen by some as a Heisman Trophy contender is WVU senior quarterback Garrett Greene.
Greene made a name for himself last season, leading West Virginia with an impressive ability to bail out himself and the offensive line from pressure with his rushing capabilities. In the offseason, Greene earned praise as a passer in his second stint at the Manning Passing Academy and earned an 87 overall rating, good enough for 19th best among quarterbacks, on EA Sports’ College Football 25 video game.
Rewind just a season further, though, and Greene’s name was barely ahead of a freshman Nicco Marchiol in WVU’s quarterback depth chart. Luckily for head coach Neal Brown and the Mountaineers, though, Greene stuck around to watch his role rise.
In 2020, a freshman Greene saw action in two games as a redshirt freshman. Against Eastern Kentucky, Greene threw three completions in four attempts for 24 yards. He also rushed for 33 yards in five carries. Three months later, Greene saw action in a 42-6 loss against No. 9 Iowa State, where he got one carry for seven yards.
The following season, Greene saw his role significantly increase, becoming the number two option behind Jarret Doege. Greene saw time in 11 games, throwing 16 completions for 147 yards on 26 attempts and rushing for 306 yards and four touchdowns on 47 attempts. West Virginia went 6-5 in the games Greene saw action.
2022 was not much different for Greene, though he did utilize his passing opportunities more as a sophomore. Greene was the number two quarterback option behind JT Daniels but started in two games due to Daniels’ injuries.
In those two starts, Greene went 15/27 for 204 yards and 8/14 for 48 yards, throwing three touchdowns and two interceptions in the first game against No. 15 Kansas State and throwing one interception in the win over Oklahoma State. Greene rushed for 17 yards on 12 carries and 47 yards in six carries respectively, rushing for a touchdown in each.
Greene finished 43/78 on pass attempts for the season, gaining 493 yards with five touchdowns and three interceptions total. As a rushing threat, Greene went for 276 yards in 45 carries but scored more touchdowns than he had as a freshman, with five.
Still not the clear number one option for 2023, Greene was bidding against Marchiol in the offseason following his sophomore year. By the end of camp, Greene got the job and ended up starting and playing in 12 games, where he shined.
Greene rushed for 772 yards, more than he had gained total in his first three collegiate seasons, in 120 carries. He also rushed for 13 touchdowns.
In the passing game, Greene was labeled as much less of a threat, but he threw 147 completions on 277 attempts. He threw for 2406 yards, 16 touchdowns, and four interceptions.
Greene’s 2406 passing yards was nearly four times his total passing yards in his first three seasons, which he did with just over twice the amount of career attempts. With such an extreme jump in opportunity and production, Greene’s second year as a starter remains nearly impossible to gauge.
Making his first starts as a sophomore, Greene’s eyes were opened to an entire new wave of experience as a junior, and with such success, it can be assumed that he will improve to a completely new level in his senior year. Whether or not that is reasonable is unknown, but after working to improve his comfort in the pocket and intermediate passing game this offseason, the trajectory of Greene’s career will be an interesting one to watch wind down in 2024.
Garrett Greene and the West Virginia Mountaineers will open their season against No. 8 Penn State on Saturday at home. Gates open at 10:30 a.m. for a noon kickoff, which can be watched on FOX.
Photo by Aaron Parker, Blue Gold Sports
