West Virginia has had its ups and downs in sports so far this sports year, but this past week has easily taken the cake as the worst of them all. After finishing the season 19-13, they were snubbed from the NCAA tournament. Follow that, head coach Darian DeVries left for Indiana two days later.
In the last 24 hours, WVU fans and players have reacted to this surprising news on X and other social media platforms with a combination of both shock, sadness, and frustration.
It began with Jonathan Powell and Tucker DeVries entering the transfer portal. Incoming freshmen Kelvin Odih and Trent MacLean also de-committed from the program soon after. These four players would have all been contributors on the team next year under Coach DeVries.
Toby Okani took to Twitter earlier today with a picture of when WVU fans stormed the court with the caption, “Mannn!!!” with blue and gold hearts. With no eligibility remaining, Okani will try to make an NBA team this summer, but his love for the Mountaineers will remain.
After DeVries’ press conference in which he mentioned WVU once, freshman guard KJ Tenner posted a picture defining the word “dismental.” In the tweet, it talks about messing with someone’s mental state. KJ committed and followed DeVries to WVU after originally being committed to him at Drake. He will now need to decide whether he wants to stay in West Virginia or hit the transfer portal.
Former Mountaineers Erik Stevenson and Emmitt Matthews Jr. also got in on the action. Stevenson tweeted “I know a guy” with the bear emoji, clearly indicating he wants Bob Huggins to return to WVU. Emmitt Matthews Jr. tweeted, “I feel bad for the players,” showing he knows what they are all going through.
It is going to take Mountaineer nation a while to recover from DeVries’s departure. The coaching search is now beginning, and Wren Baker will need to find the right fit for the second year in a row.
