Fall camp is underway for West Virginia already but Dana Holgorsen probably doesn’t mind a late addition to the team with an eye toward next season.
According to 247Sports, former Alabama linebacker VanDarius Cowan has put pen to paper to join the Big 12 program and will sit out 2018 before having three seasons of eligibility left with the Mountaineers. It had looked as though WVU originally wouldn’t have room for the former four-star recruit but things seemed to change in the past few weeks to allow Cowan to head to Morgantown.
If you’re wondering why West Virginia coaches wanted to check into the linebacker a bit more than usual, that’s because he was dismissed by Nick Saban in early July for a violation of team rules. That violation came in the form of Tuscaloosa bar fight in June that saw Cowan eventually being charged for misdemeanor assault for his alleged involvement. Prior to committing to Alabama as a recruit, Cowan was also dismissed from his high school team as well for what 247Sports described as “poor behavior.”
Still, he still has plenty of talent after being labeled as a four-star, top 100 recruit out of the state of Florida. Cowan did see the field as a true freshman for the Alabama squad that won the national title, making seven appearances and recording a pair of tackles on the year.