West Virginia Football: 5 Questions That Still Won't Be Answered in Spring

West Virginia is underway with their spring practices as they prepare for the spring game that takes place on April 21. They have majority of their team returning, but there are questions that need to be answered before they build on a solid BCS bowl victory.

Spring practice is the perfect time to answer questions heading into the regular season. It's a chance for players to move up the depth chart, figure out where the weaknesses are and continue to make those strengths even stronger. But then there are questions that won't be answered in the spring no matter what happens.

Here are five questions that the Mountaineers will need a bit more time to answer.

Receivers Anyone?

West Virginia had one of the most potent passing games in the country last year, throwing for 346 yards a game, which was sixth in the country. They have a solid receiving corp in Stedman Bailey, Ivan McCartney and, of course, emerging star Tavon Austin. But other than that, there are only two other receivers on this roster from a year ago that have caught a pass.

It's fantastic to have a great quarterback such as Geno Smith, but depth at the receiver position is an issue. It may not be an immediate need, and that's why it likely won't be answered in these spring practices. However, playing in the Big 12, where the offense rules the conference, a few other receivers will have to step up and answer the bell.

Look for players like Dante Campbell, K.J. Myers and Cody Clay to have a say in who sees time on the field. There are also six true freshman that the Mountaineers recruited this season, like wide receivers Deontay McManus and Devonte Mathis, to pay attention to as well. Both are big receivers at 6'1" and run the 40 in the 4.5 range.

"If I had to letter grade it, I would give it a C or C-, we can do better, a lot better.” Wide receivers coach Shannon Dawson said regarding the progress of his receivers in spring so far.

Who Will Play the Middle of the Defensive Line?

One of the key concerns for the Mountaineers this year is the defensive line. Last year, they finished the season with 31 sacks, but they were typically smaller than the majority of their opponents. Now, with NFL prospect Bruce Irivn heading to the next level and Julian Miller gone as well, this is an area of concern for the Mountaineers.

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“We’re steadily getting better, and I’m a positive person – I don’t like getting yelled at and degraded, I perform better with a pat on the back,” said defensive line coach Erik Slaughter.  “I’m going to push them hard, work them hard and love them harder; we’re going to be out there every day working, and there’s no rule in football that says you can’t have fun while we’re doing it.”

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There will likely be a lot of shifting around and players maybe playing different positions until this whole thing is figured out. Also, don't be surprised if you see true freshman Imarjaye Albury get in the mix as well before this is all over with.

How Healthy Will Dustin Garrison Be?

West Virginia didn't have a successful running game last season, but it may be even worse if last year's leading rusher doesn't make a speedy recovery. Sophomore running back Dustin Garrison will miss the entire spring practice because of an ACL injury he suffered in the BCS Orange Bowl practices.

Garrison averaged 5.5 yards per carry his freshman season and was a solid receiver with 21 catches out of the backfield. He seems to have a promising future, but if he's not able to go, the Mountaineers will be in trouble with the running game.

With Trey Johnson and Vernard Roberts transferring, that leaves Shawne Alston and Andrew Buie as the only running backs available. Depth, of course, is a concern, but those two backs only have a combined 854 rushing yards in their careers. This is a serious issue for this offense that must be addressed somehow.

Can the the Defense Adjust?

For the first time in a while, the Mountaineers will switch from the 3-3-5 to a more tradition 3-4 defense that can switch to a 4-3 in certain situations. This is not going to be an easy and painless transition, especially with four starters on the defensive side of the ball no longer on the roster.

West Virginia has a new defensive coordinator in Joe DeForest, who has experience in the Big 12 with his time at Oklahoma State, but he's never been a coordinator:

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As a coaching staff we try to make it as easy as possible on them – transition-wise, we tried to rhyme some things, make sure they understand who was blitzing and who wasn’t, and they’ve run some of the coverages we’re going to run, so there was some carry over there. After six practices, I’d say the defense is a C, because we’re not even close yet – it’s an A for effort.

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We may see bits and pieces coming together in the spring, but the defense will be a work in progress and will continue figuring itself out as the season progresses.

How Will West Virginia Adapt to Their New Home?

This is probably the question that everybody wants to know the answer to. The Mountaineers have been very successful in the Big East and are coming off a 10-win season and a BCS bowl victory. They've won at least eight games and reached a bowl game every year since 2002.

But the Big 12 is still a completely different conference. This is no longer a basketball conference they're playing in. They'll have to play teams like Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU and an improving Kansas State team. West Virginia looks to be on the right track under head coach Dana Holgorsen, but this will be a challenge this program has never faced before. 

They have the talent to be one of the better teams in the country, but will they experience growing pains before they take that next step? Only time will tell.