JD Woods, The Forgotten Wide Receiver

This has been one of the greatest starts in West Virginia University football history. The team has one of the most explosive offenses in the country, a top five ranking, a win at Texas in front of the largest crowd ever assembled at Darrell K Royal Stadium, two flashy receivers in Tavon Austin and Stedman Bailey, and the Heisman frontrunner Geno Smith. West Virginia fans can't ask for much more. Hopefully over the upcoming weeks the wins keep piling up, and come January the Mountaineers will be playing in the National Championship game. If this is going to happen, then the Mountaineers are going to need steady production by their unknown receiver, who probably has the best hands of all of the WVU wide outs, senior JD Woods.

JD Woods is a senior from Naples, Florida. He played football for Golden Gate High School. Woods was only a two-star recruit when he signed with West Virginia. He has been overshadowed throughout his time at West Virginia, but now it's time for Woods to leave his mark on WVU.

West Virginia has two of the most talked about wide receivers in the country in the explosive Tavon Austin, and the touchdown producing machine Stedman Bailey. The Mountaineers also have the nation's top quarterback in Geno Smith. Woods is the third string wide receiver on the team. His stats so far this year aren't overwhelming, but are still positive nonetheless. According to ESPN, Woods has 29 catches for 284 yards and two touchdowns. He had a career game two weeks ago against Baylor when he had 13 catches for 114 yards. Wood's numbers aren't going to be great this year because he is the third option for Geno Smith, but he will still impact the game.

Woods has the best hands on the team. Just look at this catch against Baylor.



Woods is going to make his touches count. The catch above saved the game for West Virginia, as they were able to keep their drive alive and run out the clock. Geno Smith constantly looks for Woods on third down and long plays, and Woods usually delivers. This is a trend that must continue.

Last week versus Texas Woods played a little flat. He dropped a couple passes, and struggled to get open all night. This is bound to happen to a player who rarely got playing time until this season and has to play in an atmosphere like Darrell K Royal Stadium. There aren't any worries in my mind about whether Woods will bounce back from that rough outing. He has a monstrous quarterback, who when given time gives his receivers many opportunities to catch the ball. I am looking for Woods to have an amazing game next Saturday against the Red Raiders of Texas Tech.

The Mountaineers have a chance to make something special out of this season, and their stars players will be the ones' who get all the attention, but let's not forget about JD Woods and his hands that can catch anything. When it comes down to third and long and Geno Smith drops back to pass, Woods could easily find himself open across the middle of the field ready for that first down catch. This man has waited four years to get his chance, and he surely won't blow it.