MORGANTOWN -
Commitment No. 6 came calling Thursday morning for the West
Virginia football team in the form of a big offensive lineman.
Klein Collins (Texas) product Tyler Tezeno made the decision
to side with the Mountaineers for the 2013 signing class.
"I was on the phone with [WVU offensive coordinator] Shannon
Dawson and he just talked to my family and we've been talking for a few days
now and it just feels like the right fit with all the components put together,"
says Tezeno. "I'm excited to be a Mountaineer."
The Mountaineers will be excited to have the lineman, too,
especially considering some of the other programs they were up against to gain
his commitment. With a recent offer from LSU to go along with about 10 others,
comfort with the staff ultimately led to Tezeno choosing West Virginia.
"Most people tell me, ‘Oh, you had LSU, why didn't you go
there?'" Tezeno admits. "I went to their camp and I just didn't get a good vibe
from them. The coaches weren't genuine like the West Virginia coaches were, the
campus was not what I expected and the persistence of the West Virginia coaches
and how good of people I think they are – that was a big deal. Also the fact
that they're in the Big 12 now and they'll be playing down here in Texas quite
a bit is important for my family."
Playing in the Houston area, Tezeno is quite familiar with
what it is the Mountaineers will need to do in order to compete with the other
teams in their new conference. Based on what he knows of the program and its
recent success, he feels his future team is up to the challenge.
"I think they'll do great," says Tezeno. "They're a great
team, big time football and if I have anything to do with it, I want to get a lot
of wins in my career there."
Offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh is hopeful of that very
same thing. In his conversations with Tezeno, Bedenbaugh made it clear that he
believes the 6-foot-3, 280-pound lineman will be an impact performer at the
collegiate level.
"He said I'm a great fit. Just my athleticism and stuff, I'd
be a great fit," says Tezeno. "He also said he thinks I'm a little more mature
in my football, so I'd probably have a chance to get in early and make a
difference."
The Tezeno family is working with the WVU staff to determine
the right time this summer to visit campus, something Tyler is looking forward
to now that he has made his decision. It will be his first trip to Morgantown,
but he says he is no stranger to the football history in West Virginia.
"Me and my dad and my brother are watching college football
all the time and West Virginia is always one of those big names out there that
you know about," says Tezeno. "From day one when they offered me and I told my
dad about it, he was like, ‘Man, that's some big-time football.' That stayed on
my mind for the rest of the whole process. Now that it's getting toward the
end, I know that I made the right choice."
As the summer begins, Tezeno now knows what his future
holds, but first thing's first. He still has a senior year of football at Klein
Collins to complete and now he has no other distractions to keep him from
helping his team reach its goals.
"Everybody's dreaming to go to state and I'd like to lead my
team and get us together," he says. "We have some good players on the team and
we have a good chance of making it far. I just hope we come together and
everything works out so we come out with a state ring."
Tezeno says he is playing tackle in his senior season due to
needs on the line, but will be a center or guard at West Virginia.
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