West Virginia got their first linebacker commitment for the 2011 recruiting class late Wednesday when Jared Barber picked the Mountaineers over offers from the likes of North Carolina State and Wake Forest.

Barber had been on campus recently, and he says the moment he left Morgantown he already knew he would be committing to WVU, but he needed one more visit to make it official. This time he brought along his mother, his brothers, and his best friend to be certain that he had each one’s stamp of approval before giving the coaching staff his word.

“Before we came up here, my mom was pretty iffy about the situation because it’s six hours away and she wants her son to be close to home so I can come home and see her,” says Barber. “But once she got up here and met the coaches and saw what I saw in West Virginia, she was really happy with the decision. She really thinks I can be successful here in academics and in athletics.”

Barber had another reason to revisit his future coaches.

“I believe that if you’re going to commit somewhere, you need to be face-to-face with the coaches and be there to shake their hands,” he says.

The 6-1, 220-pound middle linebacker has made a name for himself as a hard-hitting force on the Davie County (N.C.) defense, bursting onto the scene with over 150 tackles as a freshman. He says last year he had 148 tackles, including over 20 for a loss, and six forced fumbles for Coach Doug Illing’s War Eagles. The type of football he loves to play at Davie is the same brand he sees himself succeeding in under WVU defensive coordinator Jeff Casteel.

“The way they play defense, it’s hard-nose, hit you in the face, smash-mouth football and that’s what I like,” he says. “I’m not the biggest guy, I’m not the fastest or the strongest on the field, but I do have a really good work ethic. I bust my butt every day on the practice field, in the weight room and I have a lot of drive.

“It’s not what I do, but how hard I work that makes me excel the most. I love the game, I love playing football and I love hitting people.”

 

So Wednesday, after gaining his real family’s approval, they all stepped inside Bill Stewart’s office to give the Mountaineers the word they had been hoping for when they first began speaking to Barber months ago.

“My mom just told the coaches that I had something to tell them, and I said I think it’d be a great fit for me to be here and I’d like to commit,” Barber says. “They just jumped up, gave me a hug and said congratulations and that they’re happy for me to finally commit because they were waiting on me.”

Now that the visit is over and the decision is made, Barber and his family will get a taste of what it will be like to make the drive to and from Morgantown to see their son suit up for the Mountaineers on game day.