The West Virginia State secondary will lose two starters from its group for the 2016 season. And what a two they were.
Stevin Gomez was a one-season pickup for the Yellow Jackets that tied for second in the Mountain East Conference with four interceptions and broke up six more passes. Will Merritt was an integral member of WVSU's defense for years, earned honorable mention on the all-MEC team in 2015, and teammates considered him the spiritual leader of the secondary.
This spring, a crew of veterans will begin the process of replacing not only that on-field production, but the leadership those departed players provided as well.
State coach Jon Anderson said the team is fortunate to have a group of established players who can step into even more prominent roles. Among them are rising redshirt junior Ayinde Warren, who was fifth on the team with 56 tackles, and rising juniors Daniel Ware and Wes Sackey-Rush. The three combined for five interceptions and 18 pass breakups last season, and all three have starting experience.
"They're very experienced players," Anderson said. "They just need to continue to mature. They've seen it all. They've heard it all. Now it's just a matter of technique for those guys and just honing their craft."
Ware said the trio's time on the field should help them boost the secondary's performance in competition and in the meeting room.
"It's just a matter of keeping the chemistry going that we've been building over the last few years," he said.
Maintaining that chemistry is what Ware considers the most important mission he, Sackey-Rush and Warren have this spring. The synergy the secondary enjoyed with Merritt and Gomez on the field was wonderful, Ware said, and the group's continued success depends on making sure everyone is on the same page.
That will have a different feeling this year without Merritt, who Ware called the emotional center of the defensive backfield. That center will probably need to grow wider, Ware said, as several players will be called upon to inject spirit into the group.
"At this point, I don't think it's one guy, because Will's personality was so distinct," Ware said. "But I think we can all come together and build each other up into that emotional leader."
Those older players also must counsel some of the Yellow Jackets' younger defensive backs, whom Anderson said show plenty of promise - Tevon Littleton, Khave Konteh and Nate Hampton.
It won't be easy repeating some of the feats the 2015 WVSU secondary was able to pull off. The Yellow Jackets tied with Division II national runner-up Shepherd with 16 interceptions, the most in the MEC. State also finished third in the conference in allowing teams to complete just 53.7 percent of their passes.
Anderson believes he has a solid group of defensive backs this spring who will be able take their work this month and build upon it when the season begins in August.
"Everybody's got things they can always work on," Anderson said. "The coaches have things for those guys and it's a matter of continuing to progress."
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Anderson also said that running back Tyrone Barber is "no longer with the team." As a freshman last season, Barber rushed for 456 yards and 10 touchdowns, both team highs, in eight games.