This past Sunday, West Virginia basketball coach Bob Huggins electrified his fan base.

Forget eBay. Forget e-mail. The Mountaineers landed Devin Ebanks, one of the nation's best high school players.

But there's other recruiting news that may, well, elate WVU fans.

Bill Stewart's football staff is likewise bearing down on some high-quality athletes.

Especially running backs.

If you look at West Virginia's list of commitments, you'll see four- and five-star players, like Logan Heastie, Tajh Boyd and Chris Snook. You'll see skill players, linebackers and linemen.

So far, though, WVU hasn't taken a tailback.

And the reason may be Stewart and his coaches are being selective. As in very.

Unbeknownst to many, West Virginia is fighting for some very talented backs to sign in 2009. The coaches are battling the big boys because, well, they now sit at the big-boy table. The Mountaineers have won two BCS games in three years and are coming off a pasting of Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl.

Also, WVU's version of the spread offense is as attractive to tailbacks as profits are to Exxon. Steve Slaton. Noel Devine.

Who's next?

There are at least four viable candidates interested in West Virginia. Four very highly rated candidates.

Like speedster Jaamal Berry of Palmetto (Fla.) High.

Berry is recognized as the best tailback prospect in south Florida at 5-foot-11, 185 pounds. He has 25 to 30 offers from schools like Florida, Florida State and LSU. But WVU is also in there pitching.

"West Virginia was down the third or fourth day of spring drills," said Berry's high school coach, Larry Coffey. "[The Mountaineer coaches] have as much of a shot as anybody. They just have to present themselves well to him. He's open.''

Coffey certainly won't shut the door on Stewart. See, the Palmetto coach is a West Virginia Conference legend. He rushed for 3,035 yards for West Virginia Wesleyan and was all-conference in 1978, '79 and '80. He's a member of the Wesleyan athletic hall of fame.

This past Sunday, West Virginia basketball coach Bob Huggins electrified his fan base.

Forget eBay. Forget e-mail. The Mountaineers landed Devin Ebanks, one of the nation's best high school players.

But there's other recruiting news that may, well, elate WVU fans.

Bill Stewart's football staff is likewise bearing down on some high-quality athletes.

Especially running backs.

If you look at West Virginia's list of commitments, you'll see four- and five-star players, like Logan Heastie, Tajh Boyd and Chris Snook. You'll see skill players, linebackers and linemen.

So far, though, WVU hasn't taken a tailback.

And the reason may be Stewart and his coaches are being selective. As in very.

Unbeknownst to many, West Virginia is fighting for some very talented backs to sign in 2009. The coaches are battling the big boys because, well, they now sit at the big-boy table. The Mountaineers have won two BCS games in three years and are coming off a pasting of Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl.

Also, WVU's version of the spread offense is as attractive to tailbacks as profits are to Exxon. Steve Slaton. Noel Devine.

Who's next?

There are at least four viable candidates interested in West Virginia. Four very highly rated candidates.

Like speedster Jaamal Berry of Palmetto (Fla.) High.

Berry is recognized as the best tailback prospect in south Florida at 5-foot-11, 185 pounds. He has 25 to 30 offers from schools like Florida, Florida State and LSU. But WVU is also in there pitching.

"West Virginia was down the third or fourth day of spring drills," said Berry's high school coach, Larry Coffey. "[The Mountaineer coaches] have as much of a shot as anybody. They just have to present themselves well to him. He's open.''

Coffey certainly won't shut the door on Stewart. See, the Palmetto coach is a West Virginia Conference legend. He rushed for 3,035 yards for West Virginia Wesleyan and was all-conference in 1978, '79 and '80. He's a member of the Wesleyan athletic hall of fame.

WVU is also very interested in Desmond Scott, who, like Berry, is a member of the rivals.com Top 150 recruits. Scott, the nation's No. 2 rated all-purpose back, played for a Durham (N.C.) Hillside team that went 11-3 last season and advanced to the state semifinals in Class 4-A, the second largest classification in North Carolina.

And the interest is mutual.

"He's very interested," said Durham running backs coach Javar Branson. "He knows the [West Virginia] offense. He loves the offense. And he knows [WVU associate head coach] Doc Holliday from when he was at Florida.''

Branson said Scott has offers from schools like Auburn, Alabama, Clemson, Rutgers, Tennessee, Florida, Georgia and Virginia, in addition to West Virginia.

"He's a versatile back and a very coachable kid," Branson said. "He plays strong at 5-9, 185 pounds."

Scott, who says he's 5-10, verified the interest in WVU.

"All the school are pretty even," he said. "But I'd like to get to West Virginia soon to see what they have to offer ... In the next three to four weeks I'd like to get there."

Scott said he wants to visit WVU and Rutgers before paring his list to four or five ("which I'll post on the Internet," he said) before making a final decision in "late July or early August."

"I like [West Virginia's] spread offense," Scott said. "I like Coach Holliday. He's very down-to-earth. Also, I've talked to two of their commitments, the quarterback and wide receiver. They've told me all about the program. I want to see what it's about.''

The aforementioned QB and receiver are Boyd and Heastie, perhaps the school's best recruiters ever. They apparently have been making calls on their own, espousing the virtues of Mountaineerism.

If that isn't enough, WVU is seriously involved with at least two more accomplished runners: Lamar Miller and Daquan Hargrett.

Miller is a four-star runner from Miami's Killian High. Goes 5-11, 205 pounds.

Hargrett is a 5-9, 180-pound standout from Miami's Northwestern.

Keep an eye on all as Stewart tries to keep up with the Joneses.

At least those being signed by Huggins.

To contact sports editor Mitch Vingle, send e-mail to mitchvin...@wvgazette.com or call 348-4827.