MORGANTOWN - Coley White was all of perhaps two minutes into his first-ever meeting with the rather odd conglomeration of writers and broadcasters who make up the press corps covering West Virginia University's football team.

It's not exactly a shark-like lot, so the questions posed to the young quarterback from Daphne, Ala., were wholly predictable and courteous, for the most part touching on his first week at WVU and his relationship with his older brother, who happens also to be a quarterback on the same school's football team, although one of just slightly higher profile.

Coley White, though, is just a tad bit different than Pat White was when he arrived from Daphne four years earlier. Oh, the similarities are certainly there, from an acute physical resemblance - Coley always makes sure the people who ask him for an autograph know that he might not be who they think he is - to the southpaw release and the style of play.

Here, though, is where the two differ dramatically, sitting at a table in an interview room. Again, it had been all of two minutes and Coley had perhaps said more than Pat did in his first two years.

So that's where Coley has it on Pat, huh? Even in his college football infancy he is more outgoing than his Heisman Trophy candidate brother?

"Yeah, I'd say that,'' Coley said. "But believe me, he's not quiet. Not around me, at least. And on the field he's probably the loudest one.''

On Saturday afternoon at Mountaineer Field, Pat White will begin making noise again.

OK, so it might be in a figurative sense. After all, over the din of 60,000 people surrounding the field, pretty much no one on it is going to be heard, much less the quieter of the two kids from Daphne.

His actions, though, over the past three years have left little question that Pat White is a noise-maker in a football sense. As he begins his final season with Saturday's opener against Villanova, there is a case to be made for White as the greatest player in the school's long football history.

We won't make that here, at least not now. It simply takes too long. Suffice it to say, though, that White has been the single most important player on a team that has been more successful during his time at quarterback than any other West Virginia team over a similar span.

"The people in West Virginia ...'' West Virginia coach Bill Stewart began one day last month before pausing. "Maybe this sounds overemotional. I hope it doesn't. We need to savor what this kid does. We haven't seen this since Major Harris, and I'm not sure we saw this then.''

All right, so maybe we do need to make a little bit of his case, but let's just deal with the highlights:

Not bad at all for a guy that only one school in the country thought could play quarterback and who had to turn down the instant cash of professional baseball just to prove that he could.

White remembers it all pretty clearly. It's hard, after all, to forget when someone says you can't do something.

It's not that no one wanted White. He was actually pretty highly recruited, enough so that he originally committed to LSU.

But the Tigers, like most everyone else, saw him as a wide receiver.

"I just wanted to play quarterback and I felt West Virginia was the best place for me,'' White said. "And so far it's been a great choice.''

Indeed, and for both sides.

"The fact that we've been this successful is something I imagined, but I didn't know that I would have this much fun doing it,'' White said. "And I have one more year left and hopefully we can make it better than the other ones.''

Does he ever wonder what might have happened had he listened to those who said he should be a wide receiver or an outfielder?

"Do I ever wonder?" White asked. "I doubt I'd be having this much fun.''

No, but he might be making a lot more than room, board, tuition and the like had he chosen baseball. The then-Anaheim Angels drafted White in the fourth round at just about the time he was supposed to be heading to West Virginia for his first summer conditioning.

Then again, White never paid much attention to baseball except as a pastime.

"Who knows?'' White said. "There's a lot of people coming here from the islands and from South America to play baseball and they do it 365 days a year. Here we don't do that. They're hitting bottle caps with broomsticks down there. Their game is something to be reckoned with.''

That's about as revealing a comment as is possible to squeeze out of Pat White.

It's not that he's reticent or shy or that he isn't well spoken. He is.

He just chooses not to speak very much, although perhaps the repetition simply wears him down.

For instance, during a Tuesday session with the media last week, White was asked how he felt about running less and throwing more this season. Of course, that's the plan of new offensive coordinator Jeff Mullen, but no one really is sure how that is going to play out, even White.

So it was almost impossible to answer, especially for a guy who tends not to embellish just for the sake of embellishment.

"I guess ... I don't know. Comfortable?'' White said. "How do you want me to answer that question?''

He wasn't being evasive. He just doesn't know. Just like he didn't know the answer when someone asked if the passing game reads he is making in the tweaked offense are more like NFL progressions.

"I've never played in the NFL,'' he said dryly.

Sometimes, though, it's just a matter of how the question comes up. Later White was asked if it was a relief that he might not have to take the physical pounding of past years because of a more-pass, less-run philosophy. It was essentially the same question, but this time White answered.

"I'm sure my body's happy,'' he said. "But I just want to win, play ball, have fun. I don't care how we do it. I'm sure it makes the receivers happy. I mean, they've worked hard over the years. Getting the ball in their hands will definitely put a smile on their face.''

The spotlight of being in the Heisman Trophy race has, of course, forced White to do even more of the interviews he seems to hate. But if it's any more of a burden he doesn't show it.

"If there is I guess I haven't paid too much attention,'' White said. "I mean, I've been a few more places because of it. But there's more attention on us because of what happened in the past and the situation.''

Which brings up another subject that causes White to cringe every time it is broached. He's not alone, of course, because the subject of Rich Rodriguez's departure last December and the transition to a new coaching staff remains, like it or not, the No. 1 storyline surrounding this team. Since practice began this month, White response is pretty much standard:

"No comment,'' he will say. Or "Next question.''

During the offseason, though, he did say in an ESPN interview that it was nice going to practice and not being yelled and demeaned for every little mistake. One has to believe that while White is eternally grateful to Rodriguez for giving him a chance to play quarterback when no one else would, he isn't shedding any tears over his departure.

West Virginia football fans, though, are quite likely to shed a few over the departure of White. The countdown begins Saturday and should last 13 games.

"Look at what the guy has accomplished,'' Stewart said. "Three straight New Year's Day bowls, all the wins, everything he has done both on the field and off. You couldn't find a better football player or a more mature young man.''

Again, White tends not to embellish his answers to questions and that generally means short responses that leave at least something to interpretation - often a great deal.

Some of his short answers, though, speak volumes. Like this one.

White was asked, after all that he has accomplished, what he hopes his legacy will be at West Virginia.

"He was a great teammate,'' White said.

Reach Dave Hickman at 348-1734 or dphickm...@aol.com.