Neal Brown called it "a great daily double."
"He got married on Saturday, and he's gonna get drafted today or tomorrow," the former West Virginia University football coach said Thursday of Wyatt Milum. "So that's a pretty good week."
The Kenova native and Spring Valley High and òòò½ÊÓƵU alumnus was indeed selected in the NFL Draft on Friday night, by the Jacksonville Jaguars with the 89th pick. He was the 25th selection of the third round.Â
Milum, 6-foot-6, 313 pounds, continues the trend of Tri-State high school offensive linemen making it to the NFL. He joins former Huntington High blocker Darnell Wright of the Chicago Bears, San Francisco 49ers tackle Austen Pleasants of Coal Grove and former Spring Valley tackle Doug Nester of the Pittsburgh Steelers currently in the league.
Former Cabell Midland center Jason Starkey played for the Arizona Cardinals, Rock Hill's Billy Poe for the Cincinnati Bengals and Ironton's Ken Fritz for the Steelers.Â
graded Milum at 6.24 on the 5-8 scale, meaning he's projected as an average starter. Whether that is at tackle or guard is to be seen. Many NFL experts expect Milum, who played tackle at òòò½ÊÓƵU, to move inside.
Milum is athletic, especially for his size. His first scholarship offer came from Marshall University baseball when he pitched at Wayne High School as a freshman.
"He's one of the hardest-working guys I know," Spring Valley football coach Brad Dingess said. "He has a great future ahead of him. I'm so proud of him and just excited for this opportunity he has. He has a lot of people rooting for him."
A second-team All-American and Big 12 lineman of the year, Milum started 11 games at left tackle this season. He started 44 games and played in 52 in four seasons.
Brown chalked that up to Milum's character and elite work ethic, which he said Milum shares with fellow former Mountaineers offensive linemen now in the NFL in Zach Frazier and Nester.
"I think that (Milum) played his position as well as anybody in college football over the last two seasons," Brown said, "and how he graded out ... he's played upwards of five-plus first-round picks on the (opposing) defensive line in the last two years and done exceedingly well, and so whoever gets him is gonna get a guy that I think will start in Year One and be a multi-year starter and play a long time."
analyst Lance Zierlein wrote Milum is "tough, strong and assignment-oriented" with the "frame and mentality of an NFL player."
Zierlein also wrote Milum's shorter arms make him unlikely to play tackle at the pro level other than as a fill-in. Milum, though, projects as a starter at guard.
Zierlein was impressed with Milum's strength and success in the run and pass game but knocked him for average foot quickness and inconsistencies staying centered.Â
Brown said Milum has the intelligence to play any of the five offensive line positions and noted that he had no issues playing tackle against quality edge rushers while in Morgantown.Â
"Thereòòò½ÊÓƵ™s a little bit of a question mark because his arm length isnòòò½ÊÓƵ™t quite what some of them are," Brown said, "but it is my belief that he can play tackle, and if for some reason an organization picks him and wants him to play inside, he can do that as well.
"But my take is, he can play tackle, because we got all this video against elite competition that shows that he can play tackle."
