MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The only in-state player to sign Wednesday with West Virginia was Spring Valley’s Corbin Page, a 6-foot-5, 243-pound tight end whose skill set features a strong mixture of versatility and strength.
Page, heavily used a blocker each of his first three seasons with the Timberwolves, became a far bigger asset in the team’s passing attack as a senior when he caught 25 passes for 487 yards and four touchdowns.
“Being able to go out and play wide and play against some of the smaller cornerbacks and be able to go down and put my hand in the dirt to be able to block and everything, it shows that I can do a lot of things that some people really can’t,” Page said. “It really shows something good.”
Primarily a run dominant team over the last several seasons, the Timberwolves put their passing attack on display more in 2021, and Page took full advantage while often finding himself split out wide as a receiver.
“I feel like I’m very versatile where I can go out and get the long ball and split back in tight and be able to cross routes and everything else and then go back in and put my hand in the dirt and block down,” he said. “I feel like I can have an immediate impact on the team next year.”
Page joins a lengthy list of Spring Valley alums on the WVU roster, one that includes starting right guard Doug Nester and starting right tackle Wyatt Milum.
“At some points next year or in the future, we could have a right guard, a right tackle and a tight end all from the same high school,” WVU head coach Neal Brown said. “I don’t know if that’s ever happened, much less playing right in a line. A pretty neat story there.”
Neal Brown on the potential for Spring Valley products Wyatt Milum, Doug Nester & Corbin Page (signed today) playing alongside each other: #wvprepfb pic.twitter.com/HmA9TDVYXe
— Joe Brocato (@joebrowvm) December 15, 2021
But Page wasn’t recruited to Morgantown as a feel good story.
Brown said the Mountaineers’ coaching staff identified Page as a college-ready player, one they kept a close watch on even after he committed nearly a full calendar year ago.
“We felt like Corbin was the top prospect in the state this year,” Brown said. “He has really invested a lot of time and energy changing his body. This time a year ago, he was probably 30 or 40 pounds heavier. He spent the first three years of his high school career being an end line tight end and really just blocking and then they would throw him the occasional pass. This year, they changed offenses due to personnel and he plays wideout the whole time.
“He has great body control. He came here for our 7-on-7 tournaments and we have teams from all over this four-hour radius. Against some really good schools from the DMV [Washington D.C., Maryland and Virginia] area and Philadelphia area, he made play after play.”
Page, who caught 11 touchdowns as both a sophomore and junior, also played on the defensive line. This season he made 49 tackles, including seven tackles for loss.
While Page is plenty familiar with the Spring Valley alums currently playing at WVU (the Mountaineers have five total with offensive lineman Bryce Biggs, wide receiver Graeson Malashevich and running back Owen Chafin the others), he never felt pressured to pick the Mountaineers during his recruitment process.
“It was never really them pushing at me like, ‘Come to West Virginia,’” Page said. “I fell in love with the family-like culture and I feel like the recruiting Class of 2022 is going to be something really amazing. Playing with Wyatt, we know how each other plays and we get along really well.”
Page is considered a 3-star prospect by ESPN, Rivals and 247 Sports. His recruitment picked up after his West Virginia commitment and he received offers from Oregon, Virginia Tech, Ole Miss, Duke, Rutgers, Marshall and Central Michigan, among others.
“I just didn’t publicize them, because I was locked in with West Virginia,” Page said. “I can’t even think of how many because I’ve been set on West Virginia for a minute.”
Page will enroll at WVU over the summer and become another member on a lengthy list of Timberwolves to play at the Division I level.
“The dedication that the Spring Valley staff has to not only the program, but the players individually is amazing,” Page said. “They care a lot about the individual players in the locker room. The offseason work is top notch. [Assistant coach] Aaron Ferguson having the lifting program four or five days a week in the offseason and three times in season, it’s a non-stop grind when you come to Spring Valley. But if you have the dedication, then it’s the place for you.”