Darius Stills, West Virginia Football News: Draft Scout Player News

11/27/20 - DT Darius Stills, Sr/2021, West Virginia

The clock is ticking for Darius Stills. The Mountaineer senior defensive lineman can count on one hand the number of college football games left in his career … and he'd have a couple fingers unused. It's true that the NCAA is not counting the 2020-21 athletic year against the eligibility for any fall or winter sport student-athletes. So Stills could return next season if he wanted, but it seems clear that his plan is to give pro football a shot when the 2020 campaign comes to a close. He almost declared for the NFL draft last year, but ultimately decided to return to WVU for his senior campaign. It's a decision that has paid handsomely for both Stills and the Mountaineers. The recognition Stills has gotten this year has been wide ranging, starting with being named the Big 12 Preseason Defensive Player of the Year and recently being listed as a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award.

The 6-foot-1, 285-pound senior has three and a half sacks and six and a half tackles for loss through WVU's first eight games this season, to go along with 19 total tackles. Those are numbers any nose tackle would be proud of, but they haven't yet reached last year's 12-game stats when he had 47 tackles, seven sacks and 14.5 TFLs. Of course Stills is the focus of every opposing blocking scheme this year, meaning he's often double-teamed. That has put a crimp in his individual stats, but it's helped the WVU defense overall, allowing linebackers like Tony Fields (79 tackles) to run free and make plays. "I'm doing OK, but I still have a lot I can do. They are scheming off me and Dante [Stills] a lot, so it's kind of difficult at times to make plays," noted Stills, referring to his younger brother who starts beside him at defensive tackle. "Other guys are making plays, though, so that's all that matters." - Charleston Gazette-Mail

Sr/2021