WVU Adds To Defensive Line Of The Future With Justin Benton Commitment

West Virginia added another big building block to its defensive line of the future when Georgia standout Justin Benton announced his commitment to the Mountaineer program on Saturday afternoon.

#TrustTheClimb pic.twitter.com/UOnesMsU1J

— Justin Benton ✞ (@JustinB42023) June 18, 2022

The 6-foot-2, 275-pounder chose WVU over home state school Georgia and Penn State but that was just the final step in a lengthy recruiting battle that saw the Newton High School star become the subject of intense interest by numerous Power 5 schools. Among those offering were Arizona State, Arkansas, Auburn, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Louisville, LSU, Maryland, Michigan State, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, USC, Vanderbilt and Virginia Tech. Future Big 12 members Houston and UCF, along with Memphis, were also on board with scholarship tenders.

The Bulldogs and Mountaineers wound up as the final favorites, but an official visit to the WVU campus two weekends ago apparently sealed the deal for the Benton, who made connections with several current and future Mountaineers on the visit.

Justin Benton Player Page     |     WVU Football Class of 2023 Commitments

Playing last year for IMG Academy (he’s moving back to Newton for his senior season this fall), Benton displayed hard-charging aggressive play from both defensive tackle and defensive end spots. He fires off the ball and initiates contract with hard strikes to his opponents, but typically avoids getting tied up as a result. Creating movement as a result, he is able to exploit resulting space and get into the backfield to disrupt plays early.

“My get off has improved a lot since I started playing football,” he told Instel Media. “It can get better, but it’s about an 8.5.”

As a sophomore, he had 93 total tackles, including 55 solo stops, leading the Rams in sacks with 12.5 and tackles for loss with 24.5. He also tallied a pick and 22 quarterback pressures.

pic.twitter.com/qCTc7Mfu3H

— Justin Benton ✞ (@JustinB42023) June 18, 2022

Raw power isn’t the only piece of Benton’s game, however. He displays good quickness off the ball, and often gets a leverage advantage by getting to a preferred point of attack when crashing down from the edge or rushing the passer. He can turn the corner effectively with outside rush moves, and can track rushing plays to his side of the field all the way to the sideline.

Benton completes the package by playing with good pad level for a high school player, and also flashes the ability to dispose of blockers and get into position to control his gap. He’s not a “reacher” when getting to the ball, and continues to move his feet when making tackles, driving through contact and wrapping up effectively.

WVU now has three very good complementary defensive linemen in its Class of 2023, with Benton joining South Carolinians Cam Jackson (6-4, 300 lbs.) of Spartanburg High School and Eamon Smalls (6-2, 300 lbs.) of Beaufort High. Benton’s commitment pushes WVU to 11 verbals in the class.