West Virginia Professional Athletes

Nearly a decade removed from his last start in a Jets uniform, Geno Smith walked back into the building and looked like he'd never left — in the best possible way.

The West Virginia product was the story of the NFL's opening weekend for Mountaineer alumni, delivering one of the most efficient performances of his career in New York's 23-10 dismantling of the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. Smith completed 19 of 24 passes for 215 yards, added 7 rushing yards, and — perhaps most remarkably after being sacked a league-high 55 times in 15 starts with the Raiders last season — wasn't touched once.

"I don't think I got touched once all day," Smith said after the game, and the stat sheet backed him up.

After a quiet first half, Smith carved up Tennessee's defense in the final two quarters, earning game-ball recognition alongside linebacker Demario Davis and cornerback Qwant'ez Stiggers. Head coach Aaron Glenn and star receiver Garrett Wilson both pointed to Smith's composure as the engine of the offense. "Calm" was the word that kept surfacing in the postgame locker room.

The victory was also a narrative milestone — Smith's first Jets win as a starting quarterback since the 2016 season. His message to fans afterward was direct: this is a different chapter.

Smith's performance has already generated buzz heading into Week 2, with analysts noting he carries a statistical edge over the Green Bay Packers' defense. The Jets, 1-0 despite modest power-ranking movement league-wide, are building something real — and their WVU signal-caller is at the center of it.

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The Rest of the Mountaineer Ledger

Smith wasn't the only WVU alum making noise in Week 1. Defensive tackle Dante Stills recorded a sack for the Arizona Cardinals in their 26-14 win over the Los Angeles Chargers — a clean, productive debut to the season for the former Mountaineer.

Rasul Douglas suited up for Washington in a tight 24-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, while long snapper Rex Sunahara was in uniform for Cleveland in the Jaguars' lopsided 34-10 road win — a rough opener for the Browns, though Sunahara's role was clean and routine.

The headline, though, belongs entirely to Smith. For West Virginia fans who watched him develop in Morgantown and have tracked his nomadic NFL journey — Seattle, Las Vegas, now New York again — Sunday felt like a full-circle moment. The Jets may not be getting power-ranking respect yet, but Geno Smith is making a case that respect is coming.

Two West Virginia quarterbacks are on NFL rosters as the 2026 season kicks off — just on very different rungs of the ladder.

Geno Smith, Jets Captain and Starter

Geno Smith isn't just back in the NFL. He's back in New York, and he's running the show.

The Mountaineers' most prominent pro alumni returned to the Jets this offseason after a disastrous stint with the Raiders, and he's wasted no time establishing himself as the unquestioned leader of a retooled roster. Smith was named one of the Jets' team captains — alongside veterans Demario Davis and Minkah Fitzpatrick — ahead of the regular season opener against the Tennessee Titans on Sept. 13. Notably absent from the captains list: wide receiver Garrett Wilson, signaling where the Jets' trust currently sits.

The Jets explicitly brought in more experienced players after a young roster cratered in 2025, and Smith is the centerpiece of that rebuild. He entered training camp as the named starter and held the job through the preseason. Sports Illustrated pushed back on fan anxiety about the depth behind Smith, arguing the concerns are overblown — though the Jets did work out Will Levis and at least one other quarterback in the days following roster cuts, a routine but telling bit of due diligence. Smith and backup Cade Klunbik are the two QBs on the 53-man roster, with Bailey Zappe on the practice squad as the emergency third option.

The Jets are betting that Smith's experience steadies a franchise that has lurched from one failed quarterback era to the next. The captaincy is a signal — from the organization and from teammates — that they believe he's the one to finally change that.

Garrett Greene, Buccaneers Practice Squad

Meanwhile, the younger Mountaineer quarterback-turned-receiver is carving out his own foothold in the league.

Garrett Greene, who made the transition from QB in college to WR at the pro level, landed on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' practice squad after final cuts. He was among 16 players the Bucs signed to fill out their developmental roster, joining a receiver room that already includes fellow WVU alum David Sills on the active roster.

A practice squad spot isn't glamorous, but it's a paycheck and a path. Greene remains in the league's ecosystem, eligible to be elevated on game weeks or signed to the 53-man roster if injuries strike. For a converted quarterback still learning a new position, surviving to the practice squad in Year One is a legitimate milestone.

The Rest of the Mountaineer Diaspora

Smith and Greene headline the week, but WVU's NFL footprint runs deep. Zach Frazier is holding down the center spot in Pittsburgh for the Steelers. Rasul Douglas is in Washington with the Commanders. Bryce Ford-Wheaton is with the Giants. Colton McKivitz is protecting quarterbacks in San Francisco. And Dante Stills is on the Cardinals' defensive line in Arizona.

West Virginia football may not always dominate the national conversation, but its alumni have quietly built one of the more sprawling pro presences in the college game. This week, with a captain's patch and a practice squad jersey, two of them are writing new chapters.

It took one preseason drive for the conversation around Geno Smith to change — and the West Virginia product hasn't stopped turning heads since.

Smith, signed by the New York Jets this offseason as the clear-cut starting quarterback, made his debut in Gang Green's preseason opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers and promptly went 7-for-7. Perfect. Offensive coordinator Frank Reich — who has worked with some of the best quarterbacks in the league — came away raving, calling Smith "dialed in" and "on point" after the showing.

The Vibe Shift Is Real

For a Jets fan base that has lived through more quarterback heartbreak than most, cautious optimism is a hard-earned emotion. But Smith is giving them something to work with. Reports out of training camp described his command in the huddle as "calming" — a tone-setter that veterans and young receivers alike have responded to. Reich's public praise wasn't just a coach managing expectations; it tracked with what observers saw on the field and on the practice report throughout the week.

Smith has also been vocal about what he wants the Jets to feel from him beyond the stat line. Per reports, he's made clear he wants teammates to sense his passion and competitive fire — the kind of locker-room temperature that a franchise trying to rebuild its identity badly needs.

With the Jets sitting Smith for the final preseason game, there's nothing left to prove before the regular season. The coaching staff has seen enough.

A WVU Connection on the Other Side of the Ball

Smith wasn't the only Mountaineer in action when the Jets hosted the Steelers. Pittsburgh center Zach Frazier, a Morgantown native and one of the Steelers' starting offensive linemen, was suiting up on the other sideline — a quietly fun footnote to the matchup for WVU fans keeping tabs across rosters.

Frazier has established himself as a legitimate starter at center for Pittsburgh, giving the Mountaineer alumni base a reliable presence in the trenches on one of the AFC's more competitive rosters.

Looking Ahead

Smith enters the regular season as the Jets' unquestioned starter, with a receiving corps that's generating its own buzz. WVU alum Bryce Ford-Wheaton is listed on the Giants' roster, but it's Smith's situation that commands the most attention among Mountaineer alumni in the league this week.

For a program that's produced its share of NFL quarterbacks, few moments land quite like watching one of its own walk into a marquee market, silence skeptics in a single outing, and earn the trust of a coaching staff before Labor Day. West Virginia's most high-profile NFL alumnus right now isn't just surviving in New York — he looks like he belongs there.