MORGANTOWN - When WVU coach Dana Holgorsen hired Joe Wickline to his staff, one had to figure there was a forced coexistence with then-offensive line coach Ron Crook.
Wickline, though, was given an awkward "tight end/tackles/fullbacks" coaching title, a nice salary and a directive to go make it work with Crook.
Now, however, Crook has moved to Cincinnati. The offensive line is all Wickline's.
And already there have been changes. Already there have been experiments.
Wait. Hold up. Strike that last sentence.
"We haven't experimented," Wickline said on Tuesday. "We've made some calculated decisions on what direction to go, whether it be inside, center or outside at tackle."
Let's just go with changes based on calculated decisions - like moving standout guard Kyle Bosch from the right side to the left.
How has that been going?
"He's doing a good job," Wickline said. "Anytime you've done something for a long time and it's tweaked or adjusted ..."
The coach restarted.
"It's not that we're defiant or militant, it's just not the way I've done it over time," he said. "Everybody coaches a little differently."
You get the gist. The Mountaineer linemen are adjusting to Wickline, whether they are veterans or newcomers. Redshirt freshman Josh Sills, for instance, is expected to play a major role this coming season at 6-foot-6 and 320 pounds.
"Josh Sills is starting to come around," Wickline said. "This isn't a knock against who coached him or where he came from, but it seems a lot of stuff is new. But he's a smart guy. He gets it. He comes by my office a lot and says, 'What can I do better?' "
That's how you adjust. Meanwhile, Wickline is trying to shape the offensive line into one that can block for a standout running back like Justin Crawford and protect a standout quarterback like Will Grier.
Wickline at times says the unit is "blessed" with talent. Yet he also confirms what the depth chart screams.
"It's a thin group," Wickline said. "It's not a deep group. It really gets you back to the old days of finding three guards, three tackles and three centers and not worrying about a two-deep [depth chart]. That's really where we are right now."
Wickline is hoping left tackle Yodny Cajuste regains his prior form after a knee injury. He's comfortable with Colton McKivitz at right tackle.
At center, though, there's at least some discomfort.
"We haven't arrived yet there, but I think Matt Jones has done a steady job," Wickline said of the 6-3, 319-pound redshirt sophomore. "He's a guy we think we can get a snap and a call from. He's thick enough. He's 315 and athletic. He's like on the first or second stair with a lot of steps to take, but he'll be OK."
(As an aside, there's been much talk nationally about centers now using the "dead snap" over a spiral in shotgun formations. The dead snap is one in which a center simply palms the nose of the football as it stands up and flips it back, almost as if in the backyard.
"We've used it," Wickline said. "The best advantage of a dead snap is almost anybody can do it. ... I would like to have a guy spiral snap. If you're a left or right tackle or guard and you get thrown in the fire, though, the dead snap has the most forgiveness."
Jones and backup Ray Raulerson both spiral, said Wickline.
WVU, you might know, lost center Jacob Buccigrossi to an ACL injury this spring and redshirt senior Marcell Lazard left the team, hurting the line's depth. Wickline's son, Kelby, has been checked out both at center and tackle. ("He's getting better," said the father, "but he's about 10 pounds away.")
Help, however, might be coming in 6-7, 340-pound transfer Isaiah Hardy from Lackawanna College, a projected guard.
"We've talked a lot, me and him," Wickline said of Hardy. "Is he going to get here in good condition? Is he going to be cardio fit? Will he have the bend? Does he have the change of direction, the movement?
"I will say this, though: The guy is interesting."
The entire offensive line will be interesting to watch. There have been losses, like that of leader Tyler Orlosky. There have been changes. There is some youth.
"We just need guys," Wickline said. "We need to knock on wood and stay healthy. We need some young guys to grow up and take on some different roles.
"We're nowhere close, but I think we have the makings to be OK."
Contact Mitch Vingle at 304-348-4827 or mitchvingle@wvgazettemail.com. Follow him on Twitter @MitchVingle.