MORGANTOWN --- West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez believes Nate Sowers can be one of the Mountaineers' best 11 players on offense this season. But given WVU's experience and depth behind center, headed by Pat White, Rodriguez realized he needed to move the 2004 Kennedy Award-winning Martinsburg quarterback to a new position.

And to best utilize Sowers' athleticism, that meant moving him full-time to wide receiver.

"(Coach Rodriguez) spoke to me a little bit before spring and said, 'You know we want to get you into a set position because moving back and forth, you lose stuff at both positions, really, so you can't reach the peak at any certain position,'" Sowers said Friday evening. "If that's what I'm going to be playing in the game, then that's what I want to be taking reps at."

Friday was the third of 14 spring practices leading up to the April 7 Gold-Blue game. The team was expected to initiate its first spring scrimmage Saturday morning.

After WVU's first padded practice and the first time the team has seen sunshine outdoors, Rodriguez says Sowers has responded well to the change, which has included reps at a number of the different receiver positions.

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