Former WVU lineman Wyatt Milum adjusting to pros, finishes up rookie minicamp

Dominion Post

13-05-2025

MORGANTOWN — Wyatt Milum could be seen wearing No. 64 for the Jacksonville Jaguars instead of his No. 74 for the West Virginia Mountaineers on Saturday. Milum lined up in a three-point stance to the left of the center, blocked the coach for a second, who was in place of a defensive tackle, and then jumped off and drove through his teammate, who was in as a linebacker at the second level.
Milum's gold and blue is now black, teal and gold.
Life as a rookie comes at a player fast. Milum was selected in the third round by the Jaguars on April 25, and just weeks later, Milum is on-site, learning and being coached by the Jacksonville staff, taking his first step into the pros.
Sunday marked the final day of rookie minicamp for Jacksonville. The three-day camp was crammed with information, new surroundings and new faces. Milum had to unpack and dissect it all.
The information didn't overwhelm Milum. He's adjusting well.
'I'm sure it's going to be different once we get into training camp, but right now, you have the walk-through, and you're learning, and then you come out here, there's a little more tempo,' Milum told reporters Saturday. 'It's just the learning process right now. It ain't too bad right now.'
Morgantown is just over 750 miles and four states from Jacksonville and far less mountainous. In the short amount of days Milum has been on site, he doesn't think there's much difference between his old and new location.
'The only thing that's different from West Virginia is there are a little bigger buildings and it's a little hotter here,' Milum said. 'Other than that, I'm good. I always took family vacations towards the Tampa area, so I like the state of Florida. I'm glad I came here.'
The locations might not be too different, but there are differences on the field. Under Brown, Milum played in a tempo offense. Most offenses in college football run tempo where there is no huddle. In the NFL, it's more strategic with a huddle and more information pre-lineup.
There's also more emphasis on cadence, which some college teams don't use. New York Giants rookie quarterback went through all of college at Ole Miss using just a clap before snapping the ball. The cadence is important for linemen. It's the linemen's indicator to get off the ball and attack the defensive player in front of them. Most false start penalties are from linemen jumping the cadence.
'We were more of a tempo team in college,' Milum said. 'We didn't huddle all the time. There were some games that we did. The cadence is a big thing. It's a lot different from what we used in college, and getting used to that. The huddle thing, in high school, I huddled. College is the only place I haven't huddled that much. The huddle is no problem, it's just the cadence.'
Milum played in the Big 12 and saw future NFL stars in the making. He played in the same conference as Heisman Trophy winner and now teammate, Travis Hunter. But, Milum hasn't played alongside players he grew up watching until now.
'Just seeing Trevor [Lawrence] out here is awesome,' Milum said. 'I watched him when I was in high school growing up. Just seeing him in the locker room is surreal.'
This is Lawrence's fifth year as the starting quarterback for the Jaguars, after being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Milum's purpose is to protect Lawrence, who's been hit a lot in those four seasons. Lawrence is also coming off a season-ending concussion, so there hasn't been a more important time than ever to protect him.
Milum knows why he was brought in, and why the Jaguars added five-plus linemen through the draft and free agency.
'You don't want no one touching the quarterback,' Milum said. 'I feel like that's the mindset here. That's why I love playing here already. Just the mindset that we have on this offensive line. We don't want anyone touching Trevor.'
Milum learned the goals, coaches' names, and the ins and outs of the facilities. The basics. There'll be a lot more information placed on his shoulders at OTAs, which start at the end of May, and then more at mandatory minicamp on June 10. By summer training camp, Milum will be expected to have almost everything down, so he can make an impact when the season starts in early September.
That's down the road a little way, and Milum's new head coach, Liam Coen, mentioned him as a player who stood out in camp, so Milum's off to a great start. Right now, Milum's enjoying being a Jaguar.
'Everyone that's come here loves the game of football,' Milum said. 'They have all come in here and worked the past couple of days. They brought energy. I'm just happy to be with all the rookies here. I'm just happy to be a part of them.'