John Spraggins
Defensive End/ Linebacker, (Years played-1972-1974), Coalwood, WV
At Big Creek High School he lettered four times in football; in addition he collected monograms in basketball (3) and track (2). He was named honorable mention All-State and was also President of the National Honor Society. John was the third player in succession of good ones to cast his lot with WVU after outstanding high school careers at Big Creek High School. The others were Oscar Patrick and Bob Gresham (who went on to play for the New Orleans Saints). He was one of the top three freshman and had a good spring. As a sophomore he participated in every game as the number two defensive end behind Bob Sims. The following spring he was moved to right linebacker. He had a great spring at that position and the coaches thought he was speedy and aggressive on defense. He was voted the hustle award by coaches after that spring. John was slated to start at right linebacker his junior year. That year he had 127 tackles including two quarterback sacks. The following spring he was voted as the most consistent player on defense by the coaches. Going into his senior year he had a starting assignment for the second year in a row. He was listed as the number one defensive end. He was a candidate for Academic All-American in 1973-74 with a 3.15 GPA.
Football Facilities at WVU (1960s)
