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MORGANTOWN - Drawing inspiration from the guys playing on Sundays, Charles Woods wants to be one of the best at what he does.
Yet, while he likes the play of Los Angeles Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey or Marshon Lattimore of the New Orleans Saints, the West Virginia University defensive back wants to be his own man.
"I kind of watch a couple guys in the league because if I try to be like one guy, I can lose," Woods said. "I think, for a DB, you have to have a toolbox where you can have multiple techniques because you can't play everybody all one way. We're at the level where guys will pick up on your technique and find a way to beat it. Having a toolbox and having multiple ways to play your assignment is good."
It's an approach Woods has crafted over his previous five years of college football, allowing him to become one of the top defensive backs in the Football Championship Subdivision before taking the Big 12 by storm last season. It's also the logic he's disbursing to the younger members of West Virginia's secondary, being the most veteran cornerback on the team.
Woods ascends to the role of leader having only a year of experience in Morgantown under his belt, an unexpected move as he goes through only his first spring camp with the team.
Attributing to his lack of size coming out of high school, Woods ended up at Illinois State for his first foray into college football back in 2018. He saw limited action but played a role during his freshman season before exploding onto the scene as a sophomore.
In 2019, Woods received sophomore All-American honorable mention honors after collecting 48 tackles, four interceptions and 4.5 tackles for loss. His 17 passes defended was second in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, placing him among the region's top defenders.
He had plenty of FBS suitors jockeying for his services but, after originally committing to SMU, the Texas native changed course and enrolled at WVU last April.
"I had doubts coming in when I first came in," Woods said. "A lot of people were saying it was a big difference between FCS and (Football Bowl Subdivision) ball, saying the speed was way faster. I think once I started getting into the summer workouts and fall camp, I started realizing it's just the same. There's just more elite athletes at this level. I kind of adjusted quickly."
Woods has been able to take Marcis Floyd, an offseason transfer from Murray State, under his wing, relying on many of the things he learned as he went through his own growth last season.
Floyd earned All-America honors in each of the past two seasons with the Racers, tallying 72 tackles, five interceptions and 15 pass breakups in that time. He is a versatile defensive back like Woods and, despite primarily being used as a cornerback previously, Floyd is receiving a major chunk of snaps at the cat safety position this spring.
"Me and him have quite a few talks because he's in the same position I was a year ago," Woods said, "so I kind of try to bring him in, ease him into the process and tell him that it's gonna slow down. Once you get to know the scheme, everything starts working out for you."
Floyd is one of many expected to fill a handful of voids in the secondary, with cornerback Nicktroy Fortune transferring and safeties Alonzo Addae, Sean Mahone and Scottie Young each exhausting their eligibility.
"It's kind of like treating it like injuries," Woods said. "When a guy leaves, it's next man up. I think the young guys are doing a great job stepping up and they're coming along, so I think that's how you've gotta treat it -- next man up."