Despite being nicked up last season, Noel Devine still managed to put together the single-best performance by a junior running back in school history, with 1,465 yards and 13 touchdowns.

He is the face of Mountaineer football, with a legitimate shot at the Heisman Trophy and the all-time school record for rushing yardage.

But what if he goes down?

Will the Mountaineers’ Gold Rush be singing the blues?

Maybe not.

“I feel a lot better with our depth,” running backs/slot backs coach Chris Beatty said. “I feel like we have as good of a running back core as we’ve had since I’ve been here, without question, and I wouldn’t trade what we have right now with anybody.”

There is a bevy of backs — backs of all types — in a deep stable that is busting at the seams ready to show what it can do.

And that starts with redshirt 5-foot-6, 186-pound freshman Daquan Hargrett, out of Miami, and 5-10, 222-pound sophomore Shawne Alston from Hampton, Va.

“I feel good with Hargrett and Alston back there, and they give us different things,” Beatty said. “Shawne’s a little more of an outside zone kind of guy, where Daquan’s more of an inside tackle kind of guy. So it really depends on what the situation is and where we are on the field, but I feel really good with both of those guys and what they can do.”

Then there is fullback-type Ryan Clarke, a 6-0, 247-pound redshirt sophomore who scored eight touchdowns last season and had 60 yards rushing in the Cincinnati game. He finished the year with 250 rushing yards.

He will again excel in the jumbo goal-line package.

“When we look at our situation in the back, we have a lot that we haven’t had in the past with (fullback) Matt Lindamood’s emergence and (fullback) Ricky Kovatch being a solid player,” Beatty said. “ We have enough back there to be confident with Ryan being our tailback and having people blocking in front of him.”

Then there is Trey Johnson, a 5-10, 172-pound true freshman from Richmond, Va.

Johnson, who is roughly the same size as Devine (5-8, 180) right now, said he came to WVU most notably because of the senior leader.

“Noel Devine did have some impact on me coming here because I wanted to learn from a senior and someone who could teach me how to play the game better than I could teach myself,” Johnson said. “(Devine) may be small, but he is packing a lot of muscle, so I don’t look at him as small — he is real big in my eyes.”

“Trey Johnson  had a great camp,”  Beatty said. “He has a ton of potential and a great wiggle. He’s a lot more powerful than he looks, and he’s got a frame. He’s going to be a much bigger man than he is right now, so I’m happy with him.”

And that doesn’t even take into account Tavon Austin and Jock Sanders, slot back types who could help out in the backfield.

Sanders did that last year, replacing an injured Devine in the backfield against Louisville, and he finished with 66 yards on 12 carries.

Still, most of their touches will come in the slot.

“We’re going to put Tavon and Jock in the back some because we would be silly not to,” Beatty said. “Tavon needs to touch the ball and so does Jock, so they’re going to get their carries, and there will be some designed stuff to guarantee touches by them.”

Still, Devine is the face of the franchise in what is becoming a loaded backfield at WVU.

Just ask former Mountaineer linebacker Reed Williams.

“You need a weapon to take him down in the open field,” Williams said. “And he is a lot stronger than you think for his size. A lot stronger. He is the real deal.”