West Virginia Mountaineers: Commitment 101: Noah Tishendorf

The West Virginia Mountaineers football program has added a key piece on the defensive side of the ball by flipping the commitment of Lake Oswego (Ore.) Lakeridge 2026 defensive lineman Noah Tishendorf.

Tishendorf, 6-foot-3, 255-pounds, had been committed to Oregon State since mid-March but the Mountaineers jumped into his recruitment a day after that pledge and remained in contact.

That led to an official visit to Morgantown over the weekend and his subsequent pledge to the Big 12 Conference program once the trip was completed.

The Rivals.com three-star prospect was recruited by defensive coordinator Zac Alley along with assistant Jake Casteel and bandits coach Jeff Casteel. Alley made the trek out to see him during the evaluation period and that played a significant role in the Mountaineers moving up his list of options.

West Virginia is recruiting Tishendorf as a bandit in their scheme which places him on the edge of the defense. That was appealing to him after a season where he recorded 20 tackles and 11 sacks.

The official visit to Morgantown was the second for Tishendorf after taking one to Oregon State in May.

The flip is a big one for the Mountaineers as the football program was able to pull a talented edge rusher from his home state program after seeing Morgantown in person.

WVSports.com breaks down the commitment of Tishendorf and what it means to the West Virginia Mountaineers football program both now and in the future.

Skill set:

Tishendorf is an athletic big man that displays the ability to effectively play on the edge using both his speed and size to create issues for opposing offenses. The defensive lineman is equipped with a good first step and displays a series of pass rushing moves in order to displace blockers and get into the backfield.

Tishendorf has good feet and lateral movement which allows him to be effective up front. Displays the strength to shed blocks and make tackles in the backfield. Closes quickly when the pathway opens to the quarterback and displays the necessary athleticism to play in space as evident by his usage on offense.

At the high school level Tishendorf is used as both a true defensive lineman and a standup option and that versatility will come in handy with what he’s asked to do at the bandit spot.

Fitting the program:

West Virginia will be losing some of their edge defenders to graduation and it’s impossible to know other roster movement that will occur so adding a player that the defensive coordinator was involved in recruiting is always a key addition for a lot of different reasons.

It’s not often that West Virginia has been able to go across the country to flip the commitment of a prospect already pledged to an in-state school but that’s what the coaching staff has pulled off here. Tishendorf had been committed to the Beavers since March, but it was largely the effort of the West Virginia coaches along with his official visit to campus that served as the key factors in his decision.

That comfort level with the coaching staff and the campus was key and that should help with any adjustment that might come with the overall distance from his native Oregon.

The Mountaineers haven’t landed many prospects from Oregon over the years, but this is certainly one that could open up some pipelines for the program moving forward if there are interested options.

Recruiting the position:

There is no such thing as having too many edge rushers so even with a major pull with the commitment of Tishendorf the Mountaineers aren’t going to suddenly back up shop at the position. The program is involved with a number of other options but adding a talented bandit like Tishendorf is a great foundation for what the coaching staff wants to build at the position moving forward.

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