When Rich Rodriguez was hired back to coach in Morgantown, the hope was that he could lead the program back to competitiveness. A disastrous 4-8 first year back showed how much work needed to be done to right the ship for the West Virginia Mountaineers.
Three games into Rodriguez’s second season, the team is undefeated (3-0) thanks to a rediscovered identity built around an aggressive, explosive, and physical style that once made the team a BCS contender under him in the 2000s.
The upset the Mountaineers pulled on the road over 25th-ranked Virginia shows the fast rebuild and re-emergence as a dangerous team on the rise.
Important Hires To The Staff
Rodriguez has made changes throughout the program for a quick turnaround. He made key hires, starting with Chance Trickett as the director of player evaluation. Trickett’s scouting experience and previous roster-development strategies give West Virginia a blueprint to identify and recruit players who fit the vision of the head coach.
Rodriguez also brought back Rick Trickett for a third stint in Morgantown as offensive line coach. Trickett previously coached under Rodriguez during the Mountaineers’ rise in the 2000s and has helped to teach and refine the blocking schemes in the offensive system. Jay Boulware was hired as the running backs coach as an investment to improve the physicality and technique of the position.
These moves show Rodriguez wasn’t rebuilding the identity with players alone, but also with staff who will add to the culture and set the standards for greatness.
West Virginia Mountaineers Have Rebuilt Roster To Fit Rodriguez’s Scheme
The NIL era of college football has changed how young players are perceived, with higher expectations and criticism arriving much earlier in their development. Rather than waiting for a young roster that struggled with the scheme last year to develop, West Virginia was aggressive in recruiting this past offseason, adding 37 transfers via the portal along with 12 juco players.
Rodriguez and his coaching staff prioritized adding experience in order to increase the ability of all three phases of play for the 2026 season. The revamped personnel has allowed the head coach to fully implement his zone-read, spread-option offense. Having veteran players allows the team to play at the breakneck pace Rodriguez wants, which makes the Mountaineers exciting to watch and hard for opponents to deal with.
Oklahoma transfer Michael Hawkins Jr. gives Rodriguez a dual-threat Quarterback with dangerous running ability (799 combined yards, 11 total TDs). Cam Cook (105.7 rushing yards per game, 3 TDs), who played for Rodriguez at Jacksonville State, gives his head coach a centerpiece for the rushing attack after leading all FBS running backs in yards in 2025. DJ Epps (30 yards per reception, 3 TDs) has been a big-play receiver downfield for the passing game.
The school also added multiple offensive linemen in the portal to help solidify the trenches. All the new talent has fit the system perfectly thus far, allowing the Mountaineers’ offense to score often with explosive plays and control games with their potent ground attack (40.3 points per game, 281.3 rushing yards per game).
A Familiar Identity Is Returning to Morgantown
West Virginia is beginning to show the characteristics that defined its best teams in Morgantown. The Mountaineers are playing with confidence, leaning on the run game, and embracing the physical style that has become the foundation of Rodriguez’s program.
The early results suggest that the team could be turning the corner, with analysts beginning to believe in their chances to contend in the Big 12 conference this season.
The West Virginia Mountaineers no longer look like a flailing program searching for its identity; with coach Rodriguez, they look more like one that has rediscovered it.
