Home/College Football
feature-image

via Imago

feature-image

via Imago

Second-chance narratives are looming in college football this season. One of the heroes of this plot is Rich Rodriguez. The head coach is back at West Virginia Mountaineers after taking an exit in 2007. Now that Rodriguez is back, he is going to leave no stone unturned. Here came a big promise from the head coach, “But I made a mistake. And my promise to not just the folks that are upset, but to everybody here that’s been very, very supportive, I will earn your support.”

Rodriguez went 60-26 during his previous stint at West Virginia from 2001-07 before he departed for Michigan. His latest stint at Jacksonville State showed him totalling a 27-10 record over three years. With getting a second chance at WVU, Rodriguez is not ready to settle for basic. That’s when he stirred the pot a little, showing his interest in revamping the roster even more, exploring the transfer portal. 

Rodriguez has held two press conferences since the start of fall camp. Interestingly, in both of them, the topic of the transfer portal has been picked up. Sheer coincidence? Likely not. On July 31, the Mountaineers’ head coach shared, “Say, hey, I think we had two running backs that finished workouts today. And I told those two, that’s pretty good. We’ll get those two. But I ain’t going to tell you who they are, but you know, there’s still 4,000 kids in the portal, isn’t there? I got a recruiting staff. I mean, I got a big old recruiting staff. They do a really nice job. They’re in They’re still looking. We’re still looking. We ain’t got a game. We ain’t got school start for a couple of weeks. I have a spot or two open. I’m just saying.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

article-image

via Imago

Did the Mountaineers not catch enough players when the portal opened the gates? No way. They were very active in both winter and spring portals, and landed over 70 new players. But what makes Rodriguez revamp his roster again? He has reaped sweet fruits in utilizing the transfer portal to rebuild a team. It’s a lesson that Rodriguez learned firsthand last season with the Gamecocks when his team started slow despite him feeling good about their potential. And the end result was great. Jacksonville State could hit the rebound button, winning nine of their final ten games in the regular season on the way to a Conference USA title.

In an interview with On3, we got a sneak peek at Rodriguez’s familiarity with exploring the transfer portal. He said, “Get the best players you can get. If they got four years to go, that’s great. If they only got one year, well, we’ll take them. But we just got to get the best players you can get.” Turns out that the transfer portal conversation came up because the head coach is too riled up after the fall camp, which itches him for a roster makeover. 

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Rich Rodriguez’s frustration shows up after the ‘soft’ fall camp

How did Rodriguez sum up their fall camp? “I didn’t think we took great steps today. I thought we were a little bit soft at times. We got some good in, but it wasn’t the step that we probably needed to take. We got to get better tomorrow. I’m not discouraged, but I’m disappointed,” said the head coach. The clock’s already ticking for WVU. They have limited time to prepare themselves, and in just 30 days, the Robert Morris Colonials will be landing in Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown. He has already left WVU fans in panic, proceeding with a two-quarterback system, exploring both the options: Nicco Marchiol and Jaylen Henderson.

Besides, what’s there on Rodriguez’s plate? A roster filled with 70 new players while WVU returns just 17 lettermen. The scenario is so unknown that Rodriguez is now moving around with a sheet, with players’ names written on it. He knows some of them by their face, but has yet to know the rest. In such a situation, urgency is key. And it’s already leaving the head coach sweating. Now, is it cold sweat or just the humidity?

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

What’s your perspective on:

Can Rich Rodriguez's transfer portal strategy turn WVU into a powerhouse, or is it just wishful thinking?

Have an interesting take?

The head coach tried to tone down the frustration with a touch of humor, “I mean it’s pads obviously when you’re tackling and blocking and you got to have that for your final determination, but you know there’s still a lot you can do in shorts, you know, from a assignment standpoint, from a technique standpoint, you know, running full speed. It should be easier to run full speed in shorts, right?” Rich Rodriguez added, “That was the part that probably got me a little bit riled up at times is that we’re in shorts and it’s nice weather. This is, you know, if you think this is hot and humid, you haven’t lived anywhere else.” If this is the Mountaineers’ fall camp tempo, they’d better pick up the pace fast. Otherwise, Rodriguez will struggle to pull them out of the 6-7 hole Neal Brown left behind.

ADVERTISEMENT

0
  Debate

Can Rich Rodriguez's transfer portal strategy turn WVU into a powerhouse, or is it just wishful thinking?

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT