Year Two Of RichRod 2.0 Needs To Show Progress

Well, here we are. After ten months without West Virginia football we have made it to another season. What’s everyone’s excitement level? Here at the Smoking Musket, we have some high hopes for this season!

Why shouldn’t we? After a 49-0 defeat in the season finale against the Red Raiders of Texas Tech, the coaching staff and front office (weird to say that about a college team but that’s the reality of modern college football) went all-in on adding talent to this program.

Here’s a snapshot of their offseason: After losing 51 players, the program once again needed a huge roster overhaul which lead to 80 new players getting ready to dawn the Old Gold and Blue. A part of that overhaul included a top recruiting class of 45 recruits which is looking like one of the top recruiting classes in program history. In the same recruiting class you flipped key players from rival schools like tackle Kevin Brown over from Penn State, and safety Matt Sieg over from Pitt. They added the FBS’ leading rusher in Cam Cook. Added a former dual-threat quarterback in Michael Hawkins Jr who won the starting job. Rebuilt the offensive line which was the biggest weakness of the team last season. They also added long-time offensive line coach Rick Trickett to help make that weakness a strength. They added enticing wide receivers in Prince Strachan from USC, and TaRon Francis from LSU. They added defensive backs like Kamari Wilson from Memphis and Maliek Hawkins from Oklahoma to give defensive coordinator Zac Alley more tools to work with.

But, the single biggest thing WVU did this offseason, was inject excitement into the hearts of the Mountaineer faithful. Why shouldn’t we be excited? Historically, year two is when RichRod teams start to take off. The early reports on the recruiting class is that we got some dudes. Cam Cook should feast in a RichRod offense. Michael Hawkins’ play style is reminiscent of quarterbacks who have played and succeeded under RichRod. Rick Trickett is one of the best in the business at what he does. We have intriguing traits at the skill positions. Zac Alley has a whole new crop of players he can use to mix and match on defense.

We can talk ourselves into anything. This is the best time of the year for hope and excitement. Every fanbase goes through the exact same checklist of breaking down offseason recruiting and portal additions, looking at the upcoming schedule for wins and losses, scoffing at conference previews from national media outlets, and discussing with fellow fans about who on the team is going to be an All-American at seasons’ end.

My point is, excitement is great. I am beyond excited for Mountaineer football. But everyone is excited until the first three and out, or the first score let up to our opponent, or by being down three at halftime, or by starting the season 0-1.

I think this is going to be a fun season, or at the very least a season that a casual Mountaineer fan can have fun with. I think the wave of apathey that has spread over the vibes of this historic program is gone. I think we have a fun future in store for us. But in order to get there, we need to see the seeds start growing this season.

In my opinion, the single most important aspect of this season is seeing what the coaching staff has in this recruiting class. They signed a LOT of high schoolers, which kind of goes against what the current trend is in college football with the transfer portal. They also had the benefit of more money to spend and a full cycle of recruiting. We need to see if these young guys like Kevin Brown, Matt Sieg, and Amari Lattimer were money well spent. Brown and Sieg especially since I believe those two will have huge roles in their true freshman seasons. If they come along and finish strong AND we see flashes from Amari Lattimer and Yendor Mack, etc. Then this season, to me, would be a success; regardless of wins and losses

I need to see how Kevin Brown, Matt Sieg, and Amari Lattimer progress over the course of their freshman seasons so that they can be the main foundation for RichRod 2.0. I need to see how Michael Hawkins Jr. progresses with a full season runway of playing quarterback. I need to see how we play against teams in the upper-half of the BIG XII. Simply put, I need to see my faith in Rich Rodriguez and the future of this program rewarded. Here’s hoping.

Let’s GO!