Can Rich Rodriguez Revive West Virginia’s Offense in 2025?

The West Virginia Mountaineers‘ offense was middle of the road in the Big 12 a year ago, which in part cost head coach Neal Brown his job.

Here was how the West Virginia offense ranked last season in FBS:

Points per game: 29.2 (No. 53)

Rushing yards per game: 193.7 (No. 27)

Passing yards per game: 210.3 (Tied for No. 87)

Total yards per game: 404.4 (No. 53).

New head coach Rich Rodriguez returns to Morgantown, will call his own plays, and has two returning starters to use as he tries to boost the Mountaineers’ offensive production in 2025.

Here are three offensive players to keep an eye on for the West Virginia Mountaineers.

QB Nicco Marchiol

The lead here is that the Mountaineers aren’t sure who the starting quarterback will be. Marichol is the most likely starter, though.

While not a returning starter, he played in eight games last year and started in two of them for the Mountaineers. WVU won both of his starts, and he threw for 434 yards and five touchdowns in those eight games.

Rodriguez’s system loves to rack up yards and points. Jacksonville State was a Top 20 offense in points, rushing yards, and total yards. WVU doesn’t need Marchiol to be perfect right away. But the Mountaineers need him to be effective in what is his fourth season in Morgantown, but his first with a clear chance to start.

RB Jaheim White

Thank goodness White is back. He’s just one of two offensive starters that returned, and he should be an incredible fit for Rich Rodriguez and his offensive scheme.

As noted, the Gamecocks under Rodriguez were No. 3 in the country in rushing with 251.2 yards per game. Some of that was a product of personnel. But some of that is scheme-based, too.

Rich Rod has a history of getting great production out of running backs, and White has all the raw materials to make that happen. He rushed for a team-leading 844 yards last season with seven touchdowns. He had nearly 20 catches out of the backfield.

Last year, he was basically in a timeshare. This year? He could be the star, and he’s well-equipped to plug right into this scheme and take off.

WR Cam Vaughn

In the era of the transfer portal, players sometimes follow head coaches when they take new jobs. Such is the case with Vaughn, who was with Rodriguez at Jacksonville State last year.

Last year, he made the All-Conference USA freshman team after he caught 48 passes for 803 yards and five touchdowns as a redshirt. He claimed a starting job in the final eight games, which means his development picked up steam during the season.

Now, this will be a jump for him, along with all of the JSU players who followed Rodriguez to Morgantown. But Vaughn’s progress last year indicates an upward trajectory. His familiarity with the offense puts him position to take off quickly.