Rich Rodriguez and the West Virginia Mountaineers are basically a lock to improve in 2026, but by how much is a tricky question to answer, considering the 93 starts brought in via the portal and battling one of the toughest schedules in the Big 12.
Right away, you’ll notice WVU addressed two major skill positions at quarterback with Oklahoma transfer Michael Hawkins and Jacksonville State breakout running back Cam Cook. That skill alone is enough to feel better about the team’s odds of punching above last year’s 21.8 points per game, but Rodriguez worked on much more than that offensive tandem this offseason.
By the spring, the team ushered 34 different transfers through spring practice and got to work retooling the Mountaineer football program to improve on last year’s woes. WVU captured four wins, including a comeback victory over rival Pitt, and two Big 12 wins against a ranked Houston team and Colorado late in the year. Rodriguez and offensive line coach Rick Trickett overhauled the trenches, save for junior guard Nick Krahe, the lone returning starter up front for the Mountaineers.
The schedule includes eight straight weeks of football before a bye on Oct. 31 following WVU’s road trip to TCU. It’s an unforgiving schedule, including the Horned Frogs, Texas Tech, Houston and Utah.
WILL COOK ESTABLISH THE RUN?
Earning a star rusher in Cook, beginning his career at TCU before rushing for 1,600-plus yards last year in the C-USA, was a key portal win for Rodriguez. He needed a guy with dynamic speed and the snaps required to lead a largely young, inexperienced RB room consisting of two freshmen, Amari Latimer and Chris Talley, and juniors Martavioous Boswell and Kayden Luke.
If nothing else, WVU is looking forward to utilizing the run again after producing a dismal 3.7 yards per carry last season between leading backs Diore Hubbard and Cyncir Bowers, neither of whom are still with the program. Hawkins, too, may utilize his legs a bit more in the Rodriguez offense; He carried the ball 84 times for 262 career yards and two touchdowns at OU.
Save for Krahe, the Mountaineers are mighty up front, with four of their five offensive linemen checking in at 304 pounds or larger this season. Senior center Wes King is the anchor from Wyoming, and 280-pound freshman Kevin Brown will be broken in at left tackle this season as well. There’s some depth up front with Malik Agbo from Texas and Devin Vass from Kansas State.
DOES THE DEFENSE HAVE THE RIGHT PIECES?
Zac Alley’s first-year defense actually improved from 31.9 ppg in 2024 to 30.8 last season, but the record of 4-8 speaks for itself; the Mountaineers weren’t able to slow teams down often enough to land a punch. Save for a 49-0 Texas Tech loss, WVU improved over the final five weeks of the season in games where they were almost always the underdog, except for Colorado.
The Mountaineers return zero starters from last year’s defense, which allowed 409 yards per game and 5.7 yards per play. Instead, WVU is looking to a host of transfers to lead the charge: Coastal Carolina senior DE Ezekiel Durham-Campbell started 13 games last year in the Sun Belt, and middle linebacker Tyler Stolsky made 90 combined tackles in his junior year at FAU.
In the secondary, UNLV transfer Andrew Powdrell and Kamari Wilson of Memphis represent two seniors leading the safeties, with very little experience behind them on the depth chart. WVU is particularly weak at corner, too, with Georgia State transfer Chams Diagne bringing just six starts with him over from his junior year.
Oct. 17 VS. CINCINNATI
With its schedule design, WVU is looking hard pressed at fetching six wins in 2026, but should they crack the number, it’ll include a win over Cincinnati in Week 7. The Mountaineers have won four consecutive meetings since 2010, but the Bearcats are coming off a bye into that Morgantown game. After that matchup, WVU has one more winnable contest against Kansas, so unless they jump out strong with wins over Virginia and/or a home win over Oklahoma State to begin Big 12 play, it’ll be imperative that they snag that win before going on the road to face TCU.
