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The original was posted on /r/cfb by /u/hammer_it_out on 2025-02-21 18:26:41+00:00.
West Virginia football is dealing with a blank slate headed into their first practices of spring football this offseason.
Between the transfer portal and players reaching the end of their collegiate eligibility, the amount of returning starters on last year’s team is next to none. And that’s just fine with incoming Mountaineer Head Coach Rich Rodriguez.
“It’s pretty unique,” Rodriguez said during a pre-spring football press conference on Thursday. “That’s why we have spring practice, that’s why we recruit, and I’ve enjoyed working with the guys.”
WVU’s spring ball sessions will kick off earlier this year than in previous offseasons -- the team will begin with their first practice session this coming Tuesday, February 25th, and their annual Gold-Blue Spring Showcase will be Saturday, April 5th.
With this being his first spring with the Mountaineers during his second tenure leading the program -- as well as the spring portal now being in play and the landscape of collegiate football shifting -- things will be a bit different than normal. But Rodriguez is ready to hit the ground running.
“Part of spring is obviously evaluation and seeing what we got, the other part is teaching and schemes and the fundamentals,” Rodriguez told the media. “Because there is another portal people, the roster may be looking a little different in May. So it's a little different of a challenge and different dynamics in previous years, but that’s also exciting.”
Rodriguez is known for his ‘hard edge’ culture and mottos like ‘hold the rope’ defining his first tenure in Morgantown, and he is excited to change the attitude and mentality within the football facilities at WVU once again. That process has already started, and he expects it to continue through spring practice.
“Every coach talks about culture and how important it is, but do they actually live it, do they have a standard that is held every day," Rodriguez said at his presser. "What was here a year ago or three months ago is not nearly as important as what's going on right now.
Rodriguez is a program alum and a native son of the state, so he is beloved by a large part of the fanbase even after his controversial departure. Weighing into that is also the fact that he led the program during what is arguably the most successful period in WVU football history.
But Rodriguez isn’t coming back for the good feelings and good memories -- he wants to take West Virginia to the top of the Big 12 and the FBS, and that starts next week with spring football.
"I didn't get hired for nostalgia reasons, I got hired to win,” Rodriguez said on Thursday.