MORGANTOWN — Rich Rodriguez has done a lot this offseason for West Virginia football to help keep his promise and make the Mountaineers competitive once again.
That wasn’t the case in Year 1, finishing with a 4-8 record. There were times when WVU was competitive, but much of the season was spent getting rolled by Big 12 teams.
Rodriguez brought in another decent-sized transfer class, a massive, almost 50-kid high school recruiting class, and even hired some new coaches to try and make Year 2 trend in the right direction.
However, some of the most important pieces on the roster were already on the team in 2025 and now have an elevated role in Year 2 in the system. But some new pieces will have to make immediate impacts.
Here are the most important players and positions after the spring has wrapped up for WVU.
TE Ryan Ward
Tight ends are asked to do a lot in the offense because they have to be three-down guys in a tempo offense. They are more linemen than receivers because of how much Rodriguez runs the ball, too.
WVU tight end Ryan Ward is one of the few returning tight ends for the 2026 season. Most graduated, including one of Scotty Fox’s favorite targets, Grayson Barnes. Ward is one of the few tight ends who knows the offense and is back.
Rich Rodriguez has already mentioned that Ward was the leader of the group as one of the more experienced guys in the room.
Ward played in 10 games last fall, but wasn’t a big contributor in the pass game. He just had six grabs for 41 yards and a touchdown. With how much WVU runs the ball, it’ll be less about Ward’s catching ability and more about his blocking.
One of the highlights from last season of Ward wasn’t a catch; it was a downfield block he had to set up a touchdown for running back Cyncir Bowers in the upset win over Houston. In a team that runs the ball a lot, Ward playing at tight end and his blocking will be important for the 2026 season.
QB Scotty Fox Jr. or Michael Hawkins
Who plays at quarterback is important, but I’d say a bit further down because of Rodriguez’s most recent comments regarding the room. There’s still a quarterback battle brewing, but it seems like it’s narrowing down to second-year WVU QB Scotty Fox Jr. and Oklahoma transfer Michael Hawkins.
In a recent interview with ESPN’s Pete Thamel, Rodriguez felt pretty confident in both quarterbacks from what he’s seen this spring.
“I feel we’ve got two guys right now that I would jump out there to be a starting quarterback and be good with,” Rodriguez told Thamel.
So if one of them goes down, in theory, WVU should have a guy who’ll step right up without a drawback.
But that doesn’t mean the QB isn’t important. Last year’s quarterback situation was chaotic and one of the reasons the team went 4-8. Rodriguez didn’t know who to start, and after a bunch of injuries, was forced to start Fox. Luckily, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise because Fox made the team competitive and emerged as an option for the future.
WVU needs a quarterback who can push the ball downfield. Rodriguez doesn’t struggle with getting QBs that can run, but to compete in the Big 12, you need a quarterback who can throw a deep ball down the sidelines.
If it’s Fox or Hawkins, it’s still important to have a quarterback who can take over a game on the ground and, more importantly, in the air. And if those two go down, WVU could be in big trouble because the next man up would be Max Brown, who didn’t play too well in 2025 and has battled injuries himself. After him, you’re looking at a true freshman or a walk-on.
LT Nick Krahe
Last year’s offensive line wasn’t good. Rodriguez even admitted it during one of his press conferences.
“Obviously, we weren’t very good up front for most of the year,” Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez overhauled the room, including hiring Rick Trickett as the offensive line coach. But WVU did return some of the line, including left tackle Nick Krahe. Krahe wasn’t one of the undersized linemen on the team. He’s 6-foot-6, 316 pounds at left tackle, and has now played over 25 games. Krahe fits what Rodriguez is trying to build. He is a leader on the line and has taken that role for the 2026 season. So, all the improvements will start with him, teaching the new players on the team.
Krahe also plays one of the more important positions protecting his right-handed quarterback, whether that’s Scotty Fox Jr. or Michael Hawkins Jr. Krahe will need to take another leap and will be crucial in the run and pass game.
RB Cam Cook
Running back Cam Cook had a strong case for the No. 1 spot, but I felt there was just one player and position more important. Cook was by far the biggest addition of the offseason, transferring over from Jacksonville State. He led the nation in rushing last year and was a weathered back who ran the ball 295 times, the third-most in FBS.
Cook will be the lead back and is one of the few players you can pencil in as a sure-fire starter. But if Cook were to get injured, the depth is pretty solid behind him.
Latimer, who was a 4-star, has really come into his own and is a strong back. He was one of the backs who impressed me during the spring game. JUCO transfer Martavious Boswell also joined the team as an experienced back, freshman Chris Talley was a top back in WVU’s class, Andre Devine received some spring praise and Darius Morant is also a bigger back who has some Division I experience.
Obviously, Cook will be really important this season, and an injury to him would be detrimental, so there’s definitely a case for him to be the most important piece.
Wes King and other interior linemen
I went back and forth between interior offensive lineman Wes King and Cook for who will be most important for the 2026 season. Cook was a big-time transfer in the portal, and perfect for Rodriguez’s run-heavy offense.
But there were a couple of reasons why I picked King and an interior offensive line spot. Other than the actual running back, the guard position is the most important when it comes to running the ball up the middle. The guard pulls or walls off those big defensive tackles, which is crucial to a team that ran the ball 523 times with a 4-8 record. It doesn’t matter who is at running back if you can’t block for them.
King transferred from Wyoming in the offseason and is what Rodriguez was looking for in his new-look line. King is 6-foot-3 and 304 pounds. He’s a pretty big guard, especially compared to last year. There’s no depth chart out yet, but as a redshirt senior, he came to start and could even see reps at center. In a team that runs the ball a lot, King’s success and the rest of the interior line will go hand-in-hand with the rushing success of the team.
It’d make sense that Cook would be the most important, but there are running backs, like Latimer, that I’d feel more comfortable stepping up than some of the backup interior linemen. There is some young offensive linemen talent coming up, but they’re still young and learning how to play college ball. King is a veteran whose role will be important if WVU wants to have any success on the ground.
