WVU football has 1 less worry with Jack Cassidy at placekicker
Kicker is perfect in securing touchbacks
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MORGANTOWN -- There's not a lot of automatics in college football anymore. There's uncertainty about whether players will transfer or not, if a Power Four school could actually beat a Group of Six school, or if NFL players can play in college again. Through the first two games of West Virginia's football season, there are still uncertainties as well. Will the defense be fixed? How will the run game look against a high-caliber defense?
But there's one certainty, and that comes from special teams. It's still early, but at this point, you can pencil in that for every Mountaineers kickoff, it'll be a touchback.
WVU had a kicking battle through camp between Western Kentucky transfer Jack Cassidy and returner and West Virginia native Nate Flower. Alabama transfer Peter Notaro was in the mix, too, but he was banged up for a part of the offseason, so he was a bit behind.
Cassidy was the most experienced of the group. He's a redshirt junior and played in 13 games for the Hilltoppers. The Irishman went 3-for-3 on field goals and had 51 touchbacks out of 72 kicks. Ultimately, it came down to experience and the bigger leg, so Cassidy won the job.
Through two games, out of 14 kickoffs, Cassidy has 14 touchbacks.
"Isn't it nice to have a guy who kicks off that you know is going to put it in the end zone most of the time?" Rodriguez said on his radio show Monday.
In the NFL, a touchback is frowned upon because the ball goes out to the 35-yard line, but in college, the ball still goes to the 25-yard line. A touchback doesn't allow for a return, which early in the year is what Rich Rodriguez was most afraid of because it's hard to practice returns. You don't have to worry if every kick just goes through the end zone.
This wasn't the case in 2025. In a committee of three kickers, which included Flower, WVU had 15 touchbacks out of 51 attempts. And then on those returns, the opponents averaged 21 yards after the catch per game. WVU had the 96th-ranked kickoff return defense in the country.
Those yards add up, so having a kicker who puts the ball at the 25 every time is refreshing. Flower did have a kickoff against U.T. Martin and put his through the end zone as well.
"That's one less worry," Rodriguez said.
Cassidy's also handled the field goals and extra points for the Mountaineers. WVU's only kicked two, one in each game, but he's made both from 38 and 35 yards. He hasn't been tested yet in the distance department, showing off how accurate his big leg is.
WVU's longest field goal last year was 50 yards, and the Mountaineers were 10-for-12 placekicking, missing two in the 40-yard range. If Cassidy's kickoffs are any indication of his power, hitting from 50-plus shouldn't be a problem.
Cassidy is perfect on extra points this season and has made all 10 of them so far.
This weekend, the Mountaineers face No. 25 Virginia, so Rodriguez will be focused a lot more on trying to run against the Cavaliers’ stout defensive front and trying to stop quarterback Beau Pribula. In a week full of challenges, having a consistent placekicker, as Rodriguez said, is one less worry.
Cassidy will be under more pressure as the season goes on, but through two games, there haven't been issues.
"For a position we weren’t sure about, as far as experience goes, with Nate and big Jack, they’ve done well," Rodriguez said.