MORGANTOWN, West Virginia — Last month, West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez took a perceived shot at former head coach Neal Brown, saying he didn´t watch much of the Mountaineers´ tapes from last season, but that the part he did watch made him sick.
“I didn’t watch much of the tape (of last year’s team). I did see the finale against Texas Tech. I watched a little bit of that game…until I threw up.¨
Today, Rodriguez once again took what seemed like a slight towards the former Mountaineer head coach. When asked about Rodney Gallagher, Rodriguez claimed that he is a good player and has a chance to compete for WVU. However, when asked about the prospect of Gallagher being a two-way player, Rodriguez’s answer appears to reference past year’s squad under Brown’s leadership.
“If Rodney plays both ways, then we did a crappy job of filling our roster.”
Last season, Gallagher spent the beginning of the year featured on both offense and defense. This is not the plan of attack for Rodriguez. Gallagher will play exclusively on the offensive side of the ball for the Mountaineers in 2025.
With his comments, Rodriguez appears to imply that last year’s coaching staff did not do a well enough job to fill the defensive secondary. Given the numbers of last year’s defense, he would be correct with his evaluation.
The Mountaineers finished towards the bottom of nearly every defensive category in the Big 12 during 2024, particularly in pass coverage.
Rodriguez and defensive coordinator Zac Alley have their work cut out for them in fixing the defense. However, given both of their resumes, this will be an issue that will expected to be corrected in a hurry – just without the help of Gallagher.
(Photo by WVU Athletics)
