West Virginia’s director of athletics, Wren Baker, appeared on the 3 Guys Before the Game podcast yesterday and he covered a wide array of topics around WVU athletics.
MORGANTOWN, West Virginia — The question on the minds of all West Virginia fans right now is “what is the future of Neal Brown as the head coach of the Mountaineers?”
Wren Baker, West Virginia Athletics Director, answered that question and more on the 3 Guys Before the Game podcast yesterday. When asked about his expectations for West Virginia’s football program and what Neal Brown will have to do to remain the head coach of the team, Baker said the following:
Baker on West Virginia Football and the Future of Neal Brown
“I never – and I know this is going to sound like a cop out and fans will get on to me about – but I have never once talked about expectations in terms of a win total. I just think there’s too much that can be influenced by that.”
Baker continued: “For me, I want to look at things like, ‘are we doing things the right way? Are we recruiting and retaining players? Do we play football that’s disciplined football? And is there momentum there for us to build? I know we need to win more games and Neal Brown does too.'”
Thoughts on What Wren Baker Had to Say
While it’s commendable for Baker to support his head coach, and it would make zero sense for him to say anything but what he said here. It’s unlikely that these are his true feelings on the football program and Neal Brown. Brown has failed over the past 4 seasons and has not met any of the criteria that Baker said was important to him.
Brown has not recruited or retained players well. His teams have not been disciplined. And there is no momentum to build the program. In fact, the opposite is true for each. West Virginia has not recruited particularly well and certainly has not retained players well under Brown. The Mountaineers have been incredibly undisciplined on the field. And despite what Brown would say, he’s put together one of the worst rosters in the Big 12 Conference. He has had four years to build a roster and he’s put together arguably the worst in the conference.
With that said, Wren Baker is doing what he should be doing right now. He’s supporting his coach publicly while keeping any open mind about the future of the football program.
https://wvmetronews.com/2023/06/08/3-guys-before-the-game-wren-baker-visits-episode-466/
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https://voiceofmotown.com/former-mountaineer-players-believe-raequan-battle-is-special/
https://voiceofmotown.com/big-12-basketball-coaches-in-favor-of-adding-former-big-east-school1/
