MORGANTOWN, West Virginia — Former West Virginia running back Avon Cobourne threw out a name that is going to get the attention of a lot of Mountaineer fans: Jahmile Addae.
Cobourne took to social media following West Virginia’s ugly defensive performance against Oklahoma State and called for Addae to return to Morgantown as the Mountaineers’ defensive coordinator.
Is it too early to be having this conversation? Absolutely.
Zac Alley is still West Virginia’s defensive coordinator, and one terrible performance shouldn’t be enough to completely change the way we view him as a coach. I said after the Oklahoma State game that I believe Alley is a very good defensive coordinator, and I still believe that. Rich Rodriguez hand-picked Alley to run his defense for a reason, and we saw what this defense was capable of in the 35-21 win over Virginia.
But there’s also no getting around what happened against Oklahoma State.
West Virginia gave up 609 total yards, and that kind of defensive performance is simply unacceptable. Missed tackles, blown assignments and big plays absolutely killed the Mountaineers, and when something like that happens, the defensive coordinator is naturally going to take a lot of the heat.
That has led some WVU fans to already call for Alley to be fired.
I think that is premature. But Cobourne’s larger point is interesting because if West Virginia ever does have an opening at defensive coordinator, Addae should absolutely be near the top of the list.
Addae is currently the defensive backs/cornerbacks coach for the Miami Dolphins, and his résumé has become extremely impressive. Before joining Miami in 2026, Addae spent two seasons coaching cornerbacks with the Buffalo Bills. Miami noted when hiring him that Buffalo led the NFL in passing defense in 2025, allowing just 156.9 passing yards per game. He previously coached the secondary at Miami and was the defensive backs coach at Georgia during the Bulldogs’ 2021 national championship season.
And, of course, Addae knows West Virginia.
He played safety for the Mountaineers from 2001-05 and later returned to Morgantown as a coach, working with West Virginia’s secondary in 2019 and cornerbacks in 2020. This wouldn’t be bringing in somebody who has to learn what WVU is about. Addae understands the program, understands the state and understands the expectations that come with coaching in Morgantown.
That matters.
It would also be fascinating to see what Addae could do as a defensive coordinator after spending the last several years learning and developing at some of the highest levels of football. He has coached in the SEC, won a national championship at Georgia and is now coaching defensive backs in the NFL. He has developed a reputation as a strong secondary coach and recruiter, and at this point in his career, becoming a major college defensive coordinator would be a logical next step if he eventually wants to move back to the college game.
Again, none of this means West Virginia should fire Zac Alley today.
Alley deserves an opportunity to get this defense fixed. One week ago, WVU held a ranked Virginia team to 21 points and made some major adjustments after struggling early. Now, one week later, the defense gives up 609 yards and suddenly people want everybody fired. College football has a way of producing those emotional swings.
There is also a personnel issue that can’t be ignored. West Virginia simply didn’t invest as heavily on the defensive side of the football during the offseason as it did offensively, and there are legitimate questions about whether Alley has enough high-end talent, particularly in the secondary, to consistently play the type of defense Rodriguez and Alley want to play.
So give Alley time. Let’s see how the defense responds.
But Cobourne has planted a seed that probably isn’t going away.
If West Virginia’s defense continues to struggle throughout the season and Rodriguez eventually decides a change needs to be made, Jahmile Addae would make an incredible amount of sense. He’s a former Mountaineer, an accomplished recruiter, a national championship-winning assistant and now an NFL defensive backs coach.
Would he leave the NFL to come back home and run West Virginia’s defense? That’s a question for another day.
But if that defensive coordinator position ever becomes available, there should absolutely be a phone call.
And Jahmile Addae should be one of the first people on the other end of it.
