Quick Hits: Rich Rod's Thoughts on Spring Game, QBs, Youngsters, Injury Update + More

Everything Rich Rodriguez said following today's scrimmage.

WVU Athletics Communications

The 2026 WVU Spring Festival is over, and with that, spring ball has come to a close. Following the event, head coach Rich Rodriguez recapped not only today's scrimmage but also his thoughts on the entire spring.

Thoughts on the spring festival

“Nice atmosphere, had a good crowd. I think our players really enjoyed it. It was pretty competitive. Not sure we executed really well at times, but I thought they played pretty hard. Had a couple silly penalties that we’ll have to get corrected. All in all, I think it was a pretty good spring. I think we found out some things that we wanted to find out.”

Injuries from today

“Only one guy got hurt. Prince (Strachan) banged up his shoulder, and I don’t think it’s a long-term thing — a few weeks. Outside of that, I don’t think we had any other injuries.”

How QB Mike Hawkins Jr. has looked

“He’s taken a leap every day. He’s a smart guy; it’s really important to him. He’s taken a lot of extra time to learn. In fourteen practices, I really think he’s taken a big step. Through the summer workouts, and I know he’ll be here a bunch in the summer watching film and probably meeting with the coaches…what we thought we were getting with Mike, he’s shown every bit of that.”

The freshman QBs Jyron Hughley and John Johnson III

“Yeah, they all can run, can’t they? They’re competitive guys. You’ll see a little nervousness in the throwing. I think sometimes you aim it instead of just throwing it. Things happen a lot faster, obviously, in this level than it does in the high school level.”

How the defense looked

“I thought we tackled pretty good. We still got to work getting off blocks and recognizing things a little bit. We didn’t throw the ball down the field as much as I would have liked to today, but I think we got some really good competition at some key spots.”

How freshman OL Kevin Brown has looked

“Kevin is not like a typical true freshman. He’s supposed to be in high school right now. He’s obviously a big, physical athlete. He’s been coached well, trained well. His dad did a great job training him. And he loves football. His mentality is infectious. He’s what we thought he was when we recruited him, and he’s going to have a great career here.”