Rich Rod Isn't Worried Whatsoever About Overloading Cam Cook – That's a Dangerous Game

Cam Cook is a superstar, but the Mountaineers need to be careful with his usage.

Sep 5, 2026; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers running back Cam Cook (4) is interviewed after defeating the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

"Did he? I didn't even realize that," West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez said when Tony Caridi mentioned during his weekly radio show that running back Cam Cook had 30 carries in the team's season opener.

Obviously, Rodriguez is aware of how many totes of the pill Cook had, but during the game, it's not something he is keeping track of. He'll keep feeding his workhorse as long as he isn't sucking air or the o-line is losing at the point of attack.

"Those guys never complain about it. The ball only weighs, like, what? 18 ounces or something? They don't worry about carrying it too much. But I've never heard anybody complain about it. I had a quarterback one time, and we won the game. He had like 28 carries for 270 yards, and the media was kind of negative and said, 'Don't you think that's an awful lot for him to carry?' I'm like, first off, he wasn't complaining, and second off, that ball's not that heavy. And I said, as a matter of fact, if we had the ball six more times, he would have had 34 carries."

QB Mike Hawkins Jr. had 20 carries himself, which is a pretty high number too, and will need to be lowered as the season moves along. Running your QB that many times might work, but it doesn't mean it's smart. You need him to be healthy for this team to reach its full potential. The same goes for Cam Cook.

West Virginia University running back Cam Cook | Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

Caridi even stated, "But long-term, he (Cook) can't do 30 carries." And Rodriguez responded, "Well, hell, why not? I mean, if we're blocking it right, he might have 40. But the reality is, I want to get Amari Latimer some carries. And we've got to get maybe (Martavious) Boswell (some carries). And Lawrence Autry is a young freshman, and he's getting healthy, and we'd like to get him some carries too. It is a long season, but I'm not like, 'Oh, let's not give him so much he'll get beat up. I mean, Cam, I think he's wanting the ball."

This is the way Rodriguez has operated his entire career when it comes to running the football, so it's no surprise to hear him saying these types of things. That being said, it's still a dangerous game to play if you're hammering Cook that much. To be competitive in the Big 12 and accomplish the types of things this team wants to accomplish, they need him healthy.

"The ball only weighs 18 ounces," well, yeah, but the dudes hitting him are anywhere from 220 lbs to 320 lbs. Receiving those blows constantly takes a toll on the body, even for a guy like Cook, who rushed it 295 times a year ago, averaging 22.7 carries per game.

The Mountaineers have plenty of options behind him to keep him fresh and healthy, and need to trust those guys, mainly Amari Latimer, to be able to take some of the responsibility off Cook's plate.