Rich Rodriguez Sees 'Next-Level' Stuff in Freshman QB Scotty Fox Jr.

There for a while it looked like West Virginia wouldn't find anything to be excited about to end the season and build with in 2026. Over the last couple of weeks, true freshman quarterback Scotty Fox Jr. and a few others have changed the narrative and feeling around this team.

Last week, WVU came oh so close to snapping its skid, but at least restored its confidence and was able to build on that performance to get to the finish line this week with a 45-35 win over No. 22 Houston.

Fox was smart and decisive with the football once again, leading to a 13-for-22 day through the air, throwing for 157 yards and a touchdown while tacking on another 65 yards and two scores with his legs.

“Our freshman quarterback is growing up. He’s really poised, seeing things out there, proud of the way he played,” Rodriguez stated. “He took care of the ball, didn’t throw it into harm’s way, and was seeing the field. Our quarterbacks make so many decisions in our offense in the run game, the pass game, you’re not going to be 100% but for a young guy, he was pretty solid. He ran the ball well. He’s got next-level arm talent, and you can see that. There’s not a throw he can’t make, and he made some phenomenal ones today.”

Fox had a beautiful 24-yard touchdown pass to Cam Vaughn in the first half, which was equally as beautiful a catch.

GOTTA BE CAM 😮‍💨 @camvaughn4_

📺 FS1pic.twitter.com/sNEUqIRtjc
— West Virginia Football (@WVUfootball) November 1, 2025

There were a couple of other big-time throws he made, one of which was a 53-yard toss to Jeff Weimer and a 26-yarder to Rodney Gallagher III over the middle of the field. Those three dimes he dropped are the types of things you don't typically see from a true freshman, hence why Rodriguez called his arm talent "next level."

Now that he's strung together two strong outings, it will give Rodriguez confidence to open up even more of the playbook for him down the stretch.

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