Rodriguez Announces Chance Trickett as West Virginia’s Director of Player Evaluation

West Virginia University football coach Rich Rodriguez announced Chance Trickett has been added to the Mountaineer coaching staff as the director of player evaluation.

“Chance has built an outstanding resume of scouting, evaluating and recruiting experience at the FBS, Power Four and NFL levels,” Rodriguez said. “His wide-spread experience and knowledge in these areas, along with being a West Virginia football legacy, will make an immediate impact in our program.”

Trickett brings extensive experience in player evaluation, roster construction and long-term talent strategy at both the collegiate and professional levels. Throughout his career, he has overseen multi-year roster planning, aligned evaluation with financial strategy, and integrated analytics and professional networks to identify high-level prospects and long-term cultural fits. He has also developed a strong national network across high school, college, financial and agency circles, with a proven track record of identifying undervalued talent and maximizing roster efficiency.

Trickett joins the West Virginia University football program after spending nearly a decade as a college area scout with the Los Angeles Rams organization. Prior to his time in the NFL, he served as the director of football recruiting at Louisiana Tech University and worked for two seasons as a recruiting assistant at Florida State University.

During his time with the Rams, Trickett led comprehensive player evaluations that incorporated film study, analytics, verified measurables, and psychological and cognitive components to support draft board construction and roster strategy decisions. He also produced detailed positional value assessments and roster impact reports used for multi-year draft planning and contract strategy, while developing internal valuation models designed to mirror current NIL and college football market structures. In addition, he helped integrate advanced scouting technology to improve player projection accuracy and long-term roster planning.

Trickett’s work in scouting has earned national recognition, including the BART List Award for scouting excellence in 2025 and the “Inside the League” scout/agent organization’s Best Draft Award in 2024.

A Morgantown (WV) native, Trickett earned his bachelor’s degree from Florida State in 2011 and now returns home to help shape the Mountaineers’ roster and long-term personnel strategy.

MORE STORIES FROM WEST VIRGINIA ON SI