Rodriguez Describes Recent Live Work by WVU's Young Guys as 'Pillow Fight'

It's safe to say that Rich Rod wasn't too pleased with the intensity on Wednesday.

WVU Athletics Communications

The one non-negotiable for Rich Rodriguez is playing hard. Every rep, every drill, every sprint, regardless of what the players are being asked to do, he expects maximum effort all the time, every day. It doesn't matter if you've been in the program for five years or five weeks — the standard is the same for everyone.

Last Saturday, WVU held its first scrimmage of the preseason, which went about 100 plays or so, and when asked about how that went, Rodriguez said, "I like the work ethic, and we’ve definitely gotten better every day.”

On Wednesday, they gave the young guys an opportunity to go live, and well, let's just say Rich Rod was the furthest thing from a happy camper.

“It was soft," he said. "I don’t know if anybody got a bruise at all today. There was a lot of patty-caking with the young guys. It was a pillow fight. Neither side won. Both sides had pillows. Big pillows.”

One poor day of intensity doesn't define WVU's youngsters

WVU Athletics Communications

Wednesday was a learning experience for those young guys. They have been busting their tail all offseason and camp long, but it was the first time they logged more reps in a live setting, so that first time out isn't always going to be the greatest, even from an intensity level, because a lot of those guys are still thinking rather than just playing.

Rodriguez has praised this freshman class multiple times throughout the offseason and believes there are more than a handful of guys who they will be able to play this fall — and that's beyond the obvious headliners in OT Kevin Brown, RB Amari Latimer, and S Matt Sieg.

Adjusting to the scheme is part of it for these young guys to play faster, but also it's understanding what Rich Rod's definition of going hard means. It's not the same as what they would define it as, and that takes some time to get used to. Rodriguez may not have been pleased with Wednesday's work, but I wouldn't take that as the sky is falling for the underclassmen whatsoever. They will adjust and be better next time out.

The Mountaineers have practice today, but there won't be any media availability until the conclusion of Friday evening's practice. Rich Rodriguez, an assistant coach, and a player or two will speak tomorrow, beginning at 6 p.m. The team will then hold its final scrimmage of the preseason on Saturday, and we'll hear how that went on Tuesday night.