What You Can Expect to See in the WVU Spring Game on Saturday

Prepping Mountaineer fans for what is likely to take place inside Milan Puskar Stadium this weekend.

WVU Athletics Communications

The spring game isn't what it used to be.

You know, split the team up into two, roll the ball out, and play something that resembles a real game. A year ago, teams were hesitant to play the spring game because they didn't want guys putting on a show and then getting contacted by others telling them to hit the portal.

This year, there is no transfer portal after spring ball, so what you see now is what you'll see in September. If anything changes, as WVU head coach Rich Rodriguez has pointed out several times, then there was some tampering going on.

So, back to Saturday, what will we see?

There will definitely be some live 11-on-11 work, but how game-like it really is is anyone's guess. How many plays and altered results to work on situational stuff is also unknown, but don't be surprised if a fourth-down attempt is run twice or if they move the ball to create a shorter/longer distance to go or flip it over to the other hash to take a look at something.

There will be some competitive drills as well, one of which will probably be something with the kickers at the end, if I had to guess. And who knows? Maybe even big man 1-on-1 red zone drills to generate some entertainment.

As far as play-calling is concerned, Rich Rod did state earlier this week that it'll be a mix of him, Travis Trickett, and Rhett Rodriguez. “Travis (Trickett) and Rhett (Rodriguez) called it in the first blue-white scrimmage the other day. It was fun for me to kind of sit back and watch. Rhett will call some, Travis will call some, I’ll call some. And the two-point plays, we’ll probably go in the stands again.”

Quarterbacks may not be fully live with Scotty Fox Jr. dealing with a minor hamstring injury, and they know what they have in Mike Hawkins Jr.; however, Rodriguez could be talked into letting them get a few plays where they are free game.

“Well, I want them to hopefully not have mental mistakes," Rodriguez responded when asked what he wants to see on Saturday. "That’s probably going to happen a little bit, but I just want to see a certain level of competitiveness that we stress, whether you want to call it hard edge or whatever you want to call it — everybody’s playing hard, everybody’s competing, nobody’s loafing, and they’re enjoying playing the game.”