Why West Virginia Should Think Twice Before Chasing a Big Name QB in the Portal

The transfer portal isn't set to officially open for another few weeks, but there are already some big names who have announced they will be available, such as DJ Lagway (Florida), Dylan Raiola (Nebraska), and Brendan Sorsby (Cincinnati). Others will eventually join them, creating a really expensive QB market.

Rich Rodriguez and West Virginia are in an interesting situation at the position, following an impressive freshman season from Scotty Fox Jr., who started the final five games for the Mountaineers. The team went 2-3 in those five starts, but was a much more competitive team with him running the offense, aside from the Texas Tech loss, of course.

Fox had two 300-yard performances and led the Mountaineers to a road win over a ranked Houston team, where he totaled 222 yards and three touchdowns (two rushing).

As well as he played, he had his moments where he looked like a true freshman and someone who needed more time to develop.

So, what do the Mountaineers do this offseason at the position?

Do they take a big swing on a big name? Do they add a veteran who can push Fox for the starting job? Maybe take a flyer on another young quarterback? Or do they roll with what they got?

My assumption is that they will go with Option 2 — add a veteran who can push Fox for the starting job.

There's no reason to go spend big money on a big name when you have so many other areas of the roster that need to be improved. The program isn't just a dynamic quarterback away from being a Big 12 or playoff contender, so throwing a ton of money at one of these top options doesn't seem ideal.

Yeah, this may come across as me saying West Virginia shouldn't go for it, but that's not the angle here whatsoever.

Rodriguez is entering year two in this rebuild and can't afford to skip steps and pull the trigger on something they're not ready for. Yes, a top-notch quarterback gives you an opportunity to compete for something meaningful in November, but it doesn't matter if you don't have the resources to fix the offensive line, replenish the secondary, and add depth in the front seven.

WVU can get an unproven dynamic dual-threat quarterback out of the portal who may end up being just as good or perhaps better than some of the big fish out there, which would save them a ton of money to which they can spread to the other areas of need.

Rodriguez's approach could change, but he's never really indicated that they will be big spenders in the portal for one particular player. He's talked about ways they can save money and go cheaper by bringing in JUCO guys and signing a large high school class. And considering that a big percentage of this team will be true freshmen, it wouldn't make a ton of sense to push all the chips to the center of the table at quarterback.

Trust the staff's ability to develop Scotty Fox and identify a veteran in the portal who comes at a reasonable price and can be in the mix for the starting job.

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