Wren Baker Got Bit by a Copperhead — Then Made Sure It ‘Paid a Price’

The snake won the battle, but Wren Baker won the war.

Sep 5, 2026; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; West Virginia University Director of Athletics Wren Baker talks to fans before the game against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

As if Wren Baker hasn't had enough difficult things to deal with since arriving to West Virginia, Mother Nature had to get a piece of him as well.

A messy end to a legendary coach's career, firing a football coach, hiring two basketball coaches in two years, raising money for the athletic department's budget, and everything else that comes with the chaotic job of being an athletic director is nothing compared to a snakebite.

During his recent appearance on 3 Guys Before the Game, Baker told the story of what happened that painful day, just a few weeks before the start of the football season, when he was walking around in his basement.

“All of a sudden, I feel the most extreme pain in my foot. I knew instantly; even though I’m not an experienced victim of snake bites, I knew instantly. I looked, and I saw a copperhead, and he coiled back up, and he was ready to get me again. I’m not going to claim that I never curse. I’m pretty intentional about not trying to curse a lot around my daughters, and I particularly don’t take the Lord’s name in vain around them. I’m not going to go into what words I said, but I let out a string of words that had about every cuss word you could imagine in it, probably some that I made up that were new.”

Baker described the feeling as a “Sharp pain, burning, and every time your heart would beat, which is very rapidly during that time, it would hurt worse."

His wife drove him to the hospital, where he was given four rounds of antivenom, per his request. “I said, Doc, I’m not a doctor, and I’m also not an experienced victim of snakebites. So I have no ability to judge, but I really feel like I got some venom in there. Like, this really hurts.”

Baker is doing much better now and also has some peace of mind, knowing that he took care of the snake before leaving for the hospital.

“First, you got to bring me a shovel because I’m not leaving here until this snake pays a price," he told his wife, Heather. "So, another snake relocated. This one in four pieces. A few species of snakes do not lay eggs. They have live babies. This snake was pregnant and had five babies inside of it. Also…relocated.”

Watch the full episode here