WVU Could Be the Big 12 Sleeper Nobody is Talking About

Don't overlook the Mountaineers in year two under Rich Rodriguez.

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Texas Tech, BYU, Houston, and Utah. Those are the teams that most have competing for a Big 12 title in 2026. But as we all know, this league is always unpredictable, and one team will emerge from out of nowhere, finding themselves in the conversation entering November.

Could that team be West Virginia?

It's very possible that if they stay healthy through that long eight-game stretch to open the season, they will enter a gauntlet where they will face three of the aforementioned contenders. The expectation shouldn't be that the Mountaineers will be in the Big 12 title picture, but there are reasons to believe they could play their way into the mix.

Ground + pound

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The nation's leading rusher in 2025, Cam Cook, is the perfect type of back for a Rich Rodriguez offense. He can make people miss, finds ways to make something out of nothing, and can handle a heavy workload.

Last year at Jacksonville State, Cook toted the rock 295 times and had five games of 25+ attempts. He will get the ball early and often, and he's already proven that he can do it at this level, having spent the first two years of his career at TCU. If he stays healthy, he could put up some video-game-like numbers.

A dynamic QB with super high IQ

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When Rich Rodriguez has a true dual-threat quarterback, grab your popcorn, kick your feet up, and get ready to watch a show. Hawkins is incredibly fast and is known for his ability to make defenders look silly in space, but he can spin it, too, and much better than people think, I might add.

The thing that has really impressed the coaching staff is how well he processes information and can read a defense. He sees things most quarterbacks can't, especially this early in their career or in a new offense. Now, all that being said, it's not going to be all going to be perfect right out of the gate, as I've mentioned several times. There will be bumps along the way, as there are with every first-time starter. The potential, though, is through the roof, and if he works through the kinks early and hits his stride by Big 12 play, look out.

A favorable start to Big 12 play

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Year one is always a challenge. I don't care how good your transfer portal class is or how many players you were able to retain. In Oklahoma State's and Iowa State's case, much of the 2025 roster is no longer around, and getting a first-year coach with a brand new team that early in the season, before they gel, is perfect timing for WVU. Winning both of those games is far from a guarantee, but if they do, they are going to start getting everyone's attention.

Following the Iowa State game, the Mountaineers will return to Morgantown for a two-game homestand with the Coal Rush vs. Arizona and then a homecoming matchup with Cincinnati. How they handle those first four league games will tell us whether or not they are in the mix.