Rich Rodriguez and WVU Pounce as Coaching Changes Create Recruiting Opportunities

West Virginia is looking to take advantage of other schools firing their head coaches.

West Virginia University head coach Rich Rodriguez | Christopher Hall – West Virginia on SI

Recruiting season is ramping up, and the month of November is going to be an important one for the future of West Virginia football. Several official and unofficial visits are lined up as the staff looks to add on to an already fairly large high school class in the weeks leading up to the early signing period in December.

Head coach Rich Rodriguez is taking advantage of some other Power Four schools around the country, making a head coaching change, targeting some of their commits. One of Penn State's top commits, offensive lineman Kevin Brown, is on his visit to West Virginia now and has ties to the program, given that his father, Tim, played for Rich Rod in the early 2000s. David Davis, another Penn State commit, took his official visit to WVU last weekend for the Coal Rush game.

Rodriguez was asked on Tuesday if he would continue to target many of the recruits who are committed to schools where there's a head coach opening.

"Oh, no question. When the job comes open, the first thing our recruiting staff does is look at who is committed to them and let's watch those guys. I mean, why not, right? They don't sign until the first week of December, so yeah, anybody that was committed to some of these other teams, everybody, I'm sure is jumping all over them, and you have to. It's always been that way, but it's even more so now that the early signing period is in December."

Of those who have openings, I have eight names that are worth keeping your eyes on, many of which are Penn State pledges. A few more names will likely be added to this list, especially when a few other jobs pop open.

Arkansas

OL Ben Mubenga (decommitted)

Florida

OL Javarii Luckas (one to watch)

Penn State

S Matt Sieg, OT Kevin Brown (visiting), LB Terry Wiggins, ATH David Davis (visited), DL Isaac Chukwurah — all offered.

Virginia Tech

OL Adrian Hamilton (one to watch)

MORE STORIES FROM WEST VIRGINIA ON SI

Between The Eers: Playing Both Ways? Is This a Four-Game Experiment for Curtis Jones?.

Spread & Over/Under Predictions for West Virginia vs. Houston

West Virginia in Pursuit of G League Forward Kok Yat Ahead of 2025-26 Season

Rich Rodriguez Explains Why Jimmori Robinson Didn't Play vs. TCU

Quick Hits: Jimmori Robinson Update, Pursuing Commits, Scotty Fox Evaluation + More