Did Neal Brown Leave the Door Open for Nicco Marchiol to Take Over as QB1?

West Virginia might make a quarterback change, but the head coach is not letting anyone in on his plan.

West Virginia University redshirt sophomore quarterback Nicco Marchiol drops back to pass during the 2024 Gold-Blue Spring Game. / Christopher Hall

It's been a disappointing season to this point for West Virginia and starting quarterback Garrett Greene, but because of an upper-body injury he suffered against Kansas State, the Mountaineers may be forced to roll with redshirt sophomore Nicco Marchiol once again next week at Cincinnati.

Head coach Neal Brown didn't feel comfortable naming a starter for next week's game but also didn't exactly say that Greene would be the guy if he is healthy.

“I really can’t give you an answer until Garrett’s healthy, and he’s not healthy right now. I think it’s hard to lose jobs when you’re injured. I don’t think that’s a good practice. But Nicco played really well, and I’m happy for him. But I don’t have any like long-term answer for you right now. Has Nicco played well enough to deserve some playing time? Absolutely. But as far as starter or anything, we’re not going to talk about that until Garrett’s healthy, and that’s just not where we’re at right now.”

As I pointed out yesterday following the Jordan Lesley firing, I believe we're starting to see Brown do and say some things we're not accustomed to seeing. I mean, just a couple of weeks ago, Brown was offended by questions being asked about Greene's job security as the starter. Now, he's non-committal to Greene?

Something is off here.

Either Greene is seriously injured and a timetable for his return is being ironed out or Brown liked what he saw out of Marchiol versus Arizona and believes he gives the Mountaineers the best chance to win in these final four games of the season.

He's well aware that the win-loss results have to improve or he'll be shown the door. He fired Lesley which shows he's trying to find a solution. If he makes a quarterback change and Marchiol plays well enough in November, it could lead to Brown buying himself another season with Wren Baker and the administration,

Firing Lesley, in my opinion, has nothing to do with Brown's future as the West Virginia head coach. The results that occur following the change, however, could. WVU doesn't want to pay a $10 million buyout of Brown and the rest of his staff, in addition to the cost of a whole new coaching staff. But if Brown loses three of the last four, it's hard to see a scenario where he comes back. That's just my pure assessment of the situation and not something that has been said behind closed doors.

Neal Brown has to give something to this fanbase, and more importantly, this administration that they can get behind moving into 2025. Entering the offseason with Jordan Lesley and not seeing what Marchiol can do as the guy running the show plants a seed of doubt that much will change next fall.

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