The Three Things WVU Absolutely Must Accomplish by the End of Spring Football

Rich Rodriguez and the Mountaineers have a crucial few weeks ahead.

West Virginia University running back Jahiem White / Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

West Virginia returned from spring break this week and are about halfway through spring practice. While there is a ton of work that still needs to be done over the next several months, there are a handful of things that the Mountaineers can accomplish in the next couple of weeks before they break on April 5th.

Find reliable playmakers

Yes, the transfer portal will open back up in April, so there will be opportunities to add, but the reality is this batch of transfers won't be as deep as the first wave that took place back in the winter. What you have now will, more than likely, be the guys you tend to lean on.

In the backfield, Rich Rodriguez needs to find at least one capable running back to complement Jahiem White. If they find two, great, but it could be something they look for in the portal. Redshirt freshman Diore Hubbard has been mentioned a bunch and veteran Tye Edwards is starting to find his rhythm.

At receiver, there are a ton of question marks. Does Rodney Gallagher III take a step? Can Cam Vaughn be elite in the Big 12? Does Jaden Bray stay healthy and contribute? How does Preston Fox factor *back* in? Which underclassmen are ready to be a part of the rotation? Anytime you have more questions than answers at a position, it's dangerous territory. They don't need to have the whole room figured out by April 5th, but they need to find at least three guys who they can rely on.

Establish roots of an identity

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

We can talk all the livelong day about playing with a "hard edge," and while that is certainly a factor, the identity I'm referencing is figuring out what they do well. Whenever you have so many new faces populating both sides of the football, or even one side of it for that matter, it will take time for cohesion to take place.

Offensively, there's probably not as much to figure out because Rich Rod's offenses are typically run-heavy and feature the QB run game. He'll make some tweaks on a yearly basis, but for the most part, you know what you're going to get. For him, it's more about figuring out what run schemes work with this group and how they want to attack in the passing game.

For Zac Alley and the defense, it's truly about learning the personnel. Do they have enough capable bodies to be a true multiple unit? Or do they have to lean heavily toward a three-man front due to a lack of quality depth along the defensive line? Can he trust the back end to be able to pressure the quarterback as much as he has in the past? Or does he have to be a little more conservative in year one? A good chunk of this defensive identity should be figured out by the end of spring.

Retain key players

West Virginia University running back Jahiem White / Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

Running back Jahiem White doesn't appear to be going anywhere, but the coaching staff has to make sure he realizes how important he is to them before the end of spring ball. He's not the only one, either. Other intriguing young players may be tempted to "test the market" rather than staying put and developing. Rodriguez won't lose sleep over guys hitting the portal, largely because a huge portion of this team just transferred in, but you need to be able to hang on to the top-tier talents, even if they may be a year away from playing.

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