West Virginia's Five Biggest Question Marks Heading Into Spring Ball

Looking at some of the main topics entering spring practice in Morgantown.

West Virginia University quarterback Nicco Marchiol warming up prior to the 2024 Gold-Blue Spring Game. / Christopher Hall

Rich Rodriguez and the West Virginia Mountaineers will begin spring practice on Tuesday, and with so many new faces populating the roster and coaching staff, there are a ton of questions surrounding this team.

We could spend all the livelong day talking about the uncertainty at every single corner of the roster, but we're going to highlight four of the biggest question marks, plus one under-the-radar topic.

Does someone emerge at quarterback?

West Virginia University quarterback Nicco Marchiol / Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

Before you even opened this article, you already knew this would be one of the five. It's the battle that everybody will have their eyes on, and rightfully so. As I've stated a number of times, I strongly believe that this will spill deep into fall camp before a decision is made. And don't be surprised if Rich Rodriguez doesn't announce the starter until the week of the game even if he's already told the team prior to the announcement.

There's also a chance that Nicco Marchiol and Jaylen Henderson will play in the game against Robert Morris, leaving Ohio (Week 2 opponent) second-guessing who they will see. Ideally, WVU is able to handle Robert Morris and Ohio and get both quarterbacks into each game.

How far does the o-line group have to go?

West Virginia University center Landon Livingston. / Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

Wyatt Milum is gone. Tomas Rimac is gone. Brandon Yates is gone. Ja'Quay Hubbard is gone. Nick Malone is gone. Johnny Williams IV is gone. Kyle Altuner is gone. Lucas Austin is gone. Sullivan Weidman is gone.

Whew. That's a lot of talent to replace.

Rich Rodriguez and new o-line coach Jack Bicknell Jr. brought in a ton of new faces through the transfer portal, but there's a lot of uncertainty with the current makeup of the room. Anytime you have that much attrition up front, you worry about chemistry and how the five can work together. I would expect a few more additions to this group in the next portal window to help strengthen the overall depth.

Is there enough to work with in the front seven?

West Virginia University linebacker Ben Cutter. / Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

The defensive line and linebacker group didn't get a whole lot of attention in the first wave of the portal, mainly because the coaching staff was so focused on rebuilding an entire offense and obviously had major concerns with the secondary, and rightfully so.

The defensive line has some nice pieces to work with, such as Jimmori Robinson (UTSA transfer), Edward Vesterinen, Hammond Russell IV, Asani Redwood, Corey McIntyre Jr., and Nate Gabriel, but three of those guys have had injury issues over the last year or so. Much of the two and three-deep is populated by redshirt freshmen or inexperienced players. Addressing the depth here has to be a top priority.

At linebacker, you have Reid Carrico, Chase Wilson, Braden Siders (Bandit), Ben Cutter, and a whole lot of unknowns. They need to improve the overall speed of this group, so if there's a potential starting MIKE that hits the market, expect WVU to be all over him.

Where does Zac Alley lean with defensive structure?

WVU Athletics Communications

New defensive coordinator Zac Alley didn't reveal much during his introductory press conference with the media last week other than they will be extremely multiple. At some point this offseason, Alley is going to lean into some sort of alignment more than others.

He did hint that a three-man front is probably going to be their base but didn't commit to what they would do in the second and third levels. I'm sure we'll see a lot of 3-3-5 with there being more reliable bodies in the back end (at least on paper). The defensive line isn't deep enough to rotate all game long with four on the field.

Is Rodney Gallagher III done as a two-way player?

West Virgnia University two-way player Rodney Gallagher lining up on defense. / Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

This is one most folks may have completely forgotten about. Gallagher started getting reps at nickel last season and did an okay job with it. The skillset is there for him to be a decent two-way player, but I have a feeling Rich Rodriguez will want to keep him strictly at receiver, especially when they have so many options to work with in the secondary.

Gallagher flashed his potential at times last season when he was actually used as a receiver and not some jet sweep or bubble screen gimmick. Assuming he's given the freedom to actually run routes, he could be in store for a breakout season.

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