QB Nicco Marchiol Among 'Most Improved' on WVU's Roster

The lefty gunslinger is making significant progress in his development.

West Virginia redshirt sophomore quarterback Nicco Marchiol. / Christopher Hall

Nicco Marchiol isn't vying for the starting quarterback job at WVU for the 2024 season, but in 2025 it'll be his job to lose.

Last week, redshirt freshman Sean Boyle entered the transfer portal, leaving Marchiol and Garrett Greene as the lone scholarship quarterbacks on the roster... for now. Incoming freshman Khalil Wilkins will arrive in the summer, but will need some time to develop before throwing his hat into the ring for the starting gig.

Marchiol has been patiently awaiting his turn to be the guy in Morgantown, similar to how Greene did from 2020 through much of 2022. He could have popped into the portal for an opportunity to start elsewhere this upcoming season, but he's witnessed firsthand with Garrett Greene how being patient pays off. He's also experienced that at any given moment, he could be running the show against Pitt in the Backyard Brawl or in a Big 12 Conference matchup with Texas Tech.

Each year Marchiol has been in the program, he's made massive jumps in his development. He went from an extremely raw, yet talented quarterback in year one to being able to lead the Mountaineers to a pair of wins when Greene nursed an ankle injury in year two. Now, the expectation should be that there is little to no drop off if/when Marchiol is inserted into a game. The coaching staff has been pleased with his ability to identify what the defense is presenting and has shown marked improvement in the pocket.

During Saturday's Gold-Blue spring game, Marchiol completed 10-of-19 passes for 82 yards, a touchdown, and one interception. The pick is certainly one that could have been avoided, but it came at a crucial time of the game with only a few seconds left on the clock and in the red zone. Head coach Neal Brown wasn't jumping for joy that he threw the pick, obviously, but in a weird way is happy it happened.

"He’d like to have that one throw right before half back. Those are great teaching moments," Brown said. "Six seconds, it's hard to replicate that in practice and so I'm glad we got it on tape because we can coach off of it. The deal is you got six seconds and so, you want to make sure you got to throw it in the end zone, or you got to kill the clock and give yourself a chance to get three points. The only thing you can't do there is turn it over and he didn't see him. That's a teachable moment. It'll help make all those quarterbacks better because that's something we can talk about as we're teaching situational football moving through the summer, but he's very much improved. One of our most improved players on our entire team."

Aside from the interception, he had a pretty strong outing. Don't be fooled by the numbers, it's a spring game. He's growing more comfortable in the offense, trusting his teammates to make plays, and is starting to display added confidence with each rep. If Greene can do his part by leading West Virginia to another nine-win or better season and Marchiol continues to trend in an upward trajectory, the Mountaineers will be in great shape when the baton is passed next offseason.