Former New York Jets Star Anthony Becht Interviews for West Virginia Job

Anthony Becht, a former New York Jets tight end, interviewed for the vacant head-coaching job at West Virginia, per an NFL insider.

Feb 23, 2023; Seattle, WA, USA; St. Louis Battlehawks head coach Anthony Becht during the second half against the Seattle Sea Dragons at Lumen Field. St. Louis defeated Seattle 20-18. / Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

These days, former New York Jets tight end Anthony Becht serves as the team’s radio analyst on gameday. During the spring, her serves as the head coach for the UFL’s St. Louis BattleHawks.

Well, his head-coaching credentials may be going up a bit. Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Becht has interviewed for the vacant head-coaching job at West Virginia.

Aside from his head-coaching experience, Becht is a former WVU star and legend. He was inducted into the West Virginia Sports Hall of Fame earlier this year when the Mountaineers played Iowa State, which allowed his son, Cyclones quarterback Rocco Becht, to be in attendance.

Since his playing career ended, he has worked as analyst for ESPN and embarked on a coaching career with St. Louis in 2023.

In each of his two seasons with the BattleHawks, Becht has led them to a 7-3 season. While St. Louis failed to make the playoffs in 2023, it won its XFL conference in 2024 but lost to San Antonio in the XFL Conference championship game.

The XFL and the USFL merged last year to become the UFL.

Before the BattleHawks, he was a tight ends coach with the San Diego Fleet in 2019.

Schefter also reported that he has received inquiries from NFL teams about coaching interest.

Hiring Becht would certainly make the folks in Morgantown happy.

The Drexel Hill, Pa., native played for WVU from 1996-99 and left second all-time in receptions (83) and yardage (1,178) for a tight end. He also earned all-Big East honors twice and honorable mention all-America honors once.

The Jets selected Becht No. 27 overall in the 2000 NFL Draft. He played 11 seasons over 12 years at tight end for the Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, St. Louis Rams, Arizona Cardinals and Kansas City Chiefs. From 2000-10, he played in 161 straight games, trailing only Brett Favre and Peyton Manning in that span.

He finished his pro career with 199 receptions for 1,621 yards and had 22 touchdowns. Becht set career highs of 40 receptions and 356 yards in 2003 for New York,

The Jets are looking for both a new coach and general manager, but Becht’s name has not been connected to the job. New York owner Woody Johnson has partnered with The 33rd Team to help vet candidates for the search, which should start in full when the regular-season ends.

New York, which has four games remaining, has been officially eliminated from playoff contention.