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Pat White reveals thoughts ahead of West Virginia football jersey retirement

White's legendary No. 5 jersey is set to be retired, and he is quite grateful for the honor.
Dec. 27, 2008; Charlotte, NC, USA; West Virginia Mountaneers  quarterback Pat White (5) reacts after the Mountaineers 31-30 victory against the North Carolina Tar Heels at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Dec. 27, 2008; Charlotte, NC, USA; West Virginia Mountaneers quarterback Pat White (5) reacts after the Mountaineers 31-30 victory against the North Carolina Tar Heels at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Pat White hadone of the most legendary careersof any quarterback in college football history, and any individual player in West Virginia program history.

Now, this weekend, White is set to be honored for his incredible career as the Mountaineers willofficially retire his No. 5 jerseyahead of their Week 1 showdown with Coastal Carolina. After Jaden Bray, who currently wears the number, finishes his career this season, it will never be worn again by a WVU player.

Pat White opens up about feelings on number retirement

On Monday evening, Pat White made an appearance on the 2026 season's first edition of The Rich Rodriguez Show, where he discussed how it feels to see his number retired. When asked his first thoughts when he heard the news, he jokingly commented that hewondered if someonehad paid the school to do so.

"The first [thought] was how much money did Pat [McAfee] pay to this staff,” White said.

Pat White on having his number retired at WVU: “How much money did Pat McAfee pay?”

— Spencer Ripchik (@RipchikSpencer)August 31, 2026

White also admitted that he never truly thought that he would see the day that his number was retired. But now that the day is rapidly approaching, he's excited to get to share it with all those who helped him and supported him along the way.

“I thought it was impossible for this to happen, but it did,” he said. “And I'm glad that my family can experience Mountaineer greatness again.”

He also admitted that he thought of current West Virginia wide out Jaden Bray when the news was announced, and that he wanted to make sure Bray was able to finish out his career with the number.

"What happened in that moment was me thinking about Bray and him wearing number five, and him getting to have an excellent senior season,” White said.

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