Rich Rodriguez adds game-changing size at WR with WVU's latest commit

While the results on the field will need to be a bit better in 2026 than they were last season for WVU football, there is little doubt that head coach Rich Rodriguez can still recruit some high-level talent to Morgantown.

Now, with his latest pick-up in the Class of 2027, Rodriguez is giving the Mountaineers a significant boost in size at the wide receiver position.

Lengthy 2027 WR Roscoe Hayes commits to the West Virginia Mountaineers

The Mountaineers added a commitment on Friday from Roscoe Hayes, a 2027 wide receiver out of Westlake HS (GA). Hayes is not yet rated by 247Sports, but had offers on the table from multiple other Power 4 programs, including Cincinnati, Kansas State, Kentucky, NC State, Pitt, Wake Forest, Wisconsin. And one big intangible Hayes has going for him is his size.

Hayes is listed at 6-foot-6 and 183 pounds – quite the size for a wide receiver, nonetheless one that is still a junior in high school. You can teach a lot of things, but size isn't one of them. And Hayes will certainly have an inherit advantage over many defensive backs he lines up against in college due to his lengthy frame. It's a move that fits with the program's recruiting strategy this past offseason, which has involved targeting high-caliber athletes with eye-popping physical attributes.

“We want to get faster, bigger, right?” Rodriguez has said about the recruiting focus on athleticism and size. “And we did.”

And he's not just a big body to add to the room – his skill set is also legit. As a junior, Hayes recorded 47 catches for 646 yards and six touchdowns on the gridiron. He becomes the second commit in the 2027 recruiting class for the Mountaineers alongside defensive lineman DaJour Webb.