The West Virginia Mountaineers are just five days away from kicking off the 2026 season against Coastal Carolina, and Rich Rodriguez is finally ready to admit that he knows who will be starting at quarterback for his team during that Week 1 clash with the Chanticleers – he's just not naming the starter.
Rodriguez defaulted to the same answer as he did last season earlier in camp when pressed on the issue, saying that fans would find out at 11:59 A.M. on September 5, just one minute before opening kickoff. But he hinted that he "probably" knows his starter.
But on Monday night on the first edition of The Rich Rodriguez Show, Rodriguez made it clear he knows who is taking the first snap, saying he knows who the starting quarterback is. But he fell short of naming the player.
WVU Rich Rodriguez said he knows who the starting QB is. He doesn't want Coastal Carolina to know, which is why he's keeping quiet.
— Spencer Ripchik (@RipchikSpencer) August 31, 2026
Rich Rodriguez still unwilling to name West Virginia football's starting quarterback
It's odd that he's not willing to give a name, as national reporting has already disclosed that the Mountaineers will be naming transfer Michael Hawkins Jr. as the starter. That information likely came from inside the program, but Rodriguez is still interested in keeping the information from offically being announced to the public at-large.
He also indicated that he doesn't want Coastal Carolina to know who the starter will be, which is a bit odd given the fact that he stated previously during camp that there is no strategic advantage to withholding the information. Perhaps, it really does boil down to Rodriguez not feeling like letting people know, which is something else he hinted at during press availability during camp.
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