Rich Rodriguez's choice for starting QB is revealed, and it should excite WVU fans

Despite Rich Rodriguez's promises that we wouldn't know who West Virginia's starting quarterback will be until 11:59 AM on September 5, we now have an answer to who is expected to start for the Mountaineers come their season oepner against Coastal Carolina.

According to Pete Nakos of On3, the Mountaineers areexpected to name Michael Hawkins Jr.their starting quarterback to begin the season. Hawkins enters his third season of eligibility, transferring to West Virginia this offseason after spending two years with Oklahoma.

Michael Hawkins Jr. to earn starting quarterback role for WVU football: What does it mean for the Mountaineers

While Rodriguez has been relatively mum about who will earn the start at signal caller, all of the internal buzz that has leaked from inside the program this fall has indicated Hawkins was the front-runner during most of the preseason. So it's not necessarily a surprise that he won the job.

But all signs point to the fact that not only should it not be a surprise, but fans should be downright thrilled about the development. Not because Scotty Fox Jr. is a bad quarterback – in fact, it's quite the opposite.

Fox Jr. was the best of the four different players who started last year, and that was as a true freshman. Now, despite another year of development in the program and six starts under his belt, Rodriguez and his staff still think Hawkins is the right guy for the job. That means the play at signal caller should be drastically improved.

And plenty of national analysts agree with that sentiment. The team at the Cover 3 Podcast with CBS Sports detailed earlier in the offseason why Hawkinscould front a significant turnaroundfor the Mountaineers, and ESPN analyst and podcaster Josh Pate recently stated his belief that Hawkins could be a 1,000-yard rusher.

And don't forget that West Virginia's general manager Chuck Lillie and defensive coordinator Zac Alley also spent time at Oklahoma when Hawkins was there. They liked what they saw well enough to bring him into another program once he hit the portal, and it's not uncommon for players pinpointed by former staff for their new program to work out well.

So Michael Hawkins Jr. will be the starter, if everything goes as planned next week. And as you can tell, there are more than a few rasons for that prospect to excite fans.

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