The West Virginia Mountaineerspretty thoroughly handledUT-Martin on Saturday, securing a 52-7 win over their FCS opponent. Offensively, the Mountaineers looked impeccable. But defensively, thingsdid not look as great.
It'd hard to tell by looking at the box score, as UT-Martin didn't score once offensively. But in the first half, they had every chance to put points on the board. They lost the ball on a turnover on downs early in the game while driving down field. Later, they fumbled the ball in the redzone. There was a missed field goal, and a touchdown called back on a penalty which didn't really affect the play. By the end of the game, they had over 300 total offensive yards.
Rich Rodriguez was unhappy with his team's defensive play against UT-Martin
Immediately after the game, Rich Rodriguez was quick to identify his displeasure with the defense. While giving his first post-game interview on the field, he delivered his opinion on the defensive side of the ball – and just about any West Virginia fan who watched the game will probably agree with him.
"Our defense pitched a shutout, but I didn’t think played particularly well,"Rodriguez said.
Rich Rodriguez from the field in a brief interview - "Our defense pitched a shutout, but I didn’t think played particularly well."
— Chris Anderson (@CMAnderson247)September 12, 2026
That's a good summation of the#WVUdefense.
Rodriguez echoed the same sentiment in his post-game press conference with the rest of the media, and it is very hard to disagree with his displeasure. Something needs to change on the defensive side of the ball, as the team's performances against an FCS opponent and a Group of 6 opponent have been very concerning – and it will end up being costly against Power 5 opponents.
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