Ifthere is one thingthat West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez's offenses are known for, it's their high-octane, fast-paced offense.
During his first stint with the program in the 2000’s, Rodriguez and the Mountaineers innovated an offensive system that was uncommon at the time, but several years later, multiple facets of that style of play are common across all levels of football.
But last year, Rodriguez's offense was still the fastest-paced in FBS football. And with the way the game has changed, there are questions about how effective an offense like Rodriguez's can be in wearing down an opponent.
Rich Rodriguez reveals key to wearing down defenses
During the first edition of this year's Rich Rodriguez Show, the West Virginia head coach was asked about keeping his offense effective in wearing down opponents. And he made it clear what the Mountaineers must do to make sure that happens.
“If you can get first downs: that's the key, is getting first downs and getting three more plays,” Rodriguez said. "Our pace and our tempo, we're used to it. I don't know if we had a chance much last year to show it, because we weren't very good so we weren't getting first downs.”
Last year, the Mountaineers averaged just 18.8 first downs per game, which wasn't good enough to even crack the Top 100 teams in FBS football. So going into this season, that will likely be a big focus for his offense.
He also alluded to teams getting injuries at convenient times to slow down drives, which he complained about at moments last season.
"Now I know some teams have a magical, mystical injury,” Rodriguez said.
But he also indicated that he believes it will be less of an issue this season as rule changes continue to be implemented to prevent such nefarious interference in the natural flow of the game.
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