One of the key storylines heading into West Virginia’s matchup with Houston revolved around the play of true freshman Scotty Fox Jr., who would be getting his third consecutive start. Undoubtedly, Fox Jr. had a noticeable progression from h start to his second start as he threw for 301 yards iand two scores in the loss to TCU.
In the matchup with Houston, we were looking for intangibles and improvements in the young quarterback that went beyond the box score. After the 45-35 win against the No. 22 Houston Cougars on the road, WVU football may have found its quarterback of the future.
Scotty Fox Jr. vs Houston
Fox Jr. completed 13-of-2 pass attempts, throwing for 157 yards. His lone touchdown through the air came on an impressive catch by Cam Vaughn for 24 yards in the first quarter. More so than the previous game against TCU, WVU sought to get its quarterback involved in the running game. Fox finished the day with 10 carries for 65 yards and two rushing touchdowns. Again, beyond the box score, which was serviceable, Fox seemed comfortable leading the offense. You could tell he went through his progression well, stayed composed in the pocket, and made big throws while his offensive line played well both in run and pass blocking.
“Our freshman quarterback is growing up,” head coach Rich Rodriguez said after the game. “He took care of the ball, didn’t throw into harm’s way, and he was seeing the field…for a young guy he was pretty solid and he ran the ball well. But he’s got next-level arm talent, there’s not a throw he can’t make.”
Big Time Plays
With Houston’s sights set on a fourth quarter comeback, West Virginia’s offense had to deliver on a few occasions in order to seal the victory.
With the Mountaineers holding a 31-28 lead in the fourth quarter, they were facing a 4th & 4 from the Houston 34-yard line. Fox took a quarterback-designed run to the house to give WVU a 10-point lead with 13 minutes to play.
On the ensuing WVU drive, Fox threw his best deep ball of the day, connecting with Jeff Weimer for a 53-yard gain on 3rd & 9. This completion eventually led to a WVU touchdown run by Diore Hubbard who had his best game as a Mountaineer rushing for 108 yards on 29 carries.
Has Rich Rodriguez found his QB1 for the 2026 season?
While the start of the 2026 season is months from now, a 3-6 football team should be looking to the future. The true freshman quarterback is the only Mountaineer quarterback to take every snap at the position for an entire game, and he has done so in consecutive weeks now.
While seemingly anything can happen in the era of the transfer portal, Coach Rodriguez will likely be considering Fox as an early candidate for the starting job next season. If anything good can come from this injury-riddled, disappointing season, it would be to find a quarterback for the future, and West Virginia may have found exactly that in Scotty Fox Jr.