West Virginia’s defensive issues have gone far beyond a bad stretch or one coach’s rough patch.
Over the last two conference games against Iowa State and Oklahoma State, the Mountaineers have surrendered 1,186 total yards, including 701 through the air and 485 on the ground. They’ve also given up 19 explosive passing plays of 15 yards or more and 14 rushing explosives of 10 yards or more.
That kind of output belongs in a video game. On the field, it has left West Virginia looking overwhelmed in every phase.
Zac Alley is the obvious place for frustration to land, and that makes sense. As the defensive coordinator, he is responsible for putting the right players in position and getting stops out of the group.
But the problems on this side of the ball are bigger than play-calling or alignment. Execution has been poor across the board.
Players have been misfitting runs, taking bad angles to the football and failing to communicate.
The roster construction matters too. By the time West Virginia started trying to patch the defense, the budget was already stretched thin.
The transfer production that was brought in from the Group of Six level did not exactly look like Power Four material, with Harper Holloman and Zeke Durham-Campbell standing out as the exceptions. The idea that JUCO additions, average Group of Six players with traits and returning players who were not performing well a year ago could all step into bigger roles was always a risky bet.
This defense needed more proven production, not just bodies and snaps. Players making the jump from Group of Six, FCS or D-II usually need more than experience to survive at this level.
At this point, there’s no sugarcoating it: the defense is flat-out bad. Alley and his staff need to coach it better, but they also do not have enough talent to mask the mistakes. Both things can be true.
Still, the larger blame sits with Rich Rodriguez, who built the roster and hired the staff. That’s the structure that’s producing these results, and the results are ugly.
West Virginia is dead last in the Power Four in total defense at 491.3 yards allowed per game, which puts the Mountaineers 133rd nationally. Only Southern Miss, Colorado State, Ball State, Missouri State and UL Monroe are worse.
That’s the company West Virginia is keeping right now.
Rodriguez’s record against first-year head coaches since his return to Morgantown has not helped the mood either. He is 1-4 in those games, and if the opener had gone a little longer, there’s a real chance that mark could be 0-5.
The results:
at Ohio: L 10-17 (Brian Smith)
at UCF: L 13-45 (Scott Frost)
vs. Coastal Carolina: W 31-24 (Ryan Beard)
vs. Oklahoma State: L 24-41 (Eric Morris)
at Iowa State: L 42-45 (Jimmy Rogers)
None of those coaches were exactly seen as giants.
The frustrating part for West Virginia is that this was supposed to be the softer section of the schedule. A 5-1 or 6-0 start looked realistic. Instead, the Mountaineers are staring at the possibility of being 3-3 midway through the season, with the toughest stretch still ahead, after dropping games to two first-year head coaches - one at home in primetime in front of a near sold-out crowd, and one against what was viewed as the weakest team in the Big 12.
And that’s where the wasted opportunity really stings. The offense, powered by Mike Hawkins Jr. and Cam Cook, has been good enough to give this team a chance.
Back in June, the point was simple: if the defense could just be average by Big 12 standards, West Virginia could be dangerous. Not elite, not top-tier - just solid enough to live in the middle of the league.
Instead, the defense hasn’t come close.
So while the return of Rich Rodriguez still has plenty of goodwill attached to it, the patience part of the story won’t last forever. Rodriguez is not in the hot seat, and he shouldn’t be. But if the results don’t start changing soon, that seat is going to warm up.
In Other News...
WVU Defense Has A New Problem Fans Cant Ignore
Pro Football Focus latest grades gave West Virginia fans a familiar kind of snapshot, one that showed a defense still searching for answers after a recent game. The numbers pointed to a unit that had trouble finishing plays, with tackling angles and overall disruption becoming recurring issues, even as the offense had its own uneven day up front.
The bright spots on defense were limited to linebacker Isaiah Patterson and safety JaCorey Thomas, the only Mountaineers who really stood out in the grading. Elsewhere, West Virginia managed only eight pressures, and the offensive line also had its hands full despite a strong rushing total, leaving the bigger concern less about one bad sequence than about whether the front seven can start looking more consistent. [Read more 🡒]
WVU Just Showed How Dangerous This Team Can Be
West Virginias latest matchup with Iowa State offered another reminder that this team can beat you in more than one way. In the 13th meeting between the programs and the first since 2024, the Mountaineers leaned on a ground game that kept churning and a supporting cast that showed up everywhere else, from the trenches to the kicking game. Michael Hawkins Jr. and Cam Cook each went over 100 rushing yards, a sign that the offense has found a reliable physical edge.
The rest of the roster did its part too, with the defense stacking tackles and sacks while special teams helped tilt field position with solid punting. For a West Virginia team trying to prove its ceiling is higher than a one-dimensional attack, that kind of complete effort matters. When the run game is rolling and the other phases are holding up their end, the Mountaineers look dangerous in the way good teams are supposed to. [Read more 🡒]
West Virginia Still Has One Thing Keeping This Season Alive
West Virginias season has been carried, at least in part, by an offense that has given opposing coaches plenty to worry about. Michael Hawkins and Cook have formed one of the more productive quarterback-running back pairings in the Big 12, and the Mountaineers have leaned on that attack to stay in games even when other parts of the team have sputtered. Add in solid special teams, and there is still enough there to give West Virginia a fighting chance on a weekly basis.
Iowa State coach Jimmy Rogers made it clear this week that defending West Virginia is no easy task, especially with Hawkins in the mix. The defensive issues remain real, and they continue to put pressure on the Mountaineers to keep finding answers on offense. For now, though, that side of the ball is the reason the season still has life. [Read more 🡒]