Jacksonville State wide receiver Cam Vaughn, right, makes a reception in front of Ohio cornerback Tank Pearson during the first half of the Cure Bowl NCAA college football game, Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
MORGANTOWN — Playing for West Virginia University football coach Rich Rodriguez is a new experience for most of the members of the Mountaineer roster – but not for all of them.
Several players on this spring’s roster know what it’s like getting guidance from Rodriguez. They played for him at his last stop at Jacksonville State. And those JSU transfers have been essential in helping the rest of the team learn Rodriguez’s system and tendencies a lot quicker.
There are seven players currently practicing for WVU who have played for Rodriguez at Jacksonville State: receivers Cam Vaughn and Jarod Bowie, defensive back Fred Perry, corner Derek Carter, safety KK Tarnue, offensive lineman Xavier Bausley and tight end Jacob Barrick. Tarnue joined the WVU roster last season, but the other six followed Rodriguez from JSU this year.
Rodriguez said the biggest benefit received from those transfers is the bridge between the coaching staff and the players in terms of terminology. Those transfers can act as translators in a sense, helping the other players pick up verbiage and concepts.
“They know the terminology more than anything else,” Rodriguez said. “Like every coach, a lot of techniques and stuff are pretty similar, whether you go from one coach to another coach in football, but the terminology is going to be different.
“The schemes and the way they’re taught are going to be different,” he added, “so that helps.”
Linebacker Reid Carrico confirmed that benefit. He said he has texted former JSU players to ask what a specific term meant.
“From that standpoint, having those guys is awesome,” Carrico said. “And they’re all good dudes. I’d do anything for them.”
Those transfers also help the other players in getting used to the way Rodriguez and his staff coach, which Rodriguez himself admits can be pretty intense.
“Maybe they’ve never been yelled at,” Rodriguez said with a smile. “So when I yell at them, those guys from Jax State, every one of those guys has been yelled at. And probably quite a bit.”
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Special teams units at different college football programs can sometimes cultivate their own personality – “Beamer Ball” at Virginia Tech, for example. There aren’t any catchy names for WVU’s special teams, new coordinator Pat Kirkland said, but there is one underlying philosophy.
“We want to be aggressive and opportunistic,” Kirkland said. “You’ve got to execute at a high level, because if you don’t, it’ll get you beat really fast.”
And while there might be one philosophy, Kirkland said there isn’t just one way to execute it. Finding more efficient ways throughout the season to practice the proper mentality is crucial.
“One of the biggest things we have to do is self-scout,” he said. “What can we do after the last two weeks that we’ve seen on film? What can we do better and how can we change it up without changing the philosophy and the scheme as a whole?”
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Rodriguez hasn’t met new men’s basketball coach Ross Hodge yet, but when they do talk, he can offer some advice about WVU from a number of angles – as a West Virginia native, as a former student-athlete and as a coach at the university twice over.
Rodriguez said that he could probably help most in informing Hodge about the people who call the Mountain State home.
“I think I can speak to the type of people who live in this state,” Rodriguez said. “They’re blue collar, hard working with an underdog mentality that can do anything and just want people to give them that kind of respect.
“From what I understand, I think he’ll already understand that,” Rodriguez added. “And he’ll fit in great with us.”
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