Rich Rodriguez’s second stint at West Virginia began with a victory, but the 45–3 outcome over Robert Morris didn’t tell the full story. After the game, Rodriguez admitted his team’s performance in the first half was unlike anything he had ever experienced.
Calling it “a typical first game,” Rodriguez said he had “never had or seen three fumbles in four plays,” a sequence that left him shaking his head. “We obviously didn’t play well at all in the first half. Had West Virginia beating West Virginia. There were some things we did okay, but we weren’t playing like we should have.”
Well worth the work 🎶 pic.twitter.com/n1esMPwEt6
— West Virginia Football (@WVUfootball) August 30, 2025
The Mountaineers eventually settled in behind the steady hand of quarterback Nicco Marchiol, who completed 17 of 20 passes for 224 yards and a touchdown. His favorite target, Cam Vaughn, pulled in seven receptions for 126 yards, including a 46-yard strike. Rodriguez said Vaughn remains one of the most dynamic players in his system, noting that “Cam’s one of the most explosive guys I think in the country. He loves to compete. He always feels he can get open and get by somebody. I’m glad we took a deep shot. He ran a great route. Nicco made a great throw.”
On the ground, Jahiem White carried 18 times for 93 yards and two touchdowns, while freshman Scotty Fox Jr. provided the highlight of the day with a 59-yard scoring burst. Rodriguez admitted that Fox and others could have played earlier, but “had we played better and coached better, these guys would have got in the game earlier and we could have made a better assessment.”
Defensively, WVU overwhelmed Robert Morris, holding the Colonials to just two yards per play. “They couldn’t run the ball and our front did a good job of getting the guy on the ground,” Rodriguez said. “I thought we tackled pretty well.”
For the 29-year head coach, the return to Morgantown was about more than just football. “The crowd was unbelievable. West Virginia fans showed up today,” Rodriguez said, later adding, “Isn’t singing ‘Country Roads’ at the end the greatest tradition in college sports?”
Still, Rodriguez cautioned that the Mountaineers must be sharper with tougher challenges ahead. “The self-inflicted mistakes we made today, we got to fix like in a day. We’ll take the win and grow from it.”
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