The eventual choice for West Virginia’s next head coach doesn’t need to be from the state or even have ties to it.
That much is apparent.
Now it certainly isn’t a negative by any means, but Athletic Director Wren Baker is tasked with finding the best fit overall regardless of their background.
“If the best candidate has WVU ties; great. If they’ve lived or worked or been in West Virginia; great. If they’re not the best candidate that’s still the wrong decision,” Baker said.
And while Baker wouldn’t address specific candidates such as the obvious ones liked to the opening in Rich Rodriguez and Jimbo Fisher due to their ties, he did make it clear that must understand what the football program means to the people within the state.
It’s something that endeared Baker to the job when he interviewed and is something that he will get across to any potential candidate that is interested in the post.
“What’s really important here is that you hire somebody that has a desire and heart to come in and really embrace West Virginia because it is important to people here,” Baker said.
As part of that, Baker has made it a point to practice what he preaches by traveling the state and going to different places when he has free time including both of the bye weeks this past season. The goal is to get to every county in West Virginia and immerse himself with the people.
That must be the same approach as the eventual head coach.
“I just think it’s important that people understand this is the state’s pro team. This program and university means a lot to the state,” Baker said.
And with that come more pressure in terms of being one of the most prominent positions in the state. That means being able to embrace that everybody within West Virginia wants you to know a little bit about them and how important the Mountaineers are to them as people.
That means that being able to live in a fish bowl isn’t an option when coaching the Mountaineers.
“If you’re the football coach at West Virginia University, you’re the most recognizable person in this state. Just think about that, you’re never going to stop and get gas, you’re never going to walk into a convenience store, you’re never going to go into the grocery store and buy anything where people don’t know who you are. You can feel the eyes following you and for some people they can handle the pressure on gamedays, they can’t handle that you can’t ever get away from it,” Baker said.
“So, I spent a lot of time talking about that and trying to make sure whoever we bring in understands that because there’s a little bit of that until you experience it you probably don’t fully comprehend what it is.”
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