The West Virginia coaching staff has been plenty active when it comes to addressing the roster once head coach Rich Rodriguez inherited the program.
The Mountaineers have already announced 29 new transfers to the roster that enrolled at the mid-term and a dozen other high school players joined the program at the same time.
But when it comes to primary needs on the roster, Rodriguez still believes there are key traits that need to be addressed as he told the 3 Guys Before the Game podcast.
“We’ve got to get faster generally as a team. Not just on the outside, we have to get faster on defense. I watched a couple games and there were times we were close to being in position but we weren’t quite fast enough or physical enough to get there,” Rodriguez said.
Under that umbrella, West Virginia is focusing on getting faster on the perimeter at wide receiver while also becoming more physical and quicker at various spots on defense.
The Mountaineers want to have a threat on the perimeter where defenses are scared to play one-on-one and on defense the focus has already been on upgrading the secondary with nine new additions but more help is needed.
“Defensively we have to get a lot more physical quicker. It seemed like we were a little step behind here or there but we have some talent on both sides,” he said.
When it comes to specific positions, Rodriguez said that the offensive line remains a concern. That makes sense considering that West Virginia lost their top six options from a season ago up front and then some other players to the transfer portal. The Mountaineers have added six transfers but it’s a spot that will essentially be rebuilt from what was on the roster last year.
“We lost a lot of good seniors and lost some to the portal but I like some of the young players that we’ve got and what we’ve got coming in,” Rodriguez said.
West Virginia is expected to continue to try to address the roster moving forward with the second transfer portal window set to open April 16-25.
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