BY: James Gravley | WV Sports Chat
We are now in single-dig mode for as many Saturdays away from college football being back and that also means that Rich Rodriguez will officially return to the sidelines for West Virginia for the first time in 18 years.
Rodriguez was West Virginia’s coach from 2001-2007 before jumping ship, breaking every Mountaineers heart, as he left Morgantown to become the head coach of Michigan. Since his stay at Michigan, Rodriguez was the head coach of Arizona, the OC/QB coach at Ole Miss and held the same title for Louisiana-Monroe before being named the head coach of Jacksonville State in 2022.
Rodriguez brought his running attack with the Gamecocks that brought in the ground and pound style of running that most football fans know from Rodriguez’s offensive game plans.
Rodriguez’s Gamecocks finished third in the nation for rushing each of the last two seasons, averaging 236 yards per game in 2023 and 251 during last season. The run game was a key piece of Jacksonville State’s ability to win the Conference USA title last season, 52-12 over Western Kentucky in a game where they would rush for 386 yards and five touchdowns.
With the loss of CJ Donaldson to Ohio State in the portal and Garrett Greene this off-season to the NFL, the Mountaineers three-headed monster in the backfield has been killed off and will instead be a one-man show headlined by Jahiem White.
White has shown he can command the run game over his two seasons in Morgantown after he finished second in the nation behind Heisman winner Jayden Daniels with 7.7 yards per carry during the 2023 season.
The surprising part about White’s dominance during that season was having just 109 carries, which ranked third on the Mountaineer roster behind Garrett Greene (120) and CJ Donaldson Jr. (171).
White made the most of his limited workload, leading the team in rushing with 842 yards, including a career game against Cincinnati, where he rushed for over 200 yards and a touchdown in a 42-21 win. He would also sprinkle in a 75-yard receiving touchdown to finish off the career night.
White would finish last season second on the Mountaineers in attempts with an impressive 148 carries, but would ultimately end up at 844 yards, just two more than he had the year prior on 39 more attempts. He would also see a drop in his yards per carry from 7.7 in 2023 to a still impressive but less impactful 5.7 in 2024.
Now, in 2025, White has finally entered a season as a clear-cut RB1 for the first time since joining the West Virginia program. However, every strong team requires more than one option in the run game. That’s why Rodriguez and staff brought in a few pieces from the transfer portal. One of them being former SMU running back, Jaylan Knighton.
This is a big season for White, he explained why on X, calling this season “straight business.” And that his junior season “is my only focus.”
Here is my prediction for White this season.
I think White will rush for over 1,100 yards with 18 touchdowns on the ground this season for WVU. His best game of the year will come on the road against Ohio where he rushes for 120 yards and two touchdowns with a reception touchdown as well.
Photo: Christopher Hall, WV SI
