West Virginia football fans are eager to see a return to the winning ways of the program from the early 2000s. Rich Rodriguez, who previously led the program during that successful era, has returned to Morgantown for a second stint as head coach, bringing a much-needed attitude shift to the Mountaineers in pursuit of those goals.
This change may be subtle now and hard for some to recognize, yet much can be inferred from the hirings Rodriguez has made. The return of familiar faces indicates a cultural shift from the era of Neal Brown and Dana Holgorsen back to winning football at WVU.
Rodriguez is seemingly reshaping the organization with the presence of program legends like Pat White on the sidelines this fall. A former standout from Rodriguez’s first era, White understands the culture his former coach aims to instill, bringing a wealth of winning experience as an assistant coach and endearing himself to the fan base as a WVU football icon. Additionally, ex-Mountaineer running back Noel Devine will join the staff as an offensive analyst and running backs coach, carrying a similar pedigree within the program.
Another name making a return is Jeff Casteel, a West Virginia native who served as Rodriguez’s defensive coordinator during his initial tenure with the Mountaineers. Casteel also held a position as a defensive assistant at WVU under former coaches Bill Stewart, Dana Holgorsen, and Neal Brown.
Yet Casteel and Rodriguez share an even deeper connection than most might expect: former rivals turned coaching colleagues, they have a history of battles in the now-defunct West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WVIAC) at the Division II level when Rodriguez was at Glenville State and Casteel was head assistant and defensive coordinator at Shepherd.
“It goes back to when Rich was the head coach at Glenville, and I was the defensive coordinator at Shepherd,” Casteel said about their relationship. “We interacted, saw each other in recruiting, and had some pretty good games.”
This longstanding relationship in the college football industry helps construct a coaching staff with a unified culture and goal, and it’s always beneficial when former players return to join the staff. All these figures starred in Morgantown during a time when WVU was at its peak, and Rodriguez is gradually working to lay the groundwork for a resurgence of the program. The fans in Morgantown are excited, and the fan base is buzzing, and we’re only midway through February.
Most of the building effort has occurred behind the scenes at Law School Hill and within the football facilities at Milan Puskar Stadium. However, with the ‘Tour of Duty’ back on the schedule and familiar faces joining the staff each day, it’s hard to doubt that winners are being formed daily. Fans will have their first opportunity to see the product on the field when WVU Football hosts the Gold-Blue Spring Showcase 2025 on April 5. Until then, Rodriguez is looking to continue nurturing his second stint with the Mountaineers.
