College Football
Notable Big 12 QB, WVU Legacy Rocco Becht to Enter Transfer Portal
Rocco Becht, a notable successful Big 12 quarterback with deep WVU ties has decided to enter the transfer portal. ESPN’s Pete Thamel was first to break the news on Saturday morning.
Becht leaves Iowa State as one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in the country. His 26 career wins as a starter are the most among returning quarterbacks and would rank as the highest total in college football entering the 2026 season.
While most expect Becht to follow his head coach from his time at Iowa State – Matt Campbell left the Cyclones to take over at Penn State earlier in the month, he would also be available for West Virginia as a proven veteran option.
Over three seasons as the Cyclones’ starter, Becht was a model of consistency and production. He threw for 9,274 career passing yards and 64 touchdown passes, accounting for 83 total touchdowns which are totals that are expected to rank among the top five nationally next season depending on departures. Becht also set a program record by throwing at least one touchdown pass in 18 consecutive games.
Becht earned Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year honors in 2023 and capped the 2024 season with a standout performance in the Pop-Tarts Bowl. He led Iowa State to a shootout victory over Miami and was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.
As far as if Becht would make sense for the Mountaineers, the concern would be if he truly fits into Rich Rodriguez’s offense. Rodriguez made it very clearly early in the 2025 season when discussing Nicco Marchiol, his offense will always require a qual-threat to be at its best.
Rocco is the son of WVU Sports Hall of Famer Anthony Becht
Anthony Becht, who played football from 1996-99, finished his Mountaineer career second in tight end receptions (83) and tight end receiving yardage (1,178).
Becht was selected as the 27th overall pick in the first round by the New York Jets in the 2000 NFL Draft. He played 11 seasons over 12 years at tight end in the NFL for the Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, St. Louis Rams, Arizona Cardinals and Kansas City Chiefs. From 2000-10, he played in 1
Part of this story was written by Kyle Golic of our partner site Nittany Sports Now.
