Rich Rodriguez Explains QB Change in Ohio Loss, Noncommittal on Starter

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – As the dust settles on WVU’s loss to Ohio, Rich Rodriguez has a big decision on his hands. After making a quarterback change in the middle of West Virginia’s 17-10 defeat, Rodriguez now needs to decide who will take the field to start the Backyard Brawl.

“I tried to get a little spark. Maybe go the quarterback run stuff, but it didn’t really make,” responded Rodriguez when asked about what triggered the change.

Jaylen Henderson, who transferred to West Virginia from Texas A&M during the offseason, failed to provide that spark and ignite the offense.

Henderson ran for eight yards on his first touch, but struggled to move the ball from that point on. He produced a final line of being 0-for-2 with four yards on three designed run plays. Henderson’s rushing yards were cut in half thanks to taking multiple sacks.

Then, when pressed about who will start next week, Rodriguez paused and asked for a day to make up his mind. “Give me 24 hours first, will ya?”

Henderson’s ineffectiveness prompted the return of Marchiol to close the game.

But the brief benching didn’t do much to change Marchiol either. Completing 15-of-26 passes, Marchiol finished the game with just 178 yards passing and a game-sealing pick in the final minutes that looked up the win for the Bobcats. He added nine yards on the ground.

The 1-1 Mountaineers and their starting quarterback now have a week to find a spark.

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