Rich Rodriguez Reveals How WVU Won Over Matt Sieg, Plans for the 4-Star

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – One of the surprises of Early National Signing Day was WVU scooping up top Western Pennsylvania prospect Matt Sieg. West Virginia came in at the last minute to beat out the likes of Notre Dame, Virginia Tech and even rival Pitt.

While few expected Sieg to choose West Virginia, Rich Rodriguez and his staff never gave up in their pursuit of the recruit they always heard about from nearby Fort Cherry, Pa.

But landing a dynamic player like Sieg, a consensus four-star rated prospect, wasn’t easy. Rodriguez admitted it came down to one last push in the final 24-48 hours before Signing Day.

One advantage for Rodriguez besides providing Sieg’s family a close proximity to home was a willingness to offer an opportunity on both sides of the ball.

WVU HC Rich Rodriguez says they made a late rally to get WPIAL top prospect Matt Sieg in the last 24-48 hours. He also said he told him he would be a star safety but is good enough to also help on the offensive side of the ball.

— Mike J. Asti (@MikeAsti11) December 3, 2025

Rodriguez revealed that telling Sieg he saw him as a great safety, but also someone who could help the Mountaineers on offense as well was a unique sales pitch the other coaches were unwilling to make.

“(Sieg) was solidly committed to Penn State, and every time we would talk to people in Western Pennsylvania it was like this guy was the talk of the whole state,” West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez said. “Everybody in Western Pennsylvania knew him and you watch him play and it’s like he’s dynamic, he can play a bunch of different positions, and we weren’t sure we were in it.

“We tried to be,” he continued. “Then, there was a little bit of a crack in there again with what happened (at Penn State) and so we got a chance to stay in it. I think he probably saw there is a great opportunity for him here at safety, and I told him, ‘I think you are good enough to play that but also help us on the other side of the ball as well.'”

After recent reports suggested WVU was out of the running, Sieg ended up signing with the Mountaineers during a live ceremony on the Early National Signing Day. WVU is believed to have beat out Franklin bringing Sieg to Virginia Tech and a big effort from Pitt in recent weeks.

A day after announcing his recruitment was back open due to Penn State firing Franklin, Sieg revealed he was re-offered by WVU.

“Thankful to have been re-offered by West Virginia,” posted Sieg on Monday. Sieg was initially offered by Neal Brown’s WVU staff and made a visit to Morgantown before eventually committing to James Franklin and Penn State in November of 2024.

Sieg owns multiple WPIAL records, with one of the most notable of career total yardage. That was a set on a Friday night. The next day, Penn State suffered a stunning loss at the hands of Northwestern, and the day after that, Franklin was fired, changing the course of Sieg’s recruitment.

Sieg is the No. 2 player in Pennsylvania per 247Sports, along with the No. 9 safety in the country from his class and the No. 79 overall player. Despite playing quarterback, he’s projected to be a safety at the next level.

WVU’s involvement seemed to signal a a chance for Sieg to play offense as well. Sieg did talk about his desire to play offense with WVSN at the beginning of his recruitment.

Sieg also had offers from schools such as Alabama, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan State, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Pitt, Rutgers, Stanford, Syracuse, Temple, USC, Vanderbilt and Wisconsin.

Find more coverage of WVU football recruiting on WV Sports Now.