Rich Rodriguez Reveals Information About Acquisition of JaCorey Thomas

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Coming into his weekly press conference after news broke about the addition of a new player, Rich Rodriguez spoke freely on what he expects from JaCorey Thomas.

First off, Rodriguez made it clear he doesn’t know exactly when he will be able to get Thomas on the field. Rodrigues said that Thomas is in Morgantown and with the team – he arrived on Sunday – but he still has some legal ramifications to work out and he’s yet to be cleared to practice.

Willing to acknowledge his past comments and the Big 12’s current stance on acquiring professional player, Rodriguez said the fact Thomas never signed an actual contract with an NFL team was a different in being willing to pursue him. Rodriguez then added that he believes Thomas taking part in an NFL rookie mini camp will not impact his eligibility, which also made him comfortable in bringing in a new player after the season kicked off.

The addition of Thomas does come after Rodriguez recently labeled once professional players playing in college sports “ridiculous” and advocated for a Big 12 ban even prior to conference announcing their new rules on the topic. He did also say they aren’t pursuing NFL rosters, but would leave a roster spot open for an addition of some kind.

“We still have a spot or two. We had a school tryout, and we still have a spot, maybe to bring a guy in of the guys that have tried out. We may do that. We’re kind of waiting to get through this week before we determine that part of it. We’re always on the look for players. Now, we’re not looking at NFL rosters right now or any guys that just got cut,” said Rodriguez when closing fall camp.

As for what WVU fans may see from Thomas when he does get on the field in a game, Rodriguez will place the defensive back at safety, the same position he played at Georgia. Thomas recorded 45 total tackles and one for a loss and a sack with the Bulldogs in 2025.

The 1-0 Mountaineers will welcome UT Martin to Morgantown this Saturday, with kickoff from Milan Puskar Stadium set for 1:00 pm ET.

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