Storylines to Keep an Eye On for WVU Football at UCF

Something will have to give when WVU takes on UCF in Orlando, Fla. on Saturday afternoon. With both teams winless (0-3) in Big 12 play, West Virginia has their best shot to get a conference win yet, especially coming off a bye weeks and extra time to prepare.

Below are the key storylines to keep an eye on when the Mountaineers battle the Knights as both programs look to build momentum in their pursuit of returning to glory days of the past.

Breaking: WVU to Start True Freshman Scotty Fox Against UCF

In a somewhat surprising turn of events, freshman Scotty Fox Jr. is expected to start at quarterback for WVU in today’s game against UCF. EerSports.com broke the news first on Saturday morning. WV Sports Now was able to then confirm that report.

This comes after most expected Khalil Wilkins to remain the starter based on ascending up the depth chart and performing admirably as the starter at BYU before the bye week.

Rich Rodriguez Not Giving up on WVU’s 2025 Season: ‘I Want to Win Yesterday’

Sitting at 2-4 through WVU’s first six games, fans are busy shifting their focus to next year and beyond. While he always has to have his mind on the future, Rich Rodriguez wants to emphasize he’s not giving up on this season.

Rodriguez spent most of his weekly press conference discussing what his team worked on during the bye week and how they can finish the rest of the 2025 season strong. He did talk about the overall landscape of the sport – he’s still advocating for a salary cap on how much schools can spend even in this revenue sharing era – and clarified his plan to bring in a top high school class and then sprinkle in transfers when needed, but did so all while making it clear he still believes in his current group.

“I am not giving up on this year’s team at all. I like our guys. They still work,” said a still confident Rodriguez on Tuesday leading into a road trip to Orlando to face UCF, another Big 12 program looking for a return to glory.

WVU DC Zac Alley Demands More from Star Player: ‘Be a Dude’

WVU defensive coordinator Zac Alley isn’t afraid to challenge his players, and that currently includes calling out a player who has yet to live up to the hype that surrounded his arrival in Morgantown.

After pointing to the missed tackles as the main reason for the defense’s recent struggles, he made it clear he expects more from certain players, most notably defensive lineman Jimmori Robinson.

Robinson had to claim a legal victory over the NCAA to even get on the field as a Mountaineer, but West Virginia has yet to claim a win as a team since he made his debut on the road at Kansas. Ever since then, Robinson has yet to make any significant impact.

In three games, the redshirt senior who spent the four previous years at UTSA, has registered only two total tackles – one solo and one as an assist.

And while the expectations for how much immediate havoc Robinson could cause were probably unreasonable to an extent, Alley let it to be known it’s not just the fans who expect more from him. Alley does too. He also knows the potential is there.

“We need Jimmori [Robinson] to come up on the edge and be a dude,” said Alley as West Virginia heads into a trip to Florida to take on UCF coming off their first bye week.

WVU RB Tye Edwards Ruled Out, Nicco Marchiol News Confirmed

To no surprise based on the news from earlier in the week, WVU running back Tye Edwards has been officially ruled out for this Saturday’s game.

On Monday, Rodriguez revealed that Edwards, who returned in a very limited role at BYU after missing back-to-back games, is in Alabama seeing a specialist. He’s there because he’s trying to everything possible to get back to anything close to 100%.

Edwards became a WVU hero on Sept. 13, gashing Pitt for 141 yards and scoring three touchdowns in West Virginia’s comeback win. He then missed both the Kansas and Utah game before running for just two yards on two attempts against the Cougars.

In others news, Rodriguez confirmed quarterback Nicco Marchiol is out for the year.

In the interest of providing WVU fans as much information as possible, WV Sports Now learned more about Nicco Marchiol’s injury.

With the Mountaineers as a touchdown underdog, WVU and UCF are set to battle at FBC Mortgage Stadium at 1 pm ET.

Find more coverage of the WVU football program at WV Sports Now.