Rich Rodriguez provides latest on West Virginia QB competition between Jaylen Henderson, Nicco Marchiol, Max Brown

Rich Rodriguez was looking dapper for his appearance at Big 12 Media Days on Wednesday. While speaking with ESPN, he dished a bit on West Virginia’s quarterback competition.

The Mountaineers are working to find who their starter will be in 2025, and there’s no shortage of options. Jaylen Henderson, Nicco Marchiol and Max Brown are making the decision hard on Rodriguez and company.

As the process works itself out, the West Virginia leader didn’t hesitate to say all three might see the field if they prove worthy. While he wouldn’t reveal the leader in the clubhouse, it’s evident Rodriguez is intrigued with each of the options at the moment.

“It’s always the position you probably should worry about the most, because it is the most important position, probably in football, because you’ve got no chance to win if that guy isn’t pretty good,” Rodriguez told ESPN. “That’s probably the room I’m least worried about, from an athletic and a talent standpoint. I’ve got three guys that have played some games in college football. I’ve got a couple of really good college players. We’ve got the talent there.

“Now, they’ve got to learn our system. They’ve obviously got to get better individually, with what they can do, but we’ve got the pieces around them, as well. It’s going to be a fun quarterback competition. I’m hoping I’ve got three we can win with, and I think we do. If I have two that we can win with, I’ll play both of them. If I’ve got three, I’ll play all three of them. But I have a good quarterback room, I think.”

Alas, this will be Marchiol’s fourth season in Morgantown, and he’s looking at some extended playing time for the first time in his career. Thus far, the quarterback has amassed eight touchdowns and five interceptions in his career, but he’s shown enough raw talent to be in the mix.

Next, Henderson came to West Virginia after spending time at Texas A&M and Fresno State. Like Marchiol, he hasn’t had a ton of playing time in his college career, but the talent is there. He threw six touchdowns and rushed for two more with the Aggies in 2023.

Finally, Brown comes to the Mountaineers after two seasons of college football — one with Florida, and one with Charlotte. His time in the sport has left a bit to be desired, as he’s passed for three touchdowns and seven interceptions combined, but don’t count him out.

As you can see, Rich Rodriguez has some interesting options to work through at quarterback for West Virginia. Who starts Week 1 is a major question mark, but the Mountaineers seem a bit rejuvenated due to his leadership.