The quarterback situation at West Virginia was hard to describe. A mess or a carousel was the best way to put it. WVU started four different quarterbacks in the span of seven games, and it took eight games for a quarterback to start and finish a game without being subbed out.

Most of the issues were due to injuries. Four-game starter Nicco Marchiol was done for the season after the fourth game, and other starter, Jaylen Henderson, was hurt and out for the rest of the year shortly after. Third-string Khalil Wilkins was banged up, and fourth-string Max Brown was also hurt along the way. True freshman Scotty Fox was forced to start because there was no one else, and he performed well.

“I would hope that we would never have another year where you have so many injuries at the quarterback position,” Rich Rodriguez said. “That was, you’re thinking, an outlier.”

Fox seems to be the starter for the future, but who knows what the quarterback room will look like after the transfer portal opens in January. Rodriguez said he was meeting with players, letting them know where they stand on the depth chart, and some could leave.

So, after all the injuries, Rodriguez brought in reinforcements and signed three quarterbacks during Day 1 of the early National Signing Day on Wednesday. WVU signed three 3-star quarterbacks: John Johnson, who flipped from Washington State, Jyron Hughley and Wyatt Brown.

All three of them are dual-threat quarterbacks, rushing for multiple touchdowns in high school. All fit nicely into Rodriguez’s run-heavy offense.

Rodriguez’s best success at WVU during his first tenure was Pat White, who had the speed and shiftness to make big plays. None of them are White, but they fit the description of a shifty quarterback who takes a would’ve been sack for 20 yards for a touchdown.

Being a true dual-threat quarterback isn’t a non-negotiable for Rodriguez. If the player helps WVU win, it doesn’t matter how he does it. Rodriguez does prefer a dual-threat, though.

“If a guy’s an exceptional thrower, he’s going to complete 80% of his passes, and he’s got just enough awareness to get out of a sack once in a while, that’s fine,” Rodriguez said. “But if a guy can, I guess, be a true dual threat, where, as far as his ability to run, and make a 5-yard play into a 50-yard play, whatever, that’s even better.”

Throwing is obviously an essential for a quarterback, especially if WVU is consistently down in games. That’s why Rodriguez subbed in Marchiol in the Backyard Brawl because he needed a better thrower. Fox also had more success as a starter because he could push the ball vertically, too.

Rodriguez believes his new QBs can do both.

“The guys we saw in this class are good throwers, but they’re elite runners,” Rodriguez said. “We’ll see how that shakes out.”

The three high school additions won’t be it for WVU. Rodriguez still plans to add one quarterback in the portal this spring. It won’t be three like Rodriguez added last year, but at least one.

Rodriguez is preparing for the worst after a tough year in the quarterback room.

“I don’t know how many quarterbacks we have on the depth chart, but we will still look at one for the portal,” Rodriguez said. “Get an experienced guy because of what we went through this year. Like, gosh, you hope it’ll never happen again, but if it does happen, it will help to have another experienced guy that could possibly win some games. We will look at the portal.”