West Virginia
West Virginia Isn’t a Stepping Stone Job, It’s a Sleeping Giant
Just when everyone thought West Virginia’s men’s basketball program was getting back on track and had the right coach in place to make them nationally relevant again, the coach up and left after just one year on the job.
The way DeVries handled his exit is a big reason why Mountaineer fans are upset. He essentially admitted that he was in talks with Indiana before the end of the season, left without giving WVU a chance to counter Indiana’s offer, and, of course, the management of his injured son, Tucker, who redshirted this season to return in 2025-26.
I have a big problem, as I’m sure many others do, with any coach talking to another school while their season is still ongoing. It’s unfair to the players and even the assistants on staff. There’s obviously no way that Indiana reached out after they found out WVU was snubbed from the tournament, had a few rounds of talks, negotiated a deal, and finalized a contract within 48 hours.
In all likelihood, DeVries had his mind already made up before the team watched the Selection Sunday show together. That’s a tough deal.
But the bigger picture here is that a significant portion of the fan base fears that this could become a theme at WVU. An up-and-coming coach comes to Morgantown, has success, and bolts for a bigger opportunity where there is more money on the table.
It’s easy to see why many would think this way or have that fear, but let’s not overreact.
For a minute, put yourself in DeVries’ shoes. He’s from the Midwest and has always admired Indiana from afar. He saw it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to lead one of the most respected brands in all of college basketball. Again, it doesn’t excuse how the whole ordeal went down, but it also doesn’t mean that this is a stepping-stone job. If Indiana doesn’t come open or they don’t offer him, DeVries is back at WVU and building on a strong first year.
The right person who sees the value, the resources, and the commitment will be here for the long haul. It’s not going to become this never-ending revolving door. Plus, if you look around, all of the blue blood jobs are filled – Duke, Kentucky, Kansas, UCLA, Indiana, and UConn – have their guy and aren’t making a move anytime soon. Hubert Davis at North Carolina is really the only one who has an uncertain future but appears to be committed to him for the time being.
How do you ensure that the next guy sticks around? Someone who truly understands the “sleeping giant” West Virginia basketball is. Someone who understands how much the Mountaineers mean to the people in this state. And most importantly, someone who wants to plant roots and build here. Not have a strong year or two and look for something bigger. Wren Baker will find that guy.
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PROVO, Utah – The West Virginia University baseball team put up a season-high 20 runs against BYU on Friday, defeating the Cougars, 20-6, at Miller Park. The Mountaineers improve to 21-4 and 3-3 in the Big 12 while BYU falls to 14-10 and 4-4 in conference play.
The Mountaineers pounded out 19 hits on the night, led by three each from the eight and nine hitters, sophomores Armani Guzman and Spencer Barnett. Barnett drove in four runs while Guzman and freshman Gavin Kelly each had three RB. Junior Skylar King added a home run, his second of the season.
On the mound, junior Gavin Van Kempen threw 4.2 innings and struck out four while allowing two runs. Sophomore Chase Meyer picked up his fifth win of the season with 2.1 perfect innings while striking out four.
West Virginia took the lead on a Guzman RBI single in the second. After BYU tied it up in the home half, King put the Mountaineers back on top with a solo home run in the third. Kelly tacked on another run later in the inning with a single.
Barnett had a two-run single in the fifth before belting a two-run triple in the seventh. Senior Brodie Kresser, senior Jace Rinehart, and Kelly added RBI singles to round out a seven-run seventh inning.
The Mountaineers followed the big seventh with an eight-run eighth inning, getting RBIs from junior Ellis Garcia, senior Kyle West, freshman Jorge Valdes, and senior Grant Hussey, before back-to-back two-run doubles by redshirt freshman Alex Marot and Guzman.
West Virginia will look to take the series on Saturday. Because of possible inclement weather, first pitch for game three has been moved up to 2 p.m. ET.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Penny Hardaway had a fantastic career in the NBA as a player, making four All-Star appearances, three All-NBA selections, and winning the 1993-94 Rookie of the Year Award. Now, he’s one of the best head coaches at the mid-major level, leading the Memphis Tigers.
In seven years as Memphis’s head coach, Hardaway has a record of 162-68 and three NCAA Tournament appearances. It’s safe to say the man knows what it takes to win, and knows a winner when he sees one.
On Thursday, Hardaway was asked about West Virginia’s hire of Ross Hodge, who he’s faced twice over the last two years, and gave the new Mountaineer head coach a glowing review.
“Ross is definitely one of my favorite coaches in the country. He is the next big-time coach to take West Virginia back to the glory days of winning and playing in NCAA Tournaments. He is arguably one of the best in the country defensively and his teams will always be a hard out. They are relentless in their efforts for 40 minutes. It’s one of the hardest teams that I have ever had to coach against because they are so tough.”
Hardaway and Hodge split their two meetings against each other with Hodge and the Mean Green taking the first game 76-66 last season and Memphis getting their revenge this season with a narrow 68-64 victory.
Hardaway isn’t the only college head coach who has praised Hodge, either. Michigan’s Dusty May, Baylor’s Scott Drew, and Texas Tech’s Grant McCasland also had great things to say about him, which you can read here.
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