West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez talks to quarterback Nicco Marchiol during the first half an NCAA college football game against Robert Morris, Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, in Morgantown, W.Va. (Ron Rittenhouse/The Dominion-Post via AP)

MORGANTOWN — Who is the starting quarterback? That’s the age-old question in football. Who is the leader of the football team? Most of the time, the quarterback.

Rich Rodriguez went months of being asked who West Virginia’s starting quarterback was, who was leading the pack, or who looked the best, and didn’t budge, keeping the competition open. Even in the depth chart he released on Tuesday before Robert Morris, Rodriguez listed five quarterbacks as the starter.

Based on the projections and going off the order the starting quarterbacks were listed, returner Nicco Marchiol seemed like he’d see the first snaps in Week 1. Just a couple of hours before the game, it was reported that Marchiol would start.

However, Marchiol revealed he was told earlier in the week that he’d get the nod.

“Nicco has shown it during practice,” Rodriguez said. “He was the most consistent. He’s got a feel for the game. He’s a gritty player.”

As reported, after a defensive stop, No. 8 trotted out to start at quarterback for WVU.

Marchiol knew the pressure was on. Against Robert Morris, Rodriguez could afford to rotate quarterbacks, so he had to prove to Rodriguez to keep his spot on the field.

Marchiol was “cool as a cucumber,” as he called it. He marched the Moutaineers down the field, completing five of five passes, capping the drive with a 10-yard touchdown rush.

“I just saw green grass,” Marchiol said.

During the opening drive and a couple of drives after, Marchiol showed off his legs. He said earlier in camp he was ready to run the ball a lot, and he definitely did, whether that was a scramble or a designed run. He took off 13 times for 56 yards and the one score.

Marchiol’s a pretty big player. You wouldn’t think he’d be built like a runner, but watching him in warm-ups, he’s got some thick legs, and the biggest quarterback on the roster. He makes for a pretty dominant rusher.

Despite rushing him a lot, Rodriguez is still figuring out what Marchiol’s strength will be. He’s still learning what every QB on his roster does best.

“You think you’d have an idea, right?” Rodriguez said. “At least one of them, but we’ve only played one game. As the season goes along with the quarterbacks, we’ll have an even better idea of what they do well. What they can execute in the offense, and then we’ll take it from there.”

Marchiol couldn’t have had a better day throwing the ball, either. He went 17-20 for 224 yards and a touchdown. Marchiol’s lone touchdown pass was one of the only deep shots on the day, and he dropped it in the breadbasket to his favorite target, Jacksonville State transfer Cam Vaughn.

Vaughn hauled in seven of Marchiol’s passes.

“This connection was not something that just happened this morning,” Marchiol said. “It’s been the day he got on campus. It’s the things we do when no one’s looking. It’s the extra hours you put in, and just build trust. Just having a connection with a guy like that is so huge. It’s just big moments and big third downs. Really, really, really proud of him.”

Marchiol wasn’t the only quarterback who saw action. Heading into the fourth quarter, it didn’t look like Rodriguez was going to keep to his word with playing all his QBs, but after WVU pulled away, Rodriguez subbed in Texas A&M transfer Jaylen Henderson.

Henderson was a bit faster as a runner and led WVU to a touchdown. True freshman Scotty Fox came in and on his second play, took off for a 56-yard touchdown. The following drive, Khalil Wilkins came in to close out the game. Charlotte transfer Max Brown didn’t dress because of a hamstring “tweak,” according to Rodriguez.

“That made me so happy,” Marchiol said. “That was probably the highlight of my day. Was seeing all those guys have success, because it just brought me back to my first touchdown at Mountaineer Field. J.T. Daniels was the first one to congratulate me. I made sure I was the first one to congratulate Scotty Fox. Jaylen completed some completions. That was so awesome to see. Just full circle moment.”

The headliner was Marchiol, though, because he played almost the entire game, and the named starter.

The quarterback question that lingered through the spring, into camp, and all the way up until a couple of hours before the game was answered. After Marchiol’s performance against Robert Morris, it doesn’t look like the starter will change for Ohio.

“Statistically, obviously, it looks really well, but I mean that’s the awesome thing about this offense is there are going to be completions,” Marchiol said. “Having the receivers that we have, it’s clear we might be the deepest team in the Big 12. We got guys everywhere. I left some yards out there, but pretty happy with the performance.”