West Virginia Football: Top 5 candidates to replace Dana Holgorsen

Dana Holgorsen is headed to Houston leaving the West Virginia football head coaching position open. Here are the top 5 candidates to replace him in Morgantown.

On the surface, it seems strange that Dana Holgorsen would leave a Big 12 program in West Virginia for an AAC program in Houston. But if you look at the details it’s a great fit for him and the Cougars. Holgorsen’s most talented West Virginia team finished a mere 8-4 and capped the 2018 season off with their third straight bowl loss. The Mountaineers will lose David Sills V, Gary Jennings Jr, and Will Grier to the 2019 NFL Draft leaving the new head coach to find a new face of his program.

Instead of a rebuilding year in Morgantown, Holgorsen is returning to the state of Texas to serve as the Cougars’ head football coach. Houston has dual-threat quarterback D’Eriq King and is in a recruiting hotbed of Houston, TX. Holgorsen finished his run as head coach at WVU with a 61-41 overall record and 38-32 record in the Big 12.

Dating back to 1970 and Bobby Bowden, the WVU head coach has been someone with experience from the offensive side of the football. Whether Don Nehlen’s triple option from under center, Rich Rodriguez’s triple option and run-pass option approach from the shotgun, Bill Stewart or the Air Raid that Holgorsen is known for, all of the WVU coaches were focused on offense.

I think the Mountaineers will focus on offensive-minded coaches in their search, but a couple of defensive coaches will emerge as well. Here are the five candidates who should be at the top of West Virginia’s list.