It is that time of the year again. WVU Baseball has ended its historic season, and now it’s on to prepare for football season.
What better way to begin those preparations than with the start of the weekly position review series for the entire roster? Read more: Position review #1: WVU’s heated QB battle.
Like last summer, each week I will dive into each position group for the Mountaineer and give a comprehensive report on each player and how the group is shaping out.
To open this series, we will start with the signal callers.
All eyes on the two Jr’s.
Coincidentally enough, the two quarterbacks that are fighting to be WVU’s starter both have Jr’s. in their name. Even more so, beyond their shared name suffixes, both Scotty Fox Jr. and Michael Hawkins Jr. share similar play styles as well.
Scotty Fox Jr.
With Fox, he enters his second year with the Mountaineers. The sophomore is coming off a 2025 campaign where he started in five games and appeared in four more.
In those nine games, he threw for 1,276 yards and seven touchdowns. Fox also added 201 yards and three touchdowns on the ground.
The Ohio native showed grit in a tough season last year, where the Mountaineers were outmatched in many of their Big 12 games. However, he got better and even had his best game of the year in the second-to-last game of the season.
Going up against Arizona State, Fox threw for a season high of 353 yards and two touchdowns. That includes the go-ahead score late in the fourth quarter before Arizona State walked it off in the final seconds with a field goal.
Related: WVU’s QB battle closer than fans may think
While he had his ups and downs throughout the last season, Fox proved that he is a capable quarterback who is able to get better as the season goes on.
Michael Hawkins Jr.
As for his counterpart, Hawkins joins the Mountaineers after playing the last two seasons at the University of Oklahoma. In those two years, he made four starts and appeared in five other contests.
As a sophomore in 2025, Hawkins saw action in just two games. However, in a game against Kent State, he managed to throw for 162 yards and three touchdowns. While that might not be against the greatest competition, Hawkins showed off his arm strength while also being able to throw into some tight windows.
The Texas native’s greatest strength, however, is his ability as a dual-threat option. He possesses great speed and athleticism, which should prove well in head coach Rich Rodriguez’s playbook.
At this point in the offseason, it’s still a toss-up on who will take over as the starter. Knowing Rodriguez, he will certainly wait until the last minute to name the week 1 starter.
The two Max’s
Other notable names in the QB room are Max Brown and Max Anderson. The eerily similar names in the quarterback depth chart just keep coming.
For Brown, he is the older of the two Max’s as he is a redshirt senior. Before joining the Mountaineers last season, he spent his first two years at Florida University then one year at Charlotte University.
Last year with the Mountaineers, he appeared in two games. The Oklahoma native did most of his damage on the ground, accumulating 23 yards on four carries.
Brown is another above average athlete who has the potential to see the field in certain packages. He’s also likely third on the depth chart given his experience across his collegiate career.
On the other hand, Anderson also enters his second year at West Virginia after redshirting his freshman year. Hailing from Martinsburg, West Virginia, Anderson made a name for himself as one of the top quarterbacks in the state in the 2023 class.
As another dual-threat option he could easily find himself higher up in the depth chart with a strong summer. If not, keep an eye on his name for later years as a dark horse candidate for QB1.
The young bucks
Wrapping up the quarterback room are two freshmen; Jyron Hughley and John Jonhnson III. Both joined West Virginia as three-stars in the 2026 class.
Hughley hails from Belle Glade, Fla. where he was the No. 55 overall recruit in the state. After playing as a wide receiver and safety in his first two years at high school, Hughley transitioned over to quarterback for his junior and senior year.
He excelled in his final year after he threw for 2,018 yards and 17 touchdowns. He also ran for 1,528 yards and 19 touchdowns.
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Johnson hails from New Orleans, La., where he was ranked as the No. 30 overall recruit in the state. Unlike Hughley, he was a three-year starter at QB in high school.
In his career, he threw for 8,539 yards and 88 touchdowns. He also ran for an impressive 2,464 yards and 47 touchdowns.
It is clear that Rodriguez is adding pure athletes to the quarterback room of the future. Both of these freshmen will put up strong cases in the future to be the starter.
A weekly series
That wraps up WVU’s quarterback room for the 2026 season. As you can see, it’s filled with talent and athleticism from top to bottom.
The battle between Fox and Hawkins will certainly be the most talked about topic for the entire summer.
As for the rest of the position groups, make sure to come back every week for comprehensive reports on each and every one. Remember to download the WV Sports Nation app on the App Store or Google Play Store as well.
Great article Logan.