MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — This is the second part in a two-part story highlighting the top West Virginia sports stories in 2024. Part one of the story can be viewed here.
#11 – WVU women’s basketball stares down Iowa in NCAA second round
In the most-watched second round game in the 2024 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament, West Virginia put a serious scare into top-seeded Iowa before falling, 64-54.
Iowa, led by eventual WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark, ended the game on a 12-2 run to end WVU’s season. Mark Kellogg closed his first season leading the Mountaineers with a 25-7 record.
“I think we are close and I think we have been close all year,” Kellogg said. “No one wants to give us, it feels like, a whole lot of credit. I thought our seed was not the representation. I don’t think we are an 8-seed.
“Maybe now people will understand what we are and what we are about.”
West Virginia began the 2024-2025 season in the AP national rankings and they are off to an 10-2 start this winter.
Iowa ends game on a 12-2 run, Hawkeyes advance past WVU and into Sweet 16 with 64-54 win:https://t.co/ilatXiGFxu pic.twitter.com/U8c0vT1B7b
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) March 26, 2024
#10 – Thrilling finishes in all four boys basketball state title games
All four state championship games as the WVSSAC Boys Basketball State Tournament were decided by three points. Two of those contests were settled in overtime.
In the opening game on Championship Saturday, Shady Spring bested Fairmont Senior, 58-55 in overtime in the Class AAA final.
Next up, Morgantown secured their third consecutive Class AAAA championship with a 35-32, overtime victory over Spring Mills.
Close games followed in the evening session as well. Tug Valley won a defensive battle against Tucker County, 35-32 in the Class A title game.
And Charleston Catholic held off Bluefield, 42-39 in the Class AA championship.
Game highlights (Class AAA Championship): No. 2 Shady Spring 58, No. 1 Fairmont Senior 55 (OT): #wvprepbb pic.twitter.com/vA8itIq8pb
— MetroNews HS Sports (@MetroNewsPrep) March 16, 2024
Game highlights (Class AAAA Championship): No. 2 Morgantown 35, No. 1 Spring Mills 32 (OT): #wvprepbb pic.twitter.com/8RgJ047KhF
— MetroNews HS Sports (@MetroNewsPrep) March 16, 2024
Game highlights (Class A Championship): No. 2 Tug Valley 35, No. 1 Tucker County 32: #wvprepbb pic.twitter.com/vNlWK5WrcD
— MetroNews HS Sports (@MetroNewsPrep) March 16, 2024
Game highlights (Class AA Championship): No. 2 Charleston Catholic 42, No. 1 Bluefield 39: #wvprepbb pic.twitter.com/cw9P6v3czs
— MetroNews HS Sports (@MetroNewsPrep) March 17, 2024
#9 – Darian DeVries picked to lead WVU men’s basketball program
After a successful tenure at Drake, Darian DeVries was introduced as the 23rd head coach of the WVU men’s basketball program on March 28. He was signed to a five-year contract.
“We will look for young men that have talent and intangibles. I’m a firm believer that if you stack talent and intangibles, and put together a group of men like that in a locker room, that equates to winning,” DeVries said. “We’ll have a locker room filled with winners and winners aren’t necessarily just about scoring baskets. They have a discipline, toughness, unselfishness that stands tall in all situations and we will teach them to apply those to all phases of their life.”
West Virginia is 9-2 this winter with a pair of impressive victories over No. 3 Gonzaga and No. 24 Arizona in the Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament.
“Our goal is to make sure every opponent leaves here with some pepperoni rolls and the words of ‘Country Roads’ echoing in their head”
Darian DeVries is welcomed as the new WVU men’s basketball head coach pic.twitter.com/xyK1OuZtBY
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) March 28, 2024
#8 – Marshall football wins the Sun Belt
Seven consecutive victories, including a 31-3 win at Louisiana in the Sun Belt Conference Championship game, allowed Marshall to claim their first SBC title. The Thundering Herd rolled over the Ragin’ Cajuns in the title game, giving Marshall conference championships in three different FBS leagues (MAC, CUSA). The win in the SBC final was Marshall’s tenth in the season (10-3).
Hours after the victory, head coach Charles Huff was announced as the new head coach at Sun Belt Conference rival Southern Mississippi.
Marshall was set to face No. 19 Army in the Independence Bowl. However, the Thundering Herd later declined the invitation due to over two dozen players entering the transfer portal.
#7 – Randy Mazey’s last dance, WVU reaches NCAA Super Regional
Randy Mazey’s final season leading the WVU baseball program will be remembered as the best in program history. The Mountaineers advanced to the Super Regional round of the NCAA Tournament before falling at North Carolina in a best-of-three series.
West Virginia swept their three games in the Tucson Regional to qualify for the Super Regional. The Mountaineers finished the year with a 36-24 record.
Prior to the start of the 2024 season, longtime assistant coach Steve Sabins was tabbed to lead the Mountaineers, starting in the 2025 season. Mazey was hired as head coach in 2012 and he led West Virginia in their transition to the Big 12 Conference and the new Mon County Ballpark.
Junior infielder JJ Wetherholt was selected seventh in the MLB Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals.
Randy Mazey salutes the crowd following his final home game as WVU head coach: pic.twitter.com/71sENPaM5P
— Joe Brocato (@joebrowvm) May 12, 2024
Randy Mazey met by daughter Sierra and wife Amanda following his last game as head coach. pic.twitter.com/NU1QmgXZ6q
— Greg Carey (@gcarey938) June 9, 2024
#6 – Boone County native Tony Gibson selected to lead the Marshall football program
One day after WVU announced the return of Rich Rodriguez, Boone County native Tony Gibson was introduced as the new head coach at Marshall. He places Charles Huff, who departed for Southern Mississippi hours after leading the Herd to the Sun Belt title.
The Van, W.Va. native has extensive football ties in the state of West Virginia. Gibson was a member of two West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship teams at Glenville State.
He served two stints on the coaching staff at West Virginia University (2001-2007 & 2013-2018). He has spent the last six seasons as the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at North Carolina State. Gibson has also been an assistant at Michigan, Pittsburgh and Arizona.
“I thank those guys so much for what they did,” Gibson said. “Marshall had a great team. I want to keep this thing going. I’m not coming in try to be Joe Coach. I’m trying to be Tony Gibson. What you’ll get from Tony Gibson is my best every day. Had a team meeting Monday. I told them I’m proud of them. My job is to continue that success. I know how important this place is to you all.”
#5 – Marshall men’s soccer reaches NCAA National Championship match
For the second time in four years, the Marshall men’s soccer team played their way to the championship match of the NCAA Men’s Soccer Tournament.
The Thundering Herd, seeded No. 13 in the tournament, won at SMU 3-2 in the quarterfinal round to secure a spot in the College Cup. In the national semifinal, Marshall defeated top-seeded Ohio State, 1-0 before falling to Vermont in the title match, 2-1 in overtime. Marshall ended the season with a record of 15-2-7.
#4 – Kim Caldwell leads Marshall to Sun Belt titles, named head coach at Tennessee
Parkersburg South High School graduate Kim Caldwell’s meteoric rise in the college basketball ranks saw her leap from Glenville State to Rocky Top in twelve months.
Caldwell led the GSU Pioneers to the Division II National Championship in 2022 and she returned to the national semifinals a year later.
In the 2023-2024 season, Caldwell guided Marshall to a sweep of the Sun Belt Conference regular season and tournament championships.
Weeks later, Caldwell was named the head coach of one of the premier programs in women’s college basketball, the Tennessee Lady Vols.
“You want to be somewhere the expectations are high,” Caldwell said. “I’ve had a lot of opportunities in my career to look at jobs and I was never interested in a job that did not have high expectations, a loyal fan base and a hungry crowd that did not want to pay attention to what’s going on.”
UT is off to an 11-0 start in Caldwell’s first season.
#3 – State football, volleyball playoffs bogged down in legal challenges
Injunctions from circuit judges that were eventually overturned by the state Supreme Court caused significant delays to the WVSSAC football and volleyball playoffs.
On November 8, the final day of the football regular season, a Wood County Circuit judge filed an injunction to tweak the playoff rating formula which would allow teams to earn ratings points from opponents based on the “pre-August reclassification” lists. In August, 23 teams were reclassified after a ruling from the Board of Review.
A week and a half later, the State Supreme Court ruled that the WVSSAC had the right to implement rules as written in their policies and the injunction was overturned. The playoffs began after a one-week delay, postponing the championship games to December 13-14.
Similarly, the state volleyball playoffs were altered by an injunction filed in Tyler County. Tyler Consolidated was classified into Class AA at the start of the season. However, a legal filing sought to have the Knights reclassified into Class A. That injunction was granted after the Silver Knights had already played a Class AA sectional match.
The state Supreme Court once again sided with the WVSSAC and Tyler Consolidated was not a part of the state tournament field. The Class AAAA, AAA and AA playoffs proceeded as normal. However, the Class A state tournament was delayed until December and the event was relocated to West Virginia State University in Institute. Greenbrier West defeated East Hardy, 3-1 in the championship, giving the Cavaliers their first girls team state title.
#2 – Jerry West passes away
West Virginia icon and legendary basketball figure Jerry West passed away on June 12. He was 86.
A native of Kanawha County who hailed from Cheylan, West is perhaps the most decorated athlete from West Virginia.
He averaged 24.8 points over three seasons at West Virginia University and helped lead the Mountaineers to an appearance in the 1959 national title game.
West went on to play 14 seasons for the Los Angeles Lakers from 1960-1974 and was then part of the organization for nearly three more decades. As a player, he made the All-Star Game each of his 14 seasons in the NBA and was a 12-time All-NBA selection.
A member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, West won a NBA championship with the Lakers in 1972 and an additional six while in the organization’s front office. He was an architect of the organization’s 10 championships in the 1980s and 2000s.
West went on to add another two championships to his resume while working in an advisory role with the Golden State Warriors.
“Jerry West was a basketball genius and a defining figure in our league for more than 60 years,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “He distinguished himself not only as an NBA champion and an All-Star in all 14 of his playing seasons, but also as a consummate competitor who embraced the biggest moments. He was the league’ first Finals MVP and made rising to the occasion his signature quality, earning him the nickname ‘Mr. Clutch’.
“Jerry’s four decades with the Lakers also included a successful stint as a head coach and a remarkable run in the front office that cemented his reputation as one of the greatest executives in sports history. He helped build eight championship teams during his tenure in the NBA — a legacy of achievement that mirrors his on-court excellence. And he will be enshrined this October into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame as a contributor, becoming the first person ever inducted as both a player and a contributor.
“I valued my friendship with Jerry and the knowledge he shared with me over many years about basketball and life. On behalf of the NBA, we send our deepest condolences to to Jerry’s wife, Karen, his family and his many friends in the NBA community.”
#1 – Run it back: Rich Rodriguez returns to West Virginia
A 37-35 record in six seasons did not allow Neal Brown to earn a seventh season leading the WVU football program. Brown was fired a day after West Virginia’s regular season ended with a 52-15 loss at Texas Tech.
The Mountaineers posted their best season under Brown in 2023. A 9-4 season was capped by a victory over North Carolina in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. However, WVU was unable to capitalize on that momentum and a senior-heavy roster in 2024. The Mountaineers went 6-6 in the regular season.
“I am really grateful for our time here. I am thankful to the people of West Virginia for welcoming us six years ago. That sounds crazy to say. The days are long, some, but the years are short. The tenure here has felt like a short amount of time. Our kids have grown up here and we have made lifetime friends. People at the Puskar Center and our football staff, our football family, everybody in the athletic department, the City of Morgantown, University-wide, they have been really supportive,” Brown said.
On December 12, WVU and North Marion High School alumnus Rich Rodriguez was welcomed back to Morgantown to lead the Mountaineers after a 17-year absence.
“We are thrilled to welcome Coach Rich Rodriguez and his family back home,” WVU Vice President and Director of Athletics Wren Baker said. “Coach Rodriguez understands what it takes to win at West Virginia, and I believe he will pour his heart, soul and every ounce of his energy into our program. I am convinced Coach Rodriguez wants what is best for West Virginia, WVU and West Virginia football, and I am excited about the future of our program.”
“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to be the head football coach at West Virginia University,” Rodriguez said. “My family and I are filled with gratitude to lead the Mountaineer football program again and look forward to working with the many supporters, fans, and friends to build the best football program in America.”
Hired to succeed legendary head coach Don Nehlen as WVU’s leader in December of 2000, Rodriguez went 60-26 in seven years on the sidelines in Morgantown. The .698 winning percentage is tops in WVU program history for any coach with more than 40 games. Rodriguez was introduced at the Coliseum on December 13, in a press conference that was carried live on ESPN’s Pat McAfee Show.