MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Two weeks out from West Virginia’s first game to start the second stint for Rich Rodriguez as head coach, it’s only natural for anticipation in the locker room to build as players wind down with preseason camp and prepare for more meaningful action against outside competition.
Count inside receivers coach Logan Bradley, new to the Mountaineers and working alongside Rodriguez altogether, among those especially excited as well.
“When I got here, my first practice, I was like, ‘whoa, this one is a little different.’ I’m excited to see how he calls a game,” Bradley said. “I’m going to have to be on my Ps and Qs as fast as he goes. I’ve never seen anything like it, so I’ll have to get going.”
Bradley arrived in Morgantown in March from Auburn, where he was for two seasons as an offensive analyst and then assistant tight ends coach. Before that, he was an offensive analyst and offensive graduate assistant at Liberty, and it was during the 2021 season that Bradley took major notice to Rodriguez when a Louisiana-Monroe team Rodriguez was offensive coordinator scored a surprise 31-28 win over the Flames, which Bradley was an offensive analyst for.
“I’ve always wanted to work with him. I’ll never forget it. What’s the saying, if you can’t beat him, join him? I was at Liberty. He was at UL Monroe. We were favored by 30-something points and I’m like man, it’s something up with them,” Bradley said. “Why are they outplaying us? No way they should’ve.”
Bradley’s coaching career began at Ole Miss, though his path hardly crossed with Rodriguez, who was the Rebels’ offensive coordinator in 2019.
“I remember meeting him again at the Alabama High School Coaches Association in Montgomery and listening to him speak there,” Bradley recalled, “and I was like, ‘man, he’s good.’”
While adjusting to the fast-paced offense and high-motor tactics of Rodriguez remains a work in progress for Bradley, it’s been enjoyable to this point as he guides a position group that’s earned some of the most praise throughout camp.
Bradley referenced the top trio of slot wideouts as Rodney Gallagher III, Oran ‘Man Man’ Singleton and Jarod Bowie in no order.
The trio has a wealth of experience across various levels of college football, including two seasons for Gallagher at WVU, a productive year for Singleton at Eastern Michigan and two years of experience for Bowie under Rodriguez at Jacksonville State, which came after the Martinsburg native led all of Division II in receiving at Concord.
“All three have the ability when they get the ball in their hands to make a play,” Bradley said. “They’re as good as gold. You can’t ask for a better group. They push each other. They can make a play at any point in the game that can change it.
“I’ve challenged those guys. They’ve put that on tape, now that’s the standard. You can’t do it one day. You’ve showed me, coach Rod and this team what you’re capable of. Now the standard is to live by that every day.”
Gallagher was among the more heralded recruits West Virginia has secured over the last decade and caught 26 passes for 288 yards with three touchdowns a season ago. Bradley praised his consistency and ability to accept coaching throughout camp.
Singleton led the Eagles in 2024 with 64 receptions that totaled 639 yards and included a pair of TDs and his route-running has Bradley’s attention.
“His route-running is special. When he’s on, he’s on,” Bradley said. “At any moment, he can make a route look special. I would like to say that’s coaching, but I tell him all the time it’s something in that Florida water.”
Bowie made 13 catches for 207 yards in what proved to be his final year with the Gamecocks before following Rodriguez and returning closer to home, and Bradley believes he can consistently be counted on to get upfield without wasting time.
“I tell them all the time, all of you guys are going to have to play,” Bradley said. “Coach Rod tells the team every day he wants to play as many players as he can and he means it. I tell the guys you have to stay ready, because we’re going to be tempo. I’ve never seen an offense this fast, so we all have to stay alert every down, distance and situation.
“Rodney might be in at a point I can’t sub him if we’re going so fast, so he might get eight plays in a row, but the moment coach gives me the green light to sub, we have to go. It’s just a feel for the game, but they all know the awareness of it. Bowie’s been with coach and he does a good job. He gets it and they get it, too. They’ve all been great about it.”