MORGANTOWN — Whether it was after good or bad, Rich Rodriguez talked this camp about adding more players out of the transfer portal for West Virginia. He said his recruiting staff has been looking since the portal opened in the spring.

At this point, it’s not adding players for depth, like Rodriguez said before the spring portal; it’s adding players out of necessity.

“It’s not like, let’s bring them in to be a practice player,” Rodriguez said. “Let’s bring him in there to be on the scout team. It’s bringing in to let’s compete and see if they can help us win. I think it’s unlike the NFL, they constantly have practice squad guys or free agents they pick up off the street. They’re picking up free agents and paying them off the street, but we’re kind of picking up free agents from that regard.”

Rodriguez’s reinforcements have finally arrived.

On Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning, two transfers announced their commitment to WVU and are expected to enroll this fall, hoping to see some action and help produce wins.

Division II cornerback Hubert Hendrickson III announced he’s transferring to WVU from Franklin Pierce. Hendrickson has four years left of eligibility and was a track and field sprinter. He ran an 11.43 100-meter sprint.

The cornerback room wasn’t an area that Rodriguez brought up that needed some help. There’s also a question of how much Hendrickson can help with a smaller 6-foot-2, 150-pound frame. He’ll need to bulk up to play at the Division I and Power Four level. He seems like a depth piece, but Rodriguez said he’s adding out of necessity right now.

One necessity was filled on Thursday morning. Junior college running back Tyler Jacklich announced he’s transferring to WVU. Jacklich does have some Division I experience, playing at Wyoming out of high school. After a year at Wyoming, Jacklich transferred down to Merced College.

Jacklich fits the description of what Rodriguez wanted for the thin running back room in the portal. Rodriguez wanted a big power back who hits the hole hard. Jacklich is 6-foot-1 and 223 pounds, which would be the second biggest back on the roster, behind Tye Edwards, who is still waiting for waivers.

The only issue with adding transfers this late into camp is how much they can learn in a short amount of time to be ready for the first game on August 30. Rodriguez will use the time when classes are easing in to get these new transfers up to speed. WVU classes start on Aug. 20.

“We got to make sure that we’re not doing too much too soon,” Rodriguez said. “They gotta work their way in shape. Our guys have been practicing, so they’re gonna be in better shape than somebody new. We got plenty of time to meet with them and try to keep it simple.”

Even after the two additions and the first game quickly approaching, Rodriguez and his staff are still looking for players in the portal, or the “waiver wire” as he called it.

“There’s always a possibility of one or two more now,” Rodriguez said. “What’s going to be out there right now is going to be a lot less because everybody else is working. There’s been some interest from some guys that could help us.”