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Slaton10
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I told BBW that I had fun watching Wv play on Saturday, not because of the win, even though that was a HUGE bonus...but the identity that this team has evolved into...I told him this is what we wanted Rich to have..a power spread with a vertical passing game...and that is exactly what they are...and Mike Casazza wrote a column that said the same....
WVU FOOTBALL: Mountaineers go from finesse to physical -
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — No matter how often West Virginia runs the ball, pulls its guards and topples defenders, there remains a perception that’s more of a stigma and is rapidly becoming a falsehood that the Mountaineers use finesse to move the ball.
I agree!.....
They do spread out formations, seek to isolate receivers in space and ask their quarterback to avoid hits at all costs. They play with an extra player in the secondary so they can be faster on defense and they all but concede their linemen aren’t big enough to play without help.
My contention of why they lost to Alabama and OU
But what WVU engaged in during Saturday’s win at Baylor was anything but soft, and the timing was unmistakably critical. The tenor of a 41-27 victory didn’t erase last season’s 73-42 loss to the Bears, but it did prevent another embarrassment.
“The mentality this game was to play their game,” WVU running backs coach JaJuan Seider said. “We were not going to be intimidated by anybody. They were not going to come in here and run over us again. They embarrassed us last year. Call it like you see it. They kicked our butts up and down the field.
Man I love that statement!....
“But as a man, you’ve got to look yourself in the mirror and say, ‘That is not going to happen. Not on our field. Not in front of our crowd.”
What worked for the Mountaineers last week can’t work against them this week. No. 22 WVU (5-2, 3-1 Big 12) plays Oklahoma State at Boone Pickens Stadium at 3:30 p.m. Saturday on ESPN. The Mountaineers won last season’s game at home.
The Mountaineers ran the ball 50 times against Baylor. It’s the second consecutive week and the fourth time this season they’ve had at least 50 runs. They never ran the ball 50 times in coach Dana Holgorsen’s first three seasons.
Power Spread!
Running back Rushel Shell hit a Baylor defender so hard he hurt himself and came out of the game. Tight end Cody Clay shoved a safety out of the way on one play and then saw the safety avoid him on the next, which was a touchdown run by Dreamius Smith on the last of five straight runs. When WVU had to run out the clock on the final possession, running back Wendell Smallwood pushed forward for a pair of game-ending first downs.
“They knew it was coming and we still hit their guys in the mouth,” Seider said. “There was nothing finesse about that. We can play finesse if we want to, but we’re still going to come off the ball and hit you.”
Telling......
Even what the Mountaineers did with their passes was a bit more brutish than usual. Receiver Kevin White won one-on-one matchups outside to get open for eight receptions for 132 yards and two scores, but he also battled with defensive backs and drew five pass interference penalties, plus a facemask penalty as he shoved a defender to the ground.
Identity......
A screen pass at the end of the first half was “probably the best we’ve run that play all year,” according to offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson, because WVU knocked Bears over and shoved them aside.
“We knew it was going to be rough and dirty,” Smith said.
There were also 32 penalties in the game. The Bears, now the most-penalized team in the country, had seven defensive pass interference penalties and four personal fouls. WVU committed seven personal fouls. All of it was the product of the game and one team matching the other with actions during and after the play.
“I could have told you it was going to look like this,” Holgorsen said. “They had 17 (penalties) against Central Florida (in January’s Fiesta Bowl loss). They average about 12. It’s how they play.
“We were going to do the same thing. We weren’t going to be intimidated. We were going to be physical. I told our guys to take chances. I told our guys in man coverage to be physical.”
Taking on the identity of their Coach.....
Defensive coordinator Tony Gibson took that advice. His team attacked.
“A year ago, they did that to us,” he said. “They physically beat us up and physically assaulted our kids. Coming into the week, I told them, ‘You better respect them, but you better not fear them.’”
He did not want his players to be passive, and he had a hunch the Bears didn’t like to be pressured. The Mountaineers played man-to-man defense, and sometimes the cornerbacks had only one safety — and sometimes none — to help out.
“They didn’t expect us to come out and play like we did,” WVU cornerback Ishmael Banks said. “That caught them off guard because last year, all we did was sit back in coverage on defense.”
WVU’s constant pressure delivered four sacks after having just eight in the first six games. The Bears allowed only seven sacks in the first six games.
“We knew we had to get to the quarterback,” West Virginia linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski said. “Playing aggressive and putting him under as much pressure as we could to get a sack or force a bad throw or just knock him down was our biggest emphasis.”
Just good stuff....If I am a recruit I would be running to sign up to play for this program...........
WVU FOOTBALL: Mountaineers go from finesse to physical -
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — No matter how often West Virginia runs the ball, pulls its guards and topples defenders, there remains a perception that’s more of a stigma and is rapidly becoming a falsehood that the Mountaineers use finesse to move the ball.
I agree!.....
They do spread out formations, seek to isolate receivers in space and ask their quarterback to avoid hits at all costs. They play with an extra player in the secondary so they can be faster on defense and they all but concede their linemen aren’t big enough to play without help.
My contention of why they lost to Alabama and OU
But what WVU engaged in during Saturday’s win at Baylor was anything but soft, and the timing was unmistakably critical. The tenor of a 41-27 victory didn’t erase last season’s 73-42 loss to the Bears, but it did prevent another embarrassment.
“The mentality this game was to play their game,” WVU running backs coach JaJuan Seider said. “We were not going to be intimidated by anybody. They were not going to come in here and run over us again. They embarrassed us last year. Call it like you see it. They kicked our butts up and down the field.
Man I love that statement!....
“But as a man, you’ve got to look yourself in the mirror and say, ‘That is not going to happen. Not on our field. Not in front of our crowd.”
What worked for the Mountaineers last week can’t work against them this week. No. 22 WVU (5-2, 3-1 Big 12) plays Oklahoma State at Boone Pickens Stadium at 3:30 p.m. Saturday on ESPN. The Mountaineers won last season’s game at home.
The Mountaineers ran the ball 50 times against Baylor. It’s the second consecutive week and the fourth time this season they’ve had at least 50 runs. They never ran the ball 50 times in coach Dana Holgorsen’s first three seasons.
Power Spread!
Running back Rushel Shell hit a Baylor defender so hard he hurt himself and came out of the game. Tight end Cody Clay shoved a safety out of the way on one play and then saw the safety avoid him on the next, which was a touchdown run by Dreamius Smith on the last of five straight runs. When WVU had to run out the clock on the final possession, running back Wendell Smallwood pushed forward for a pair of game-ending first downs.
“They knew it was coming and we still hit their guys in the mouth,” Seider said. “There was nothing finesse about that. We can play finesse if we want to, but we’re still going to come off the ball and hit you.”
Telling......
Even what the Mountaineers did with their passes was a bit more brutish than usual. Receiver Kevin White won one-on-one matchups outside to get open for eight receptions for 132 yards and two scores, but he also battled with defensive backs and drew five pass interference penalties, plus a facemask penalty as he shoved a defender to the ground.
Identity......
A screen pass at the end of the first half was “probably the best we’ve run that play all year,” according to offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson, because WVU knocked Bears over and shoved them aside.
“We knew it was going to be rough and dirty,” Smith said.
There were also 32 penalties in the game. The Bears, now the most-penalized team in the country, had seven defensive pass interference penalties and four personal fouls. WVU committed seven personal fouls. All of it was the product of the game and one team matching the other with actions during and after the play.
“I could have told you it was going to look like this,” Holgorsen said. “They had 17 (penalties) against Central Florida (in January’s Fiesta Bowl loss). They average about 12. It’s how they play.
“We were going to do the same thing. We weren’t going to be intimidated. We were going to be physical. I told our guys to take chances. I told our guys in man coverage to be physical.”
Taking on the identity of their Coach.....
Defensive coordinator Tony Gibson took that advice. His team attacked.
“A year ago, they did that to us,” he said. “They physically beat us up and physically assaulted our kids. Coming into the week, I told them, ‘You better respect them, but you better not fear them.’”
He did not want his players to be passive, and he had a hunch the Bears didn’t like to be pressured. The Mountaineers played man-to-man defense, and sometimes the cornerbacks had only one safety — and sometimes none — to help out.
“They didn’t expect us to come out and play like we did,” WVU cornerback Ishmael Banks said. “That caught them off guard because last year, all we did was sit back in coverage on defense.”
WVU’s constant pressure delivered four sacks after having just eight in the first six games. The Bears allowed only seven sacks in the first six games.
“We knew we had to get to the quarterback,” West Virginia linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski said. “Playing aggressive and putting him under as much pressure as we could to get a sack or force a bad throw or just knock him down was our biggest emphasis.”
Just good stuff....If I am a recruit I would be running to sign up to play for this program...........
