Bowl Preview
December 08, 2002 04:22 PM | General
December 8, 2002
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- A matchup of two surprisingly successful conference runners-up highlights the first Continental Tire Bowl, where West Virginia (9-3/6-1 in BIG EAST play) faces the Virginia Cavaliers (8-5/6-2 in ACC action) on Saturday, Dec. 28, 2002.
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| West Virginia running back Avon Cobourne leads the Mountaineers' in rushing with a school-record 1,593 yards. |
“We’re excited that our players have earned the right to get a bowl bid this year and I’m proud with the way they’ve come together,” said West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez. “Obviously at the beginning of the year they set a goal to have a winning season and getting to a bowl game and I think they’ve exceeded that by finishing second in the league. I’m sure our players feel that finishing second in the Big East was a nice accomplishment and that there would be a good bowl game come from it and that’s happened.”
This bowl contest will kickoff at 11 a.m. at Ericsson Stadium in Charlotte, the beautiful home of the NFL's Carolina Panthers, and will be televised by ESPN2.
The Mountaineers, who rank as the nation's second most potent rushing attack at 286.9 yards per game, will seek to exploit that explosiveness again, using a triple threat that includes WVU and BIG EAST career rushing leader Avon Cobourne (1,593 yards, 15 TD this season), junior Quincy Wilson (863 yards, 6 TD) and versatile quarterback Rasheed Marshall (618 yards, 12 TD) running behind a veteran offensive line.
The Mountaineer defense, retooled this season under new coordinators Jeff Casteel and Todd Graham, has been an aggressive, intense unit much improved especially in stopping the run. Ranked 28th nationally in total defense, the hallmarks of this senior led charge have been forced turnovers, hard hits and big plays when the game was on the line.
In Rich Rodriguez' second season as head coach at his alma mater, the fortunes have reversed from 3 8 to 9 3. The Mountaineers finished second to only defending champion Miami in BIG EAST play and the always fervent West Virginia fans are infused with new enthusiasm.
Virginia has had a similar climb. Picked during the preseason to finish eighth in the ACC standings, the Cavaliers lost their first two games, but put together a six game win streak at midseason and upset wins over North Carolina State (14 9) and Maryland (48 13) to close their conference slate, finishing 8 5 with a 6 2 ACC mark good for second in the league standings.
“I know that they’re kind of like us, they had a nice run in their league and they tied for second place,” said Rodriguez. “They had some big wins against some high-quality teams including N.C. State, Maryland and Clemson. I know they’ve recruited extremely well – they had one of the best recruiting classes in the country last year and they’ve got some pro coaches on their staff, so this is going to be a big challenge for us.”
Junior quarterback Matt Schaub, who earned ACC Offensive and Player of the Year honors for the 2002 campaign, leads the Cavaliers’ potent aerial attack.
The first-team all ACC quarterback is the ACC's leading passer and has set eight single season UVa records. Schaub leads the ACC with 27 touchdown passes and a 68.7 percent completion rate. His 2,794 yards passing and 2,850 yards of total offense are Virginia school records. He ranks ninth in the NCAA in passing efficiency.
Schaub's favorite target has been senior Billy McMullen, a two time all ACC receiver who caught 68 passes for 886 yards and three scores this season. Freshman tight end Heath Miller has caught nine TD passes in an offense that saw nine different targets total more than 100 yards receiving this year.
Virginia's top rusher is Wali Lundy, who gained 699 yards and four scores this season. Senior tackle Mike Mullins leads a young offensive line.
Second-year coach Al Groh, the ACC Coach of the Year, takes pride in his defense as well, led by all conference inside linebacker Angelo Crowell, who accounted for 140 tackles this season. Safety Jerton Evans, defensive end Chris Canty, cornerback Almondo Curry and outside linebacker Darryl Blackstock earned all conference mention as well.
