Back To Business
December 27, 2007 06:57 PM | General
By Tim Goodenow for MSNsportsNET.com
December 27, 2007
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – With the team present and accounted for Wednesday night, it was back to business for the Mountaineer football team Thursday. West Virginia hit the campus of Scottsdale Community College, a short 10-minute drive away, to lift weights and take part in its first practice since Friday, Dec. 21.
“Thus far we’ve had 10 very fine practices,” interim head coach Bill Stewart said prior to the start of this afternoon’s workout. “And from what I understand from Mike Barwis and his staff we had a tremendous lift. That is good. He didn’t put them through much of a grind but he got them riled up a little bit.”
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| Ryan Mundy takes part in Thursday’s weight lifting session.
All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks |
“Today is practice number 11 and we have a pretty good plan in place,” Stewart said. “We need to go at it to knock the rust off. It has been a couple of days since we left the farm.
“Tomorrow, we’ll go full pads and the rest of the time we’ll probably go helmets and vests - just polishing things up with our team.”
The West Virginia bowl roster did take a minor hit with the announcement of two players left behind for academic reasons.
“On one sad note we had a couple of academic casualties. Adam Bednarik, God bless him, is not going to be here,” Stewart explained. “He is a fifth year man and we hate that for Adam. He did not make the eligibility requirements to come to the bowl.
“The other is Mike Bilokonsky, a defensive lineman. So, we had two members of our academic team that did not make it, and for that we are very, very sad.”
The Mountaineers have avoided serious injuries late in the season and should field a team at full-strength come next Wednesday.
“We’re not bad. We have a few guys dinged up but they are constantly being treated,” Stewart commented. “It has been very minor. We’ve been blessed.”
An injury-free West Virginia team is a sharp contrast to last year’s trip to the 2007 Gator Bowl. All-America running back Steve Slaton nursed a deep thigh bruise during bowl prep last year. The all-Big East tailback was able only to participate in three plays in last year’s bowl win over Georgia Tech.
Slaton, along with quarterback Patrick White, will be ready to go against the Oklahoma Sooners. White, the 2007 Big East Offensive Player of the Year, dislocated his thumb in the regular season finale against Pitt.
“Pat White’s hand is fine and we are ready to go,” Stewart shared. “We’ll be clicking on all cylinders and it should be a fun game.”
Talk of West Virginia’s speed also took focus in Stewart’s briefing with the media.
“As I said last week, we have a few bullets in our gun,” grinned the coaching veteran of 30-plus seasons. “I know this: the holsters will be empty when we leave the field.
“We call them race cars. Tony Caridi, our play-by-play man, came up with that name. The 2, 5, 10 and 35 (cars) must touch the ball. If those guys get a chance to touch the ball then we should have a fun time. They are all fast and we are going up against a very fast and formidable opponent.”
The opponent has made 40 bowl appearances with 24 victories, adding to Oklahoma’s tradition-rich football program.
“They are ranked nationally in just about every category on both offense and defense. And kickoff return team, they are number one in America,” Stewart said. “They hit on all three phases. They are really good and they should be. It is Oklahoma with a great tradition, a great football power.
“They’ve had a heck of a year. Bobby Stoops has won, I think, seven out of the last nine years at least 11 games. That is what we are up against. They are pretty special. But we’re not too bad our self,” Stewart said.
