Simply Devine
September 12, 2007 06:52 PM | General
Septemer 12, 2007
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – When West Virginia running back Noel Devine picked up the phone on the sideline after the first of his two fourth-quarter touchdown runs against Marshall last Saturday, offensive coordinator Calvin Magee had some words for his star freshman that countless Mountaineer fans will agree with.
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| Noel Devine ran for 76 yards and scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter of last Saturday's Marshall game.
AP photo |
“The first thing I said to him was, ‘I’ve got to play you more,’ Magee said.
Devine’s response?
“I know coach. I’ve been telling you that,” Devine said.
It would appear that after 76 yards and two touchdowns on just five carries against the Herd that it is indeed time to increase Devine’s role in the Mountaineer offense. Through two games the North Fort Myers, Fla., native has carried 12 times for 120 yards and three scores while sporting an eye-popping 10-yard-per-carry average.
Coach Rich Rodriguez stated in his post-game remarks that the coaching staff needs to insert Devine earlier in the game.
“We’ve got to get Noel in the game sooner,” Rodriguez admitted. “I think Steve got tired (at Marshall) and Noel had some fresh legs. We’ve just got to get more confidence in him. He’s learning what we’re doing very quickly and when the ball’s in his hands he’s got a gift.”
To the fans it’s a no-brainer to play a guy that has an abundant combination of speed, agility and balance but to the coaches putting a true freshman into games early in the season can be a shaky proposition.
“As a coach you want to make sure that you don’t put freshmen in bad situations and set them up to fail,” Magee said. “Their confidence can be fragile but he’s shown what he can do so it’s time to increase his play.”
Devine, who will often patiently wait behind linemen before bursting through a hole, believes his 5-foot-8-inch, 170-pound frame is an advantage for him in West Virginia’s scheme.
“I think it’s an advantage because I am so short and low to the ground that some of the defenders might not see me until it’s too late,” Devine said.
Many highly-touted recruits either falter under the hype or were never worthy of such praise to begin with. In the case of Devine, however, he is getting closer and closer to the guy that Mountaineer fans watched zig-zagging past high school defenders on You Tube all summer.
“I think he might be even a little bit more talented than I was my freshman year,” said Steve Slaton, who arrived at WVU two years ago free from the pressure of such buildup. “I think he has the ability to be better.”
That is the highest of praise for a kid that has only been in Morgantown since July.
“It makes me feel good that he said that but it’s a team thing and I don’t believe that,” Devine said. “We’re both really good.”
Indeed they are and they might even be better with Devine spelling Slaton earlier in games to keep both backs fresh.
“If he keeps making plays, why not put him in?” Pat White said. “Why keep him off the field?”
Devine credits Slaton with helping him succeed early and laughed when asked if he might take the Heisman Trophy candidate’s starting spot this fall.
“It is Steve’s position. I just want to play some and do what I can do to help this team,” Devine said. “Steve helps teach me the offense and he’s there for me to help me out when I’m down. He tells me to be patient on my zone reads.”
His ability to learn the offense quickly has been a result of Devine picking both his teammates’ and his coaches’ brains ever since he set foot in Morgantown.
“I try to always ask questions and learn so I know exactly what’s going on and I can be the best I can be,” Devine said.
The desire to be the best he can be -- not only as a football player but as a person -- is the reason he chose West Virginia over a host of other schools.
“When I came on my visit I could picture myself being here,” Devine said. “I wanted to better myself and I thought this would be the place to help me reach my playing potential and help me become a better person.”
Devine is happy with how he’s been received by the Mountaineer faithful, entering the Western Michigan game to a standing ovation and being serenaded by sections of West Virginia fans chanting, “Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel” last Saturday in Huntington.
“It makes me feel just like I am back at home and it makes me more confident. In West Virginia the people are a lot nicer,” Devine said. “They treat you well. I love to look up in the stands and see all the fans.”
Just as West Virginia fans enjoy looking down on the field and seeing Noel Devine carrying the football for the Mountaineers.
