Halfway Point
October 15, 2008 02:15 PM | General
October 15, 2008
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – It’s the halfway point of the football season and West Virginia is four up and two down. The Mountaineers are 2-0 in Big East play with the meat of the league schedule coming up following one remaining non-conference game against Auburn in Morgantown on Thursday, Oct. 23.
 |
||
| West Virginia's defense is ranked 14th in the country this week giving up just 14.7 points per game.
All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks photo |
Coach Bill Stewart, talking to reporters on Tuesday, said there were some good and some not-so-good things that have happened to his football team through the first six games.
“We’ve found ways to win,” Stewart said. “We have had leaders step out and our offensive line is getting better.”
A big positive for the Mountaineers has been a defense that is starting seven freshmen and sophomores and is ranked 14th in the nation in scoring defense, permitting just 14.7 points per game. That figure is hard to imagine after watching the unit struggle to get off the field in games against Villanova and East Carolina.
“I’m so proud of the defense,” Stewart said. “Everyone counted us out and I said way back that the defense had to carry the offense early on in the season and now you know why.”
The defensive is further along because the system has remained the same. Defensive coordinator Jeff Casteel continued his 3-3 stack scheme and added a pair of past defensive coordinators in Steve Dunlap and Dave Lockwood to a meeting room that already included veteran coach Bill Kirelawich.
The Mountaineers have gotten solid play from corners Ellis Lankster and Brandon Hogan, and a defensive line that has been without Pat Liebig since Colorado continues to improve. Sophomores Scooter Berry and Chris Neild have played consistently well holding the point of attack, and 6-foot-7-inch Doug Slavonic and 6-foot-5-inch Julian Miller have given the defense some height to make it difficult for quarterbacks to find passing lanes. Defensive linemen have batted down six passes at the line of scrimmage so far this year.
The linebacker corps has been forced to make adjustments. Sophomore Anthony Leonard has started the last two games at middle linebacker in place of senior Reed Williams, who chose to use a medical redshirt this season after appearing in the Colorado and Marshall games. Leonard is now sixth on the team in total tackles with 24.
Senior Mortty Ivy is having a big year with 46 tackles, four tackles for losses, a sack, two interceptions and a fumble recovery. J.T. Thomas has also been effective with 26 tackles, 2 ½ tackles for losses and 1 ½ sacks.
The safety play has improved each week. Junior Quinton Andrews (45) and sophomore Sidney Glover (33) rank second and third on the team in total tackles. Junior Nate Sowers got his first interception against Syracuse and 6-foot-5-inch true freshman Robert Sands is starting to look more comfortable directing the back end.
Playing into the strong defense is an outstanding punting game that has the Mountaineers ranked third in the country with a net average of 41.9 per punt. Only Cincinnati and Michigan have been better this year.
Offensively, the Mountaineers are still trying to find their identity. An entirely new offensive coaching staff with new terminology, an early emphasis on the passing game, some inhibiting injuries and inconsistent play along the offensive line has slowed an offense that was averaging nearly 40 points per game in 2007.
West Virginia is averaging roughly half of that this year and a passing game that struggled in 2007 is having difficulties once again in 2008. Last week against Syracuse, the Mountaineers completed 14 passes for just 52 yards in a 17-6 victory over the Orange. In six games this year, West Virginia quarterbacks are averaging just 5.2 yards per pass attempt and have not completed a pass longer than 34 yards.
Just one receiver (Alric Arnett at 10.8) is averaging better than 10 yards per reception. Leading receiver Jock Sanders shows 28 catches, but is averaging only 7.5 yards per reception because most of his catches are coming at the line of scrimmage.
“We need to pitch and catch more,” Stewart said. “I have been very pleased with Wes Lyons. He has stepped up and has done a nice job. We need to get the ball to Alric Arnett. Dorrell Jalloh made a big catch against Rutgers. When you have the ball for 35 minutes you can pitch and catch and have a lot more plays. When you have the ball for 25 minutes and run 50 plays it’s hard to get into a rhythm.”
The Mountaineers are ranked 114th out of 119 Division I teams in passing offense averaging 117.3 yards per game. WVU is 77th this week in total offense at 342.2 yards per game.
“I would like more ball control,” Stewart said. “The ball control and the points are the two things that frustrate me but that will come and we’ll get better and better.”
A lack of a downfield passing threat has once again caused defenses to stack the line of scrimmage to stop West Virginia’s running game. Noel Devine had a career-high 188 yards rushing against Syracuse, but 92 of those yards came on one play.
Devine is leading the team with 642 yards and a 6.6 yards-per-carry average on 98 rushes. Devine’s 98 carries average out to approximately 16 rushes per game.
Pat White, who missed the Syracuse game after suffering a head injury in the Rutgers win, has rushed for 428 yards and is averaging 6.1 yards per carry. Jarrett Brown, used as a third down back out of the shotgun against Rutgers before starting at quarterback against Syracuse, is third on the team in rushing with 157 yards and has completed 22 of 30 passes this year for 114 yards. Ten of West Virginia’s 15 offensive touchdowns this year have been scored through the air.
“The last thing I would ever want to do is lose a football game and get points for playing hard or looking good,” Stewart said. “The ledger says ‘W’ and ‘L.’
“I was pleased with the (Syracuse) win,” Stewart said. “Was I overjoyed? No. Would I like to have more splash? Yes. Would it be nice to win with more points? Sure. Would I have liked to play 80 guys on homecoming? Yes, but it didn’t work out that way.”
Stewart said the team is now entering the most difficult part of the season. The six remaining teams on the Mountaineers’ schedule have a combined 26-9 record.
“You have a great charge at the beginning of the season. All of the emotion and excitement, the previous season, winter conditioning and spring ball, all the hype that everyone has, then you have a pretty good rush,” Stewart explained. “Then you hit a lull and it starts to get tough. It gets tough games six, seven, eight and nine. Those are tough because everyone is hurting.
“Then you have a late run and ask, ‘How do you finish?’ We’re not there yet; we’re in that tough time right now.”
