West Virginia Game Notes | Kansas Game Notes

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia begins five straight weeks of Big 12 football with Saturday’s home date against Kansas.

In succession, the Mountaineers will face the Jayhawks, Texas Tech, Kansas State, Texas and TCU before hitting the pause button on Nov. 21. The 2020 campaign concludes with a Nov. 28 home date against Oklahoma and a Dec. 5 road game at Iowa State. 

This Saturday’s game against Kansas will represent the first time this year West Virginia has played a home game in front of fans. Just family and essential game workers were permitted for WVU’s first two games against Eastern Kentucky and Baylor.

“I’m excited about welcoming back our fans,” Brown said. “We’ve missed them. We’ve missed our season ticket holders. We’ve missed our students and we’ve missed our alumni so it will be fun to have them back in Mountaineer Field with us.”

COVID-19 safety restrictions have limited 60,000-seat Milan Puskar Stadium to a reduced capacity of 25%, meaning roughly 15,000 tickets will be sold for Saturday’s game. Still, that’s a far cry from the 900 or so permitted to watch WVU’s first two home games against Eastern Kentucky and Baylor.

“I anticipate a great atmosphere,” Brown said.

Brown is also anticipating improved play from his young wide receiver corps. The group has played well at times, but he’s looking for some more downfield production from them to take extra defenders away from the box to stop junior running back Leddie Brown, who ranks 17th nationally this week in rushing with nearly 107 yards per game.

Two weeks ago against Baylor, West Virginia’s passing game averaged just 5 yards per attempt with its longest completion going for only 14 yards.

“We have to play better at wideout,” Brown said Tuesday. “I think you will see more people play at those spots. It depends who produces this week in practice who will start the game, but we do plan on giving guys more reps and it will probably be a little more evenly distributed than they were the last two games. And I think we will play better.”

Offensive coordinator Gerad Parker said it’s a matter of pushing the football down the field in the vertical passing game.

“That’s on us as a staff – me and coach Brown are responsible for making sure we get it done – and then it’s picking the times to do it,” he explained. “Our guys have put in way too much investment in being able to make plays down the field and run vertically.

“We’ve got some talented guys and the only way we are going to grow that package and grow those guys is to do it,” he added. “the trick is to be able to do it and not get all torn up if the ball hits the ground. If it does, we just need to do it again.”

Doege is completing 66.3% of his pass attempts so far this season and ranks 10th nationally in completions per game (23.0). He also ranks 26th in passing yards per game (241.3) and 38th in passing efficiency (136.8), solid numbers for sure.

“We trust Jarret. I trust him. The staff trusts him and his biggest thing is just trusting himself,” Parker said. “Be a decisive guy in the pocket, make great decisions, trust his training and I think that’s what you are going to see get better and better out of him.”

The running game, with Brown and junior Alec Sinkfield, is becoming pretty reliable. Brown has already topped 100 yards twice and nearly did it a third time against Baylor with 93 yards, while Sinkfield has been an outstanding complementary back averaging a team-best 6.7 yards per carry.

Sinkfield’s 25-yard run in the second half was West Virginia’s longest play from scrimmage against the Bears.

The Mountaineers are averaging 177 yards per game on the ground this year.

West Virginia is coming off a tremendous defensive performance against Baylor, limiting last year’s Sugar Bowl participant to just 256 total yards and 15 first downs. Baylor’s two touchdown drives in regulation were the result of short fields, and WVU sacked Bears’ quarterback Charlie Brewer six times.

WVU ranks among the nation’s Top 20 in nearly every meaningful defensive category, including fourth in red-zone defense, eighth in total defense, eighth in passing yards allowed and 13th in points allowed.

Brown thought his defense, led by seniors Darius Stills, Tony Fields II and sophomore Tykee Smith, played hard and physical against Baylor.

“If you play hard and physical and you do what you’re coached to do then we’re going to have a chance every week,” he said. “But we’ve got to continue to maintain that. When you start talking about quality defensive play those are the ones that show up week in and week out, regardless of the opponent, home or away. It doesn’t matter. They show up each week.”

It will need to show up again on Saturday facing possibly the most explosive offensive player in the Big 12 in Kansas’ Pooka Williams.

Williams is the first Jayhawk since the late Gale Sayers to rush for 2,000 yards or more in his first two seasons, and he’s on pace to become the school’s all-time leading rusher. West Virginia has had some success in the past limiting Williams to just 65 yards last year and 76 two years ago, but Brown knows he’s capable of exploding at any moment.

“He has the ability to get yards even when it’s not blocked well, and you don’t see that too often,” Brown said. “It might be running to the left and you stuff it and he might bounce it out all the way to the right and that’s hard to prepare for. You’ve got to make sure you keep your edges and play really good responsibility football.”

Williams left in the third quarter of Kansas’ most recent game against Oklahoma State with an undisclosed foot injury, but there is no indication that he will be limited against the Mountaineers this weekend.

Kansas tabbed junior Miles Kendrick its starting quarterback for Saturday’s game. Senior pocket passer Thomas MacVittie played in KU’s season-opening loss to Coastal Carolina and true freshman Jalon Daniels got the start in the Oklahoma State game before giving way to Kendrick.

It’s the first time Kansas has named its starting quarterback in advance instead of keeping it a secret until game time.

Kendrick has completed 26-of-43 passes for 246 yards and two touchdowns and is also a threat to run the football. A running quarterback means all 11 defenders are occupied, which could give Williams some extra space to work with.

Since all three quarterbacks have played this year, West Virginia’s defensive coaches must prepare for all three.

In last year’s West Virginia win in Lawrence, KU wide receiver Andrew Parchment caught five passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns while Kwamie Lassiter II also had a TD catch. Both players are back in 2020.

However, it remains to be seen if their coach, Les Miles, will be with them when the Jayhawks travel to Morgantown on Friday afternoon. Miles tested positive for COVID-19 last week and has been self-quarantining in his house.

He released a video message on his Twitter account Sunday indicating he plans to be with his team in Morgantown on Saturday, but he skipped Monday’s weekly teleconference and had defensive coordinator D.J. Eliot do it instead.

Eliot said the coordinators are handling the Kansas game plan this week.

“Coach Miles is doing well,” he said. “He continues to address the team and the coaching staff via Zoom. He’s been in our staff meetings and he’s been involved in the individual staff meetings. Our coordinators are handling their areas and coach Miles is directing us as to exactly what he wants us to do and he plans on being there on Saturday.”

Saturday’s game will be the 10th in a series West Virginia leads 8-1. Kansas has made five prior trips to Morgantown beginning in 1941, and has lost all five. Two years ago, KU dropped a 38-22 decision at Milan Puskar Stadium.

Saturday’s game will kick off at noon and will now be televised nationally on FOX with the Oklahoma State-Baylor game being postponed until Dec. 12.

FOX’s lead college football announcing crew of Gus Johnson and Joel Klatt will call the game.

Mountaineer Sports Network from Learfield IMG College radio coverage will begin at 8:30 a.m. with the Go-Mart Mountaineer Tailgate Show on stations throughout the Mountain State and online via WVUsports.com and the popular mobile app WVU Gameday.

Tickets for Saturday’s game are still available and can be purchased by logging on to WVUGAME.com or by calling the Mountaineer Ticket Office toll-free at 1-800-WVU GAME.