Welcome to the Friday Feedback. It was a good week and I think it went nicely. Your thoughts about additions and improvements are welcome. Let’s make this quick today. I just heard Bret Favre was thinking of unretiring and I’d like to see if there’s anything to it. This was a different week in that a lot of your comments and questions have already addressed, which worked out well. We don’t have too much to discuss, but work remains. Nevertheless, it should be fast … but not as fast as Morgan Trent. Take it away, Jim Rome.

Onto the Feedback. As always, comments appear as posted. In other words, stay strong.

glibglub said:

When I was there, he never stirred up anything, but he’s entitled to think what he wants to.

What is P-Rod implying? With his steadying influence gone, suddenly it’s “Pat White Gone Wild”? Stay classy, Rich.  

Yes. Yes he was.

Ted said:

While Coach Van Zant was intelligent in his comment’s or lack thereof. I do wonder how intelligent it is to have a student on Campus that has been drafted 3 times by major league baseball, and Coach V Z hasn’t made the efffort to ever say hello in 4 years?! Huh?  

I do think it’s bizarre they’ve never talked, never bumped into one another on campus, never shared a few moments at a MAC function, so on and so forth. Let’s remember a few things. 1) Pat came to WVU intent on playing football. 2) You know who coached the football team the previous four years. 3) Pat was only drafted twice before he thought about playing baseball at WVU this past year (semantics, I know, but let’s be accurate). 4) Might it also be upon Pat to introduce himself to GVZ? 5) They both share blame for never meeting before all of this.

thacker said:

Mike–

One simple question.

Is Van Zandt just a prick who loves the game and feels that he is not there to be anyone’s friend nor will ask anyone for anything?

Fair question. I don’t think he is. In our interactions, he’s been a gentleman and he handles criticism about as well as you could expect. That’s about as far as I can go with my answer — he’s always been polite and professional. That said, I’ve heard the same things we’ve all heard and read about his popularity lately. Not to say you’re insinuating this, but I think it’s unfair to say he didn’t want Pat’s help, that he didn’t think a baseball team needed/wanted a football player.

Mack said:

What is the sports blogging equivalent of early practices without pads on?

Blogging before showering? 

Sam said:

I assume they’re recreating Mike Leach’s catching techniques, in which tennis balls are rocketed at receivers in an attempt to help them improve their catching?  

That seems like the logical reason there were tennis balls and a pitching machine at practice Tuesday:

And when they finish sprinting, they move to Leach’s tennis-ball bazookas. A year of catching tiny fuzzy balls fired at their chests at 60 m.p.h. has turned many young men who got to Texas Tech with hands of stone into glue-fingered receivers. 

Karl said:

Nehlen looks pretty good. Glad to see it. I didn’t know he hung around with Larry David, though.

Curb your enthusiasm, K. That was former Nehlen assistant and current assistant director of development Donnie Young.

Sam said:

Did they call any of Nehlen’s patented draws on 3rd and 17? Why do we continue to celebrate that guy…two undefeated seasons go down in flames in bowl games, one of the worst bowl records imaginable, and prehistoric playcalling. I’m glad he’s feeling better, but if we could keep him from infecting the program, that would be fantastic.

Ouch. Would it be wrong to share this story? Bill Stewart spoke with Nehlen for about 20 minutes during Tuesday’s practice, up until the time the media was asked to leave. As the media departed, someone not in the media said, “You’re going to miss the draw drills.” You’re right. It would be wrong to share that story.

oklahoma mountaineer said:

Hopefully, Mr. Andrews holds this path. He, in my very limited and naive opinion, looks to be the most talented D-Back since Pacman (sorry–Adam) Jones wore our colors — explosive on hits and recovery.

Does he have a future returning punts/kicks?

He’s in the best shape I’ve known him to be in and he is a great physical talent the secondary absolutely needs. Again, I think he’s turned a page. He was pretty upset he was connected to the Pugh incident based on reputation alone and he seems intent on staying clear of those things in the future. Time will tell. As for returns, he’s doing punts and he catches everything. Q thinks he’s big and fast enough to break a tackle or take a bump early in a return and get 15 or 20 yards. There’s also this:

Known to take delight in hitting an opponent hard, he’s aware he’d be in a position to get what he’s been giving the previous to years.

“It’d be a fun experience,” he said. “It’d let me learn how it feels to really get hit if I was to receive one of those. I don’t think it’d be too difficult.”

If he were to be on the opposite end for a change, might it change the way he plays?

“I won’t take it easy on guys,” he said.

One more Q quote:

Andrews, by the way, is one player who is not happy to see the linebackers control the offense every day in practice.

“It’s good, but it’s also frustrating,” he said. “They take all the big plays away from us. You’re running full speed up the middle and then they clean it all up. You get there and look around like, ‘What the heck happened?’ 

Mack said:

Who is this year’s Ryan Grant?

I will hang up and listen.

We’re talking about a player who comes out of nowhere and becomes a star. I’ll go with a good bet and a darkhorse (in parenthesis). Offense: Alric Arnett (Tyler Urban). Defense: Brandon Hogan (Nate Sowers). Special teams: Ellis Lankster (Eddie Davis).

Enjoy the weekend.