Welcome to the Friday Feedback, the bookend on a week that’s been pleasantly packed with recruiting news. Hey, this genre might catch on! And here’s why: There’s more to the stories than touchdowns and tackles, verticals and 40 times.

Before Eugene Smith is allowed to scramble on water, let’s not only remember he’s a high school senior so many people expect will come in and not only play right away, but help immensely, but also still just a young kid prone to bad plays and bad days.

Whilst on his way to Miramar High’s first state semifinal appearance, he had one of those bad days and a bunch of bad plays against Deerfield Beach. Smith was sacked 14 times. I never wedged this into a story and I wish I had because it is somewhat indicative of the kid, who he is and what he can become. 

“You would have never known it,” said his coach and former WVU linebacker Damon Cogdell. “Most kids who get sacked 14 times would be cussing and fussing at his linemen. Eugene never did that. He was picking them up and trying to keep them going and doing their job in a playoff game.”

Miramar won the game and advanced to that historic semi as Smith led a third consecutive fourth quarter game-winning drive. How’s that happen? Funny you should ask.

“The 14 sacks weren’t on my o-line. It was me missing a lot of reads and kind of holding onto the ball too long and getting sacked as a result,” he said. “That’s not something where I’d get too down on myself for and I wouldn’t get too down on anyone else. I would’t start fussing after a couple of sacks because I make mistakes too and I wouldn’t want my receivers fussing at me for bad throws or bad reads.”

I’m guessing the WVU staff took note of this game and rather than critique indecisiveness in the pocket or a slow release, marveled at what happened after the play. Yes, he could play for me.

Onto the Feedback. As always — wait! This regrettably and inexcusably slipped through the cracks: The BPF will not get a boost from the stimulus package.

It turns out the practice facility didn’t qualify for the stimulus wish list, anyway. It didn’t belong on the list, period.

The latest version of the package forbids universities from using higher education grants for new buildings or facilities that are primarily used for athletics. The funds are meant for things like energy efficient retrofittings, roof repairs, asbestos abatement and technology upgrades.

Back in mid-December, the WVU Board of Governors approved construction of the basketball facility, a 64,000-square foot building adjacent to the WVU Coliseum. It’s considered to be an 18-month construction project — but the board made the project contingent upon private funding.

The Mountaineer Athletic Club says $4 million has been raised toward the total cost and $22.5 million as been pledged, but the BPF, according to MAC Executive Director Niles Eggleston, is “not going to happen as timely as the coaches might have wanted.”

Yikes. OK, onto the Feed — wait! West Virginia’s Mt. Rushmore, which is not to be confused with Oll Stewart’s trusted three reporters, is out and the Mountain State opted for the Logo, Huff, Mary Lou and the Rand U graduate. Pretty neat. Neatest? Probably Alabama. Least neat? Maine. Surprisingly neat? South Dakota. Surprisingly not neat? Florida.

Onto the Feedback. As always, comments appear as posted. In other words, don’t be discouraged.

How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love Coach Stewart said:

Being completely honest, I feel that from a pure ‘on the court contribution’ sense, by next year Truck may be just as good as Mazzulla BUT he lacks the leadership and maturity that Joe brings to the table.

Also, I have to think that Huggs is not overly disappointed with this development. It is pretty obvious that he is ready to move on from Belein’s era (because he has been starting 3 freshmen over more mature players Belien recruited) and although it may hinder us this year it EXPONENTIALLY increases the development of Truck, which is only a good thing.

No coincidence Truck’s little slide here lately has coincided with WVU’s. The team just needs an efficient point guard to keep Ruoff and Butler in their natural roles and positions and Will Thomas isn’t getting it done in his limited role behind Truck. This, more than anything else, is where WVU really misses Joe and it’s probably why Ebanks has started to do some of the ball-handling. The Mountaineers can’t afford to take Ruoff and Butler out of their best spots. But, yes, for the time being, Truck is getting an accelerated education.

ENShawkins said:

And on the 7th day, there was Ebanks. This guy is turning it up at the right time. KJ as well. I think Wellington is going to see his minutes decrease as we move on through the season. Nice guy, but he only has two switches: 1. Very aggressive 2. Hide under the bench. More often than not it’s number 2 we are seeing.  

He’s been pretty good lately and — this will sound odd — he’s really unselfish for a freshman who’s being asked to do a lot. I’d like to see him go at the basket more often early in a game because he might discover he can do it and either score or get fouled. Then his confidence is set for the rest of the game. Then again, he was really good early on against Syracuse, but didn’t score in the second half. Jones is coming along, too, and it’s fun to think about where he’ll be in a year or two. As for now, he’s accepted a role and rebounds and happily knocks down short jumpers. As for Wellington …

ccteam said:

ENShawkins,
Don’t be too harsh on Wellington. He is usually being asked to guard the other team’s big man, and he is always the 4th or 5th option on offense. That is a recipe for foul trouble and not much scoring. He is doing OK in my opinion. KJ and Ebanks are starting to mature. That is good to see. Flowers puts in some good minutes off the bench. Wells is a part of that mix and will continue to be.

That’s the consistent asterisk with Mr. Smith. He’s a 3 playing the 5 and that gets him into foul trouble. It is, at times, understandable. Then again, many of his fouls come from trying to guard behind a guy, which isn’t going to work, or by taking charges. He tries to take a bunch and, let’s be honest, his reputation can work against him there. That said, if he doesn’t try to take them, he’s coming out of the game. The foul trouble extends the bench more and earlier than WVU would prefer. You don’t expect prolific numbers from Flowers or Cam, but when they have to jump into the game early on, it’s hard for WVU to keep up. Ditto for when they have to play up to double their minutes.

overtheSEC said:

His optimism can be seen in his body language. Last night when we tried to make our run and “let’s be honest,” we got good looks and would’ve cut the gap if a couple more shots would have fallen. It seems like he put his hands up to his forehead more than I’ve ever seen, which I perceive more as someone saying “we can’t catch a break.” We were executing better in spurts but couldn’t capitalize enough. When we’re bad; we’re “give up a 10 point run” bad. When we’re good; we’re “getting great looks, let’s just try and make the shots” good.

Can’t say I blame him. It occurs to me a few games this season would have been vastly different had one more shot, maybe two, gone in: Davidson, UConn, Louisville (thought late turnovers hurt) and Syracuse — Bird Sowards rattled a 3 in and out late in the first half that would have helped and Butler’s missed free throws when they cut the lead to nine were big. Then again, that’s probably the story across basketball. It happens and this team, as difficult as it may sound, needs to find a way to make missed shots matter less.

Country Roads said:

First, I love Huggins’ brutal honesty. As a player, it may hurt to hear that you’re “not very skilled,” but it’s the truth. However, Huggs follows that up with “we’re going to win, because we have good kids.” I love that attitude.

Second, I agree with you, BLM. I couldn’t help but think last night about how in 2 years when Truck, Ebanks and Jones are juniors we will probably go up there and mop the floor with Syracuse. I love Ruoff and I appreciate all that he has done (and continues to do) in his career, but right now it looks like he is trying to do TOO much. He’s a fantastic role player—handles the ball, makes good decisions, (usually) shoots it well. But he can’t take the team on his back. That’s Butler’s role, and it’s becoming Ebanks’ role as well. But right now, it looks like Ruoff is trying to handle the ball, run the offense, create/force shots, and then try and play defense. He needs to settle down and let the game come to him.

Interesting, but WVU is at its best when Ruoff’s line is something like 16 points, seven assists, five rebounds, two steaks rather than 26 points and 10 3-point attempts. He can’t be a shot-hunter or a catch-and-shoot guy this year.

Birch said:

Honestly, I think we’d be better served with a change in the starting lineup. Everybody will probably jump on me for this, but I’d like to see Truck come off the bench and have Ruoff and Ebanks play the 1’s and 2’s, Butler 3, Jones 4, Wells 5. The last few games that combo seems to have stopped the bleeding and allowed us to go on some runs. Truck can come off the bench and give us a change of pace from the original lineup.

I like the concept for a couple of reasons. Truck would give the bench a boost in speed and shooting, which it needs, and Ebanks in a point-ish role keep Ruoff and Butler where they need to be. You’d also be starting off with what has been the best lineup lately. That’s never a bad thing. We’ll never see it, though. Change this late in the season, when the stakes are so high, is a bit risky.

OB1 said:

No senior leader this year.
Last year we had Darris making clutch pays.
Before that we had Frank Young leading us to an NIT Championship
Before that we had Pittsnogle, Gansey, Herber
Before that Sally and Fischer

One day Ruoff will make one hell of a coach though.  

Spot on. By the way, I’d love to cover Ruoff’s team because he’d fill up your notebook and probably give you one Coors Light commercial every year.  

oklahoma mountaineer said:

Maybe it’s too early, and maybe it is to obvious, but can we go ahead and nickname Tavon Austin as “Poetry in Motion”; his highlight film should have Chris Beatty licking his chops — he definitely has a crowd of running backs to back up Noel now!

I’m partial to The Poet, but I’ll hink it over. Maybe I’ll flip a coin!

thacker said:

The fun and foolishness of youth. Some ‘flippant’ decisions can impact a lifetime. [Pun for the benefit of Casazza.]  

Well done.

JP said:

That’s just silly. You’d think his principal would encourage him to make his decision based upon something a bit more substantive than a coin flip.  

Wait until you see how they pick a major. 

How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love Coach Stewart said:

So who is this Moore kid? I’ve never heard his name and I’m a nerd for this recruiting stuff (i.e. I check Rivals, Scout, etc. all the time).

Also, is this Redman kid up to snuff? Offer’s from Marshall and Ohio don’t really impress me. I smell that WVU is throwing a bone to appease in-state fans seeing that WVU only had a couple in-state commits.

Any thoughts?  

Terrance Moore was a pretty good high school receiver who dropped a little off the radar, but maintained his effectiveness in junior college. Juco commitments are sometimes kept quiet and the Mountaineers were happy to see that happen this time. They like him a lot. Ditto for Redman, who literally fell into their lap when another linebacker flipped a coin and opted for Rutgers. He’s a pretty good player who’ll get a chance to grow and develop into a larger role later on in his career. Plus, we get a few years of fun with Redman lyrics. “Once upon a time up in Keyser, yo … “

Karl said:

I have a good feeling about Redman. You get the sense he wasn’t high on their board, but they kept in touch in case a scholarship opened up. So many home-grown Mounties have made great careers for themselves after being under-recruited or walking on. Maybe he’s the next.

Because it’s such a small state, nobody focuses on players from WV. Basically, everyone’s an unknown. The football programs are so small and have so few resources that a lot of these kids are still very raw. That means they may also have lots of untapped, unrecognized potential. On the other hand, a kid from a big Southern school with great facilities and serious coaches may have already peaked. Thus, a few years after their recruitment, Reed Williams grows into an awesome player while the other kid never really improves.

My favorite recruiting story: A Nehlen assistant visits Anthony Becht, an unknown, slow WR from Deleware, another state nobody bothers with. The assistant looked at Becht’s ass and somehow could tell he had the potential to add a lot of muscle and brawn, with the proper training. Nehlen was skeptical. Why didn’t anyone else offer this kid? The assistant called in a favor with a friend at another school, asking him to feign interest so that he could tell Nehlen about the “competition” and force his hand a little bit. Finally, Nehlen went along. A few years later, Becht was a first-rounder in the NFL draft.

This is a true story, though it didn’t make it onto Nehlen’s Hall of Fame plaque.

overtheSEC said:

As “fun” as it is to have suspense and drama on Signing Day, a day like this for Mountaineer fans has to inspire confidence. The less ebb and flow with the 2009 class the more attention that can be paid to the 2010 class.

No news is good news, right? Speaking of 2010, WVU will probably “only” need 15 or 16 players, which allows the staff to focus a little more on quality over quantity.

p.i. reed said:

This looks like a good class. I’ve not been so excited since they signed Jason Gwaltney. Um, never mind.

If “Dinner with a player’s granny” is the barometer, there’s nothing to worry about with this class.

Alli said:

I called it months ago. I knew he’d never explain the TBA thing. (Not sure why I’m pointing that out. Maybe I’m looking for a gold star on my spelling homework).

Anyway, I like this class. I’m really not sold on Finau being eligible though. It doesn’t seem possible, but then again, his situation seems to change every 3 months, so who knows.

Anyone else feel like Stew downplayed this class a little compared to last year? Last season he acted like every single player was a golden god. Maybe he is finally getting some PR help?  

Gold star awarded! I’m not surprised, but I’m a little surprised. Remember, when the TBA happened the criticism was so high and there was so much that apparently happened behind the scenes I kind of thought or hoped he might explain things. Nothing wrong with taking the high road, though. It’s a refined Stewart, probably in line with downplaying the class.

Country Roads said:

I read somewhere that Stew explained last year’s “overhyping” as being necessary to instill a sense of optimism back into a program that had become pessimistic. This year, he doesn’t feel the need to do that. Also, I think he knows he got a pretty good class and doesn’t feel the need to justify it to anyone.

That’ll work. Less is more, right?

Karl said:

The important thing is that they’re all fine young men.

Enjoy the weekend!