Welcome to the Friday Feedback, which has been traveling down this road so long, trying to find its way back home. And now it’s back, though all atwitter over Bill Stewart’s revelation.

“I see the positives, but I also see people saying, ‘Why isn’t he coaching instead of sitting on the Internet?'” he said. “That’s always in the back of my mind because I’m old-school. That’s why I can’t go hook, line and sinker here.

“I want to jump in with both feet, but I’m still old Bill Stewart. I’m a football coach. I’m not an entertainer. I’m not a journalist. I’m not good in that world. I’m good at being a football coach, but I will try to get the facts out.”

Not sure I’m disappointed or satisfied he’s not pulling the strings here. I am delighted to learn he’s using pizza to lure the students out of bed and to practice Saturday morning. I don’t know where this is headed — and neither does WVU — but I’m pretty interested to watch.

Onto the Feedback. As always, comments appear as posted. In other words, you never know what to expect.

glibglub said:

Flippin’ bureaucrats.

Free Logan Heastie! Free Logan Heastie! 

(Update: 1:35 p.m. — Looks like he’s cleared to participate at today’s 3 p.m. practice. We’ll see.) Not so fast. There’s something about one of the two transcripts — maybe both, I suppose — and without knowing the exact issue(s), the danger is in the fact he’s already graduated high school and entered college. He can’t go back to high school and do summer school like a May/June graduate, who if he had transcript trouble would do summer school and then enroll in college in time for summer camp. If Heastie isn’t qualified, he’s a non-qualifier and can’t play for WVU. Hard to imagine how this happened or how it took so long to discover.

thacker said:

I would lay odds that somewhere along the line attorneys got or are involved in the process. Those guys spend all of their time shoveling smoke, believe that what they shovel is gold and try to convince the rest of us that it is at least coal that they shovel. The end result, kids take it in the neck that shouldn’t.  

Something dressed in a class action suit would look nice, I say. Where’s Marv Robon?

MichaelJLucasWV said: 

r Says:

March 26th, 2009 at 7:16 am
WVU should take its time, get it right, it’s spring practice which is fairly meaningless.

We want to have WVU’s reputation, not UConn’s.

No, Spring Practice is HUGE

MichaelJLucasWV said:

continued due to untimely hitting of the “Enter” key..

anyway, Spring Practice is HUGE for incoming freshman. It might mean the difference between Logan having a Stellar year if he goes through spring and learns the system, compared to spending the first six or seven games learning the system, and only having a so-so year. Add to this, the fact that the kid is being punished for doing absolutely NOTHING wrong, Hell, he’s being punished for making some very large sacrifices to give himself a better chance to be an outstanding Student athelete. Anyway, add the kid’s plight, to the fact that this will cast WVU in a negative light to other recruits who might want to start school early, and that the WVU offense needs all the practice it can get with a new QB and new WRs to break in, and i think that calls for ALL haste on the part of WVUs admissions office. Hell, i think someone should lose their job for this, in the wake of all the players that wanted to come early, but it seems like the admissions office couldnt seem to get their paperwork and whatever else needed done finished for these kids. Hell, everyone knows the ncaa is a bunch of incompetants, well, everyone except the folks in the admissions office i guess.

Welcome to the party, Michael. Strong debut replete with relevant points and concerns as they relate to Mr. Heastie. The whole purpose of the early enrollment is to get a head start and Heastie could be a starter this season. His only crime is apparently bad advice or guidance counseling.  

(some other) Mike said:

I don’t understand why he can’t practice while this gets sorted out. It’s not often I have a chance to quote Allen Iverson, but “I mean listen, we’re sitting here talking about practice, not a game, not a game, not a game, but we’re talking about practice.” He’s gone to a lot of trouble just to come in and practice, and I cannot see who would be harmed if it turned out a team had an ineligible player in spring practice. What’s could the penalty be, if he participates but is later ruled ineligible? His side in the Gold / Blue game has to forfeit?

In related news, Purdue is also waiting on Clearinghouse approval for RB Al-Terek McBurse, but the Product has“seven true freshmen enrolled in school early and currently practicing.”  

Funny. Probably some sense to that “why can’t he practice?” line of thinking, too. In the black and white world of the NCAA, you can’t have ineligible athletes — or athletes whose eligibility is in question. That’s cheating. 

overtheSEC said:

Like you Mike, I think people will think this is Stewart managing public expectations, but like you, I think this is him trying to coach his team and properly motivate them. The Big East title is ambitious but certainly possible. 5-7 is also possible.
I think his statement about players thinking Pat would bail them out is pretty accurate as well. I don’t think he made any of those kinds of comments last year. I wonder if he would have made those ECU comments publicly after the loss last year if he wouldn’t have been looked at as such an “Aww shucks” guy for so much of the season. If that’s the case, you could argue he sacrificed his credibility to avoid having to throw his current team under the bus.

It’s the first thing of note he’s said this season and sets the tone for the rest of the way. Nothing wrong with a narrow focus.

Country Roads said:

Once upon a time, WVU fans would have sacrificed their firstborn for a conference title. Oh, how things have changed.

Like, 10 years ago? Yeah, time flies.

Rob W. said:

I can be as anti-Stewart as anyone. But I really don’t have a problem at all with his comments this week.

Do you know why people picked it apart? Alli does. 

Alli said:

People who have a problem with that comment probably have an issue with everything Stew says and does.

Bingo. 

ENShawkins said:

Big East championship…whoa! Easy now Bill. I thought we were just concerned with cultivating great fathers, brothers and husbands. What’s with all this talk about winning football games??

Well, that’s part of the deal. Implied, but included. 

ccteam said:

Many questions on offense and the kicking game. Hopefully the d will be strong enough to allow the offense to solidify, although losing your best cover corner is an issue. Backups at qb and offensive line seem to be the biggest concerns.

Impossible to take anything from two practices, but the offense seems way ahead of where it was a year ago as far as implementation. The same, multiplied by 10, for defense.

Mack said:

I believe starting QB is also an issue. Maybe Jarrett Brown has the job locked down, but I gotta think that others are going to get some looks.

I gotta think you’re right…but not in the spring. Gino doesn’t arrive until the summer and Coley isn’t beating JB or cutting into his playing time. There’s no time share there.

Jason C said:

Patty Mac wasn’t actually that great of a kick off kicker. He was “pretty good” but you can’t discount that over half his kick offs were fielded his senior yr, most came out from around the 5 yd line. It always puzzled me. I know they moved the kick spot back but several kickers in the country had no problem kicking them deep into the end zone to prohibit returns… don’t get me wrong though, I have tons of love for pat m. I’ve met him in person before and I’ve got to say this; I don’t think I’ve ever met a more genuine young man. He’s got an unbelievable personality and you could talk to him like he’s your brother after knowing him 5 minutes. In addition, I talked to him at the senior bowl. I asked him how next year’s kicking corps looked. Told him I was worried. He told me I should be… He kind of made a scary face as he said it, and I could tell he was being sincere. I swear on my kids lives that I’m not lying…

JAC  

I don’t think it was all his fault. He could get it in the end zone from time to time, but opponents were bringing everything out against WVU because the coverage was terrible. Stewart eventually made some changes and they went with strategic kicks — squib, sky, corner, etc. — to give the tacklers a better chance.

Shannon said:

Whatcha going to do with Pat McAfee runs wild on you?

Hmmm, good question. 

 OB1 said:

^^^make him hit a field goal from the hash, brother!

That’s not funny.  

Karl said:

McAfee would be the natural heel — the blond hair, the wiseass attitude. Owen Schmitt, on the other hand, would be the perfect face — all about hard work, loyalty, toughness. They need to go at it.

McAfee would debut as a face, but the heel turn would be tremendous, for all the reasons you mentioned. Let’s say the turn was at Schmitt’s expense, which would solidify his face status. This sets up the match, which is then decided by a run-in. Has to be a defensive player. It’s Quinton Andrews with a steel chair, hard feelings over his departure from the team, but loyalty to his time at WVU. What happens next?

Shannon said:

I will be honest I thought it was a little obsessive to call the foot fault with 5 seconds to go. Let the teams play it out. It was just his toe and he got it back before he threw the ball in bounds. If he was on the line with his toe sticking out when he threw it … then call it. Bad call.

It would have been hard not to call it on Lazar Hayward, I think, because he was moving all over the baseline, took a sharp step forward over the line and then one back. It was noticeable. I just hate that a game featuring dozens of no-calls is decided on that call.

overtheSEC said:

I spent the end of last week in Charleston for the state tournament and I hate to say it but officiating in the high school ranks makes me even more pessimistic about the future of well called basketball. Travelling is pretty much an accepted infraction that rarely goes called and there was so much carrying of the ball it looked at times like an And1 exhibition. Also in the very close AAA title game, during a very crucial call in the 4th quarter one offical called a charge no basket while another ref called a block-and count the basket. They deilberated for not less than 4 minutes with not only the 3rd floor ref, but the head official at the scorer’s table! The final result? A double foul! Wave off the basket! And alternate possesion was awarded! Ridiculous!

Glad you mentioned that. I’m told that call was atrocious.

Erinn said:

I do miss Gansey. I was reminiscing about his scrappiness during the Big East tourney. Coulda used some of that.

Really, does anyone not miss him? Do you feel robbed you only got two years instead of four?

Dave said:

At first, I was going to write that this guy is an idiot desparately searching for attention and hammer him for not being able to find anything to write about other than a wrestling match in WV.

And yes, it is great to be a fan, but he does have a point with regard to the image of WV, WVU and the fans … and some of the players (or former players). Unless each person makes a statement to stop the nonsense, and that includes gameday behavior, then we will not shed the stereotype.

I don’t think he was trying to be malicious. In fact, he covered WVU in the NCAA Tournament against Arizona and Duke last year and, if I remember what I read correctly, seemed to like the Mountaineers.

Erinn said:

Dave,
I have been blamed for being to extreme in my loyalties to WVU and criticism of those who criticise the Mountaineers and their fans. But I can honestly say I laughed when I read this guy’s blog entry. I didn’t perceive him trying to be an A$$. I think he is truly jealous of reporters such as Mike. He is right. WVU and its fans are quite the colorful bunch. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. What pro journalist wouldn’t want to cover that?

There you go. I’m glad people on the periphery can see through and recognize what happens here. I always feel like I’m kind of lucky. It’s pretty cool to see someone else address that.

philip said:

thar’s gold news nuggets in them thar hills

Enjoy the weekend!