Welcome to the Friday Feedback, which never eases into the swimming pool, but prefers to jump right into things. Why dilly dally today? You’ve only got a few more hours until you punch out for the 7 p.m. game and chance are as you read this, I’m somewhere on I-79 or I-64 headed to Huntington. Or maybe I’m at the BW3. I’m definitely not carrying an umbrella, though. Such a thing is frowned upon at Joan C. Edwards Stadium, where they point to signs that say “No umbrellas in the stadium” and do not listen to explanations that the press box is not the stadium.

Not that I’m bent about such a thing three years later. Or that that is a first impression I regret giving my new co-workers at the Daily Mail way back then.

Moving on, for some reason, I see some white-knuckle moments for WVU fans tonight. I think you win, but I can see this being a little hairy for a bit and possibly even late. In the end, the concept of familiarity is pretty much moot and “players play.” The Herd has talent, but the Mountaineers have more and I think their plan is a little further along. Just not to the point where, barring turnovers and errors, it’s a howler.

(P.S. Definitely a Texts from Game Day game day … and here’s your hammer.)

Onto the Feedback. As always, comments appear as posted. In other words, make hay.

Drew said:

The only people who actually care about this game more than any other on either schedule are in Huntington, or spent at least 4 years there at some point in their lives.

I live 30 minutes from Huntington, but I haven’t even given second thought to going to either game there so far. Yet I always go to several WVU home games per year (when I had a less demanding job I went to all of them) and am going down to Baton Rouge in 2 weeks.

If this game was the opener I would be much more inclined to go. I’m much more likely to go to the games in Morgantown as well. The fact is the game Friday night should be a pretty easy win. If it’s not then that means we’re playing down to their level because quite frankly they haven’t had a decent team since this series was revived. I don’t believe they’re capable of keeping it close if we’re playing well.

As far as the membership here seems to be concerned, this is the consensus. We could truthfully stop here today. But what fun would that be?

Spot the Ball said:

I no longer live in WV and if i did i may feel differently about this game. i just can’t get excited about it. it seems so lame. do people in WV really care about this game that much?

and Bogaczyk’s article is fairly weak in trying to create any excitement. you mean i’m supposed to be fired up at Marshall because Marquis Wallace couldn’t make the grade at WVU so he decided to go to another school which just happens to be Marshall? and if it was Doc who leaked the info on the NCAA violations, who cares? they turned out to be true. and if WVU relents and gives Marshall a 1 for 1 deal, then what are people going to talk about?

Overlooking that I think you’ve overlooked the cumulative effect, I’d say if WVU approved a 1-for-1, there’d be puh-lenty to discuss.

thacker said:

All the silliness of a rivalry that never was and never will be, regardless.

And  yet, the silliness of which you speak — programs pointing fingers, coaches taking on players, etc. — is all part of fairly common practices in college football. It wouldn’t be a big dea at all … except that it is in these instances because of the two schools and their level of dislike of one another.

SheikYbuti said:

The next time Ryan Clarke runs the steps, he might be yelling “Programs!”  Would the NCAA let him keep the profits?

This is such a ridiculous premise I’m  inclined to not even comment … but of course the NCAA wouldn’t allow it. Money in Clarke’s pocket is money not in the NCAA’s.

Drew said:

Does that genie cross his arms every time he scores a touchdown?

Whenever I’m called to remember that nonsense, I remember Bob Hertzel writing about Chris Henry’s headless moment against Rutgers and Hertz’s reaction to the half-game suspension levied by The Product. “Rodriguez didn’t throw the book at Henry, and even if he had, it’s likely Henry would have caught it, spiked it and the crossed his arms.”

The 25314 said:

I am now rooting for a player to get a celebration penalty in hopes that said player would be forced to run the steps during the game. That would be worth the price of my season tickets right there.

At first, I thought this was all a bit silly and overextended on our part. And then …

The 25314 said:

Better yet, have the player run up to the press box and appologize over the P.A. system to his teamates and fans for his transgressions. I think this idea has legs.

OK, I’m excited about this now. Does it apply to road games? Not because I wonder if a kid could make it through the stands at LSU, but because I want to see it tomorrow. I can’t wait.

KMS said:

We celebrate touchdowns in section 105 with peanut M&M’s. After every touchdown, the bag is passed around. It’s a tradition that has been around since I was a kid. Should any player be forced to run the aisle of section 105 after a touchdown, rest assured, he WILL get a handful of peanut M&M’s.

/Checks NCAA manual to see if I can tell a player this
//Sees no such rule
///Puts peanut M&Ms on wife’s grocery list

SheikYbuti said:

Interaction with the fans in the aisles following a score? Instead of the “Lambeau Leap,” we could call it the “Puskar Penance.”

Look, I’m not saying Stewart has to do this because I’d question if he was a man of his word if he didn’t, but because I’d be angry if all this genius was wasted. And really, what better way to prevent such shenanigans than through a rather visible humiliation? Think that wouldn’t make SportsCenter? And think Scott Van Pelt wouldn’t freeze the highlight and circle a fan giving … Stedman Bailey … a bag of M&Ms?

WVmaniac said:

I really like how Stew is letting that confidence back into their play. I have thought that swagger has been gone from the defense since Rivers, Lewis, Dykes, and Dingle were playing. I know most people think that Rivers and Lewis were not the best CBs but they really had an attitude and talked trash the ENTIRE game.

Also what happened to the days of the offensive line having that mean streak like Sheffey and Mozes?

Well, defensive backs tend to have the biggest mouths, so your list is not surprising. And fear not, Hogan talks a bunch. I think Sands like to converse with people, too. As for the offensive line, don’t think that doesn’t start at the top at that position.

rekterx said:

Mike-I click on the link and it says that I am no longer logged in. I was never logged in to begin with.

Is this some kind of cruel trick. Have you and your fellow conspirators plotted to keep me out? I’m a bit nervous; on the eve of the Marshall game even. And then you do this to me. To me!

Foul play is afoot!

Oh, about me bragging that the first chat was a fail? I failed within that post. Didn’t know — and didn’t see anything that would tell me — there’s a prompt expiration stamp on the chat. I’ll do better next time.

Birch said:

Ironic FAIL.

Yes.

glibglub said:

I clicked the link and . . . bending bending, bending . . . no good!

I know.

Homer said:

That link was as satisfying as Nadeau’s analysis.

Oh, come on.

The Artist Formerly Known as EER96:

rekterx:

Getting the same message.

Mike: I was in for a bit this afternoon. I noticed a long “lag” time between my post and it actually showing up on the chat. Is that normal? I’ve not really done the live chat thing before, so any guidance would be appreciated.

There were several questions in queue to start the chat and I pretty much went in order. If the stats are to be believed, there were 174 readers, 142 comments sent and 90 comments published. To be honest, that was a tad overwhelming. I had to tell all the people I planted in the chat to back off.

KMS said:

Somebody please assist my ignorant mind as to how this, in any way, provides an advantage to the Big East?

I can’t tell you that or how the injury report helps anyone in the Big East in non-conference games. It’s, quite obviously, of no practical benefit for WVU this week against non-conference Marshall. But how’s this? What  if Lazear plays? Sure, he’s listed as out, but what’s really going to stop WVU from playing him? If he’s healthy and he can help and he plays, how, if at all, does the Big East “punish” WVU, or anyone who offends similarly? Even better, say WVU is about to play Pitt and Dion Lewis has been out for two games and is listed as out for another. That changes WVU’s preparation an awful lot. And then Lewis plays. This this is a reach? You didn’t see what Pitt did yesterday.

hershy112 said:

Is there a “nicked” and “tweaked” section on this injury report? Because if there isn’t, there should be.

I’m here: Tweaked> dinged > nicked. A tweak hurts. Think sprain, hyper extension, strain, etc. A ding is more general, like soreness. We’re talking bruises and contusions, sore ribs, rolled ankle, etc. A nick is minimal. Cuts, scrapes, abrasions, lacerations. 

Jeff Halladay said:

I have found my soapbox, allow me to stand on it…

I love the last part of that quote, “…you spend more time talking about bumps and bruises than about the guys that are going to be playing.” But that’s just the thing, coaches won’t share ‘tweaks’ and/or discuss who is playing, potentially playing or not playing. So, when you don’t share info, reporters ask more questions and you end up talking about guys that aren’t playing because no one is not sure if they’ll play. That cyclical argument is ridiculous.

Cynics think reporters are just whining about a lack of access, but it’s about honesty and fairness. The definition of a tweak as a noun is: an act or instance of tweaking; a sharp, twisting pull or jerk. To say someone has a tweak or tweaked something is about as generic and useless as can be…might as well do what Rutgers and the ‘Cuse did and list ‘lower body’ on an injury report. They are masking the truth.

Does the perceived tactical advantage really exist when it comes to keeping injury news under wraps? Is listing Urban as tweaked going to give WVU an advantage over Marshall as the Herd have to prep for yet another blocking-focused tight end? Doubtful. There is very rarely a true competitive advantage in choosing not to honestly disclose an injury.

Instead it comes down to a lack of trust and cooperation between the staff and the media/fans. This staff has received scrutiny for not developing an atmosphere of compliance…why not improve your relationship with the fanbase and media by being more forthcoming with injury news? I think that would be more advantageous than choosing to mask the truth.

But, this isn’t a business that truly cares about fairness I suppose. Remember those 2009 ‘Mountaineer Rules To Live By’ which Stew tweeted? Rule #1 was: Life is not fair-get used to it.

So, when the media complain about being lied to and being treated unfairly (giving gossipers a competitive advantage over real beat writers), coaches and sports info staff in turn whine and complain about having to answer the questions and face scrutiny over their decisions to hide a player’s true injury status.

When they complain about answering these questions, I say, “Life is not fair, get used to it.”

Well said. Spoken like someone who spent years in ths business. The irony here is this injury report creates grounds for more tweaks, dings and nicks as a way to skirt the topic.

Dave said:

My take, because we see it in pro football too, is that there is a perceived advantage to information on injury otherwise there would not be so much effort with nondisclosure or generalities. So with that in mind, there is no incentive for a coach to give any information if they don’t have to and really, why would they want to?

On the other side, I really can’t imagine a team relying on information from the media during a week. Rather, I think they implement their plans from what they see and know well in advance, primarily based on their own personnel. They have to because that is all they really know … their own capabilities. Will Urban be replaced by someone of similar stature? Maybe. That’s really all one can get from a week of hearing coachspeak. They could move someone else into the position, use a backup … maybe they’re targeting an attack at the defense that makes that particular player of less importance regardless of health? Maybe Urban is just fine. I can’t imagine a coach placing value on what is said in the media during a game week … there’s too much, it’s unreliable and what … they’re going to answer to their fans that they were “sure” so-and-so wasn’t going to play because of what was said on Monday?

As for fans, I’m not so sure the fans have a right to expect to know what is going on with a team. A coach’s job is on the line based on their performance, but really, how the life of a general fan changed by whether Urban slightly pulled a muscle or it’s completely torn?

Whether we know or not is more of a curiousity than anything else, unless someone’s job is directly tied to the program.

Not meaning to sound like I’m saying this specifically to you, but fans in general.

Loud and clear. I think part of it is protecting a player and his (injury) as much as possible. Believe it or not, opponents will target an injury. Steve Slaton was sure an opponent did it to him in 2006. And gambling is an enormous enterprise where information is priceless … and we’ve seen lately college kids are very approachable in the worst circumstances. What always baffles and, I guess, flatters me is the way teams believe the media can compromise the competition. I always thought if an opponent needed my help, that didn’t bode well for that opponent.

The 25314 said:

If you have 3 offensive linemen sharing right guard and tackle, you have no right guard or tackle. And if Dave Johnson has no right guard or tackle, Dave Johnson may not have a job. 

Bingo. I did a radio spot a few days ago and the guy said, in essence, “WVU finally seems situated on the right of the line with –“
Me: “Really?”
Guy: “Well, they have three players there for the two sports and –“
Me: “That’s because they don’t have two players for the two spots.”
Guy: “Mike Casazza, thanks for joining us.”

Dave said:

I’m concerned that we haven’t yet reached our limit on quantifying articles about the game this week. It’s Wednesday, surely someone wants Stewart fired for only winning 31-0.

I like the analytical topics and have opinions about what I saw, but to draw conclusions on such a game seems to be a bit of a stretch.

Would people feel better if we had won 65-0? I don’t think Stewart is that kind of coach playing against the teams (and friends) he’s bringing in.

Dave, you’ve got a frequent ability to make me read and go, “Wait, is he being serious or sarcastic?” Good for you. I’m with you, though I’m not sure you know that, or if that’s what you’re talking about here. I’d strongly suggest anyone resists the urge to formulate any definitive opinions about the team or the depth chart based off that game. I tried to be fluid with my coverage this week and not say, for example, “Jock Sanders is on pace for 104 receptions.” Sure he is, but that’s not going to happen.

Jeff in Tidewater said:

I hope some of these yahoo’s on the message boards read this. I was glad to see a large number of plays going to the right side. What better way to figure out who’s good at what than to throw them into the fire and see what they can do. Plus, the game film will be an invaluable teaching tool. I’m sure this had a LOT to do with “ONLY” winning 31-0. I’m glad the staff used their lead to try out some plays and see what the differences are between “real game” and practice… Watching the game, you could tell that the play calls were almost meant to test everyone, and every position. I’d much rather do this against CCU than LSU…and so far, it looks like the staff is being smart. I just wish other people could see the same thing….

‘Atta boy.

Bill said:

I am a faithful reader of this blog but somehow I have missed the significance of “bending, bending”.  Can someone please enlighten me, because right now I feel as stupid as a Marsha College grad.  Thanks

I’m going to go grab a bag of peanut M&Ms. I’ll be back after someone gives you an answer. It’s a shame you went on this long without knowing the truth.

SheikYbuti said:

I *think* it may have something to do with frequent play-by-play contractee JOHN Sanders and his apparent habit during basketball games of describing a successful jump shot (almost after the fact) as “bending, bending  . . . GOOD!”  As if the air conditioning in the arena could affect a shot (maybe he means the shot “bends” vertically).  He probably needs to get a new schtick.  Just for the record, John, “Holy Cow!” and “How ’bout that?!” are already taken.

Dave said:

Didn’t he also use the “bending, bending,” when the ball was on the rim … almost as if … the ball was “wanting” to go into the basket?

The memory makes my head hurt.

hershy112 said:

Ah, John Sanders, it’s funny when we are just talking about, but he tends to make the basketball games rough at times.

“When he starts saying ‘bending, bending’, I wanna….rip my arm off, just so I have something to throw at him.”

glibglub said:

When memes collide: Ask me about “bending bending”.

Oh! I jumped into the live chat yesterday and the first question in queue, from the aptly named GuyInFrontRow, said “Will you finally tellus (sic) about kickoffs?”

SheikYbuti said:

I know that Triple H has had to limit his workouts following his recent surgery, but based on the poster shoot, he has really let himself go.

Surprising reaction to the splash ad on Marshall’s football home page. I kind of like it, but I think they missed a real marketing opportunity, as you’ve pointed out: “Marshall football: It’s all about the game.”

Karl said:

Sheik — As much as Triple H let himself go for this poster, Keenan Thompson really lost a lot of weight!

Yeah,I always thought Kel would be reduced to season ticket sales first.

notruB:

I’m not intimidated by Hacksaw Jim Dugan or Koko B. Ware.

Put that way, nor am I.

Karl said:

Oddly, the first thought that entered my mind when I look at this was, “I can’t believe a team hired Doc Holiday as their head coach.”

I guess it triggers different emptions. Example: Put an exclamation mark at the end of Karl’s quote and it’s a different statement. In Huntington, that may have sold some tickets. Jersey? Not so much.

oklahoma mountaineers said:

The look on Doc’s face is either one of “Oh My God, what have I gotten myself into” OR…..”Is this the best idea our PR department can come up with to sell tickets?”

I’m thinking either answer is appropriate.

Watch yourself … the man has a sledge hammer. And what happens when that guy sees Brandon Hogan with his sledge tonight?

notruB said:

The look on Doc’s face is the same look the pizza delivery men in Huntington have…

That’s not true,  notruB.

The Artist Formerly Known as EER96 said:

“What do you mean we open with Ohio State and West Virginia?”

OK, let’s move on …

Country Roads said:

Notice the background photo of the stadium is taken from the last time WVU played at Marshall . . . in other words, the only time that stadium has EVER been sold out.

See? The series is good for the state!

glibglub said:

I am all for putting up big points on the Herd. But I have no illusions about that happening. In fact, if anything remotely like it happens, I’ll do the Coal Bowl version of eating my hat. In other words, I shall get a Marco tattoo and then go around defensively and preemptively professing that I did so solely to commemorate my love of bison.

… naturally.

Karl said:

Mike, if Coach Stewart’s intent using the phrase “in-state rivalry” really was what you think, he is 100 percent correct. I can tell you as a WVU fan who did not grow up in West Virginia that I am not very interested in this game each year. I’ll watch it, because I’m the type of guy who’d probably stay home and watch our hoops squad play the citadel on a Friday night, but I have no emotional attachment to it. Not even with this latest Doc Holliday connection. I wonder if our players, the majority of whom are from out of state, care either.

I sometimes read the weird back-and-forth online comments after news stories between WVU and Marshall fans and I can’t understand why our fans would bother. It’s just a second-rate Conference USA team.

I largely agree with you and I think the series has been done a great disservice by its place on the schedule. It’d matter more if it were the first game of the seasons if, for no other reason, than for a few months it’d be what everyone was looking at. That can’t hurt this series. And it was kind of cute the way they arranged that “best two out of three” at the start of the series to see who was hosting the fourth year. I’d like to see some similar condition included in a future contract to give this some tangible teeth.

rekterx said:

Mike … you and Colin are all the coverage I need.

44 lemonades!

Nestea, sir.

overtheSEC said:

Well that totally makes sense that if you are proud of the state but not a fan of the school that you get the school logo tattooed on your arm. It’s not like our state outline is recognizable or anything.

It’s a middle finger … and I always thought that was a a great athlete tattoo, and perhaps moreso from a kid from West Virginia who’s doing it despite the doubters. Guess it’s just me.

glibglub said:

I’m sure lotsa kids from The Plains who grew up on Auburn football have the Crimson Tide’s script A inscribed on their persons because they luv them some Great State of Alabamy. Yep.

Yep.

rekterx said:

Aint nobody on WVU got no green MU tattoo!

I’m guessing this dude’s arm shows up on TV Friday night. And everything I think about MU football will be validated.

… that they like tattoos?

Erinn said:

Where’s Doc’s Flying WV tattoo located?

Enjoy the weekend!