College debut. Big 12 Conference defensive player of the week. Fumble return touchdown. Sixteen tackles. Say hello to linebacker Isaiah Bruce, who erupted in his first college game after redshirting last season and wondering what it would be like to play for WVU.

Never did he dream, or dare to dream, about making the 16 tackles he would make.

“Not even close,” he said. “That was a pretty good start.”

Pretty good, yes, but do you know what’s better than 16 tackles? Twenty-one tackles.

“If he played a little more under control, he would have had more than 20 tackles,” said WVU’s linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator, Keith Patterson. “He missed five tackles where he was totally out of control.”

If the debut seems too good to be true, if Patterson sounds as though he expects more from Bruce, understand that both coach and player see something special down the road.