Up in the air today and bound for Texas, though not the University of Texas and not to interview to replace DeLoss Dodds.

If you’re keeping score at home, Mr. Oliver Luck was not in his office or in town yesterday and was instead traveling for a previously planned speaking engagement. I believe I know where, but I’m not positive. Conflicting reports there, and it’s not really a critical detail. Where he was and where he’d need to go if he were in fact meeting with the UT selection committee can be entirely different places. He’ll meet the team in Fort Worth today and he should be in Houston tomorrow for a homecoming of sorts when the Colts play the Texans. He’s not locked into watching every one of Andrew’s games, though, and he missed the Monday night game in San Diego a few weeks back because of work.

So tread lightly.

Nothing has changed on this and the things I’m being told remain the same. WVU believes it can happen and is good to go if it does. Luck remains a, if not the top candidate. This could be done really soon, though I wonder if it’s kept quiet until, say, Nov. 10. There are other names out there — I still wouldn’t ignore Steve Patterson — and there remains a significant part of a significant number of people who think Luck will stay. They seem to be the minority, though, and need I remind you I’m flying today and Sunday.

This was a topic, of course, on Scoop & Score yesterday, when we were joined by Chuck Carlton of the Dallas Morning News. If you get a chance, tell him thanks.

And speaking of things that haven’t changed, Keith Patterson is in the midst of a season unlike any other he’s experienced before. What happened Saturday only underscored that, as well as his defense’s increasingly problematic performance on third downs.

Patterson brought WVU to Kansas State last week and again hoped the defense had recovered from another shock to its self-esteem. It was a 12-7 lead in the third quarter. The Wildcats had eight first downs and 169 yards of offense and, as far as Patterson was concerned, not a lot going their way.

“We were just totally in control,” Patterson said. “I’m thinking, ‘Maybe today is our day. Maybe something good is going to happen to us.’ “

Kansas State instead ripped off four straight touchdown drives, converted their final seven third downs of the game and had 279 yards of offense. The climax made the 35-12 loss “maybe one of the strangest games I’ve been associated with,” Patterson said.

The Wildcats had been 1-for-6 on third down that game and had only scored 21, 29 and 25 points in their first three Big 12 games.

“I’ve never seen where seven plays lead to something of such a catastrophic proportion,” Patterson said. “Seven plays on those drives that led to 28 points? I’m just going, ‘How do you hold someone for 21/2 quarters to seven points and 150 yards and then the next four possessions allow 300 yards of offense and 28 points? How do you do that? You almost have to try to do that.'”