Welcome to the Friday Feedback, which would like to have a word. That word? Sheesh.

I don’t want to get too dramatic. Heaven knows I’ve been through enough drama the past two weeks. But we and history are going to remember the World Series for a variety of reasons. A wonderful variety. I think as time passes and this knot in my stomach unravels and recedes, I’m going to identify this as the time I finally understood what you all go through as fans. I don’t want to sound like a deflated or defeated elitist. I just haven’t been through what I just went through, and it’s occurred to me you all go through that on a fairly regular basis. No more will I look at you or your texts or your comments and think, “Yo, it’s a game.”

One reason I wrote my book — Oh, you didn’t know I wrote a book? — was because I didn’t understand why people act the way they do about West Virginia or about sports teams in general, and if I didn’t, then surely others did not and I owed folks an explanation.

But that’s sort of how I approach sports as a whole. I don’t appreciate the consequences. It’s mostly because of my job, which has turned me into this robotically neutral observer and admirer. (Think about it. I cover my alma mater, and I’m pretty numb. It’s weird.)

The other explanation is that I have two teams. One — the one — is the Cleveland Indians. With rare exceptions, they’ve been disappointing the entire time I’ve been in this business. I’ve basically never wanted a team to win for as long as I’ve been doing this. (“basically”: Exception.) Now, they were really good in 2007 and had a 3-1 lead in the ALCS, but the Red Sox, also very good, came back and won the series and then the World Series. Apart from that, it’s one ALDS win, one ALDS loss and one Wild Card loss. That’s … that’s not going to move my meter very much.

A few years ago, the Indians pressed reset again and started to collect and reveal a lot of nice pieces. The club took control of promising players for long and reasonable contracts. The minor leagues prepared and produced starters across the field. Some smart and shrewd free agent signings clicked. I knew the time was coming. And this year, it came. It was awesome.

And it was agonizing. I’m worn out, man. I can’t even believe I’m admitting this. Six weeks ago, that’s the sort of think I laugh at. But it’s true.

After an entire season spent watching this actually develop and near the finish line, it happened. I lived and died with pitches and plays for a month. I was up early to get my work done to make sure I was free for 4 p.m. starts. I was up late for interminably long postseason games that started after 8 p.m. I was traveling. I was in different time zones. I was in airports and hotels. I was at Game 2. I was covering two sports and, if I’m being honest, concerned only about a third. I was hunched over for hours at a time. Pacing. Clenching. Groaning. Yelling. My back hurts. My neck hurts. My stomach hurts.

I’ve honestly aged. Game 1 was one of the most tense things I’ve ever experienced, though that did not last long. Game 4 was the most euphoric I’ve probably ever felt after a sporting event. Game 5 spooked me. The off day before Game 6 was miserable, and then I had, like, mono that day. I was out. Spent. I’d been going hard for more than a week, and it got me, but this damn team was part of that. Game 6 was the first time I was frightened, because it looked bad and I did not want Game 7 and I did not want to think this was all for naught.

Game 7 was something I’ll never forget. I can’t even describe it. What theater.

The 5-1 deficit wiped me out. Gave me that, “Why the hell do I do this?” feeling. Worse than Game 7 in 1997 … which was the last time I really cared, and that was brutal. I walked my dog for half an hour after the Cubs took control. But I had my phone on and saw the wild pitch that scored two runs. Here’s how screwed up I was: “Do I keep walking?” Hi, Erinn? I’m in Westover. 

I went home and kept an eye on things. Turned the TV on, didn’t like the results, turned the TV off. Then Joe Maddon did some really weird things, and I was hooked. My phone just about vibrated off the sink as I was brushing my teeth. I’m the fan who championed the sneaky Brandon Guyer trade because he’s good to have around in October, or November, as it turned out, and the texts were mostly along the lines of, “Holy crap, you were right.” Wait, what?!?! I ran to the Tier 4 Studio and saw Rajai Davis homer. The hour that followed was intense. I couldn’t sleep that night. I’d be lying I said yesterday was easy or any fun at all.

I’m happy to have been on this ride. I was at a World Series game. My team had the winning run at the plate in the 10th inning of the last game of the season with a chance to end a generation of angst, and it all happened without the best hitter and the Nos. 2 and 3 starters. It happened with basically three starters and three relievers. But it fell short, and it sucks. I don’t know how to feel, but I think I do know how you all feel.

Onto the Feedback. As always, comments appear as posted. In other words, take your time.

JAL said:

Turnovers were the difference in the game but were due to great defense? The fumble=always thought when you feel yourself getting hit you bring the into your body as you try to escape, not hold it out like a loaf of bread. The White interception–pass was behind him but still could have been caught. When a ball over the middle goes up off the receiver’s hands it will be intercepted more often than not. The other interception–there were 2 OSU players near the ball and in front of the receiver. The only turnover that that might be more of the defense but maybe a pass that should not have been thrown or if thrown then higher.

Well, on the fumble, Taylor has to beat a guard and a fullback to get there, and then he has to get Howard who is, if nothing else, squirrely. The second interception was a by a linebacker who isn’t anywhere to be found on he depth chart, and he dropped into coverage and made the play. Howard could have protected possession better on either play, but defensively, there’s a lot that had to happen for either play to happen. Now, the first interception is mostly White. Howard’s throw wasn’t great, but Howard doesn’t make uniformly great throws. If you want to play receiver for WVU and with Howard, you better catch that.

hoot said:

I would posit that their quarterback consistently put the ball into a window where his receivers could catch it comfortably and make a play with it. Ours, not so much.

I would agree. Rudolph can do that. Howard cannot. It’s reality, one Oklahoma State works with and one WVU works around.

Mack said:

And OSU’s quarterback was the first good QB WVU has faced this year. Their game plan was clearly to hit short passes to avoid WVU’s blitz and he executed it very well. Without looking at the stats, it seemed like OSU had no penalties, no turnovers, and executed a simple game plan very effectively. A good formula to get a win.

Indeed. The difference between Rudolph and Kenny Hill (who lost snaps to his backup against Texas F. Tech) and/or Pat Mahomes really is best understood by looking at how they handled the blitz. Rudolph got rid of the ball. Understood others were better off having it. Mahomes and Hill saw blitzes and thought it was their right and their time to do something special. Rudolph does one thing really well and is perfectly content doing that. He’s a taco truck. He serves tacos. He makes people happy. Hill and Mahomes want to make salad and soup and an appetizer and a main dish and dessert, and then one day they’re going to walk up to the offensive coordinator and be like, “Charcuterie???”

Clarence Oveur said:

I’m admittedly not one to read much into post-game interviews – especially after a loss when the emotions are still raw – but Skyler was pouting like a child.

If he wants to be a big-time QB and get the respect that comes with the title, he has to earn it. He seems to feed off the chip on his shoulder and that’s great. Motivation is a wonderful thing to have. But when things don’t go your way and you face criticism or questioning over your actions, you’ve got to have thicker skin.

He’s skipped postgame interviews after losses before, so I don’t know why he didn’t just do that Saturday. It felt like he sat down expecting the worst, and I don’t think he allowed for any other possibility. It was like he expected to be blamed for the loss, and I’m not sure anyone surrounding him had that idea. The bottom line is he doesn’t have to talk to us and we don’t have to talk to him.

DennisCTeer said:

I don’t want a QB with a thicker skin in a post-game interview, I want a pissed-off, visibly angry (at himself AND his teammates). He has earned in IMO, screw the thick skin!

That sounds good until you remember the guys at Texas and Oklahoma and Baylor aren’t wearing ties and Dockers. It’s not hard to answer questions or, again, avoid the scene altogether. He’s the only one who acted that way after the loss. He’s not the only one who was mad. And let’s at least remember this from Dana Holgorsen Tuesday, in case we need to go back and circle it: 

There is a confidence issue with that. I think Skyler has played well over the course of the whole year. The better you play, the higher the expectations are. Nobody has higher expectations for him than him. So to me it’s the same thing with him, we have to give him confidence, we have to teach him the game plan, we have to get him out there, we have to practice hard and he has to feel the game plan, understand what we’re asking him to do, and he probably needs to reduce a little pressure that he puts on himself and go out there and just play the game.

Bill said:

WVU fairweather fans. Never happy. Damn! They are 6 and 1 and in the top 15! Damn guys, this is West Virginia, not Alabama or Ohio State. Give them some love!!!

… I’m not sensing a lot of panic around here. Seems people are just upset about losing a game that could have been won if not for mistakes the 6-0 version otherwise avoided. That’s what makes this space so hospitable.

Grumpy said:

I know I wouldn’t be a good interview right after a loss! If I didnt play well I would be just like Howard. While I think the kid plays with a chip on his shoulder, I also think he is his biggest critic. So I’m sure he was not wanting to respond to “What happened out there today?”, “Did they do anything you didn’t expect?”, etc.

You do need to listen to the questions as well as the answers. I agree completely.

I love you, Doug! said:

2:22!
Finally watched Twitchy Dana postgame video. Wow. Too much Red Bull. Snarky (“you think?”), envious (two references to OSU facilities), combative (thought he was going to hit the reporter setting his mike up). No judgment — coaches pull this all the time. Just haven’t seen it from him since the “around here” era of complaining about empty seats.
Anywhoo…never like to take a loss but I feel today like I can exhale a bit. This undefeated thing was an unsustainable high-wire act — they’re good but not that good. It’s not like like I felt after losing to South Florida in 2007. I expected that team to go undefeated. They should get well against Kansas then head to Austin for an evenly matched affair. How many of us expected 8-1 or even 7-2 heading into Oklahoma at home. Breathe….

 

 

Well, I do think 120 people thought they could go undefeated and were, at the minimum, ready to take on the challenge. They don’t like to take a loss, either. I think Dana’s comfortable with a handful of reporters and can get away with things like, “You think?” or “That a question?” or something similar because there’s rapport. I don’t remember who asked that question, but I do remember thinking, “They can do that.” The rest seemed to me like he was making sure the conversation went where he wanted, which was toward the turnovers and away from anything and anyone else, namely his quarterback. I’m fine with that behavior. 

Mack said:

No one likes to see a bad attitude, but I really don’t have a problem with Bad Attitude Dana 20 minutes after a loss. I much prefer it to “Gee that was a great football game” Stewart following a loss to East Carolina or Colorado or UConn.

WVU should beat Iowa State and Kansas. So that puts them at 8-1. Texas worries me more than Baylor does. I think the Oklahoma game is borderline unwinnable myself. Oklahoma’s quarterback is the best WVU will see all season and . . . you can say what you want about Oklahoma’s defense, but WVU’s failure to create big plays on offense has kept it from truly putting up big numbers against any team. WVU is a team where the defense fuels the offense . . . and WVU’s defense won’t be able to do that against Oklahoma. Hope I’m wrong.

Here’s something to consider, though: Can WVU confound Mayfield like it did Mahomes and Hill. He’s more refined and reigned in, but he’s at his best when he’s freelancing of right on the border of that. Either way, WVU’s offense better find a way to lift the lid off a defense sooner rather than later, because the Sooners have issues in their secondary. 

smeer said:

no problem with bad attitude Dana – just trying to decipher that weird tangent about the facilities. but that’s what you get with HCDH – and I’ll take it a thousand times over Stewart

this team depending on the last five could get to 9-3 without a win over top 25 – it’s a strange year in the B12

…you know what he meant. Trust your eyes and ears. It wasn’t meant to be complicated. 

OhioMike said:

Instead of being “scared to death” of a pass rush, do what our opponents do when we blitz – throw quick slants behind the rush. HCDH and Gibby both got out coached by ‘Pokes. And enough slurping their facilities. They have a billionaire sugar daddy. Deal with it! Just don’t lay an egg vs KU or ISU. Texas is a toss up with 5-star players and a 2-star coach. OU win would be beautiful. But, for some reason the team I REALLY want to spank is Baylor. In six inches of snow!

Oklahoma State didn’t legitimately blitz all that often. Got pressure with its line — that’s what he meant by pass rush, I think. And I thought WVU did all right hitting Shorts in the middle. The billionaire sugar daddy is not a fan of the head coach, and things still happen there. Perhaps that was Dana’s point. With him or against him, at least help the program.

Down South said:

My biggest disappointment in a season that hasn’t seen many disappointments is Ka’raun White. The second interception, which completely turned the game, went right through his hands. He’s had a bunch of drops this season. The one against Kansas State could have really hurt us, but didn’t, fortunately. Not sure what the problem is, but would like to see him get past it.

Tough to tell on TV, but it looked like Oklahoma State dropped a bunch of guys. Took the deep ball out of the equation and made Skyler throw shorter passes into tight windows. Hoped their four lineman would win some one-on-one battles up front. That’s a pretty solid game plan against any team. We use it pretty regularly. I didn’t think Skyler played terribly. He has a tendency to try to do too much sometimes, which is what led to the fumble. But, other than that, he didn’t get a ton of help from his receivers.

Speaking of Kansas State, its defensive game plan was Oklahoma State’s defensive game plan. When were Howard and the offense off earlier this year? Kansas State. By the way, Oklahoma State is a three-point underdog at Kansas State Saturday and Texas is a three-point favorite at Texas Tech. Good luck figuring out the Big 12.

pknocker40 said:

I thought the uniform combo was very good. A big problem I had with the sack/fumble was that Skyler barely avoided the initial pressure and then still tried to step into a big throw downfield. He should have better awareness and understand that there’s no way to safely pull that off. He just seemed rattled from the beginning.

Yeah, from the beginning. I didn’t expect that. I still don’t get the laser he threw to McKoy.

smeer said:

as Mike picked up – OSU ran the same formation – one time a screen, one time a run off tackle and the Rudolph two yard TD – in each case either we guessed wrong or ran the wrong package or (like Jeremy Tyler) were completely out of position. the slant TD I find inexcusable – NEVER let the receiver inside in cover zero – make them make the harder bolivia fade. now if the DB had safety or lineback coverage in the middle – them yes – force the receiver inside. but that was asking a lot of our DBs – man coverage two yards from the endzone

they schooled us – we were on our heels on D at moments when we needed to make a play.

that’s not to say, the D lost the game, as the O gave them some horrid assignments.

it was just a crap game – the missed field goal erased momentum, gave them motivation to score before half and from there changed how we had to play to play catch up

Shell getting hurt put the onus on Howard and he’s not that guy

it’s one loss – maybe we got all of our bad juju out in one game

Kansas at night in MoTown is good for what ails us

Vaughn said:

I did not realize how poorly Matteo got on that LB on that 3rd down draw. That’s easily a first down with Crawford busting through the line at full speed. Matteo played a poor game. That cut block attempt was pretty poor as well.

The biggest play in the game was obviously the Skyler sack/fumble, but it was such bad luck. If you watch the video, Wellman came up to chip Lingafelter’s guy, and ended up chipping him back to the left with leverage that beat Lingafelter. If Wellman doesn’t chip him at all, Lingafelter rides him up the right side of the pocket and out of harm’s way. Just bad timing. It doesn’t look like Lingafelter expected that chip to come, and he clearly didn’t anticipate the direction it came from. Football is such a hard game, as Dana often says. The smallest little thing has huge implications. That play was actually well blocked otherwise.

Also re: the slants – our CBs gave up inside leverage so many times when they shouldn’t have. If you have no safety help, there is no way you allow an inside release, yet they were allowing it over and over. I don’t think they made the adjustment well on that during the course of the game. It wasn’t just one guy either. I actually thought Battle defended that fade well on the fake slant – he just missed punching the ball out but he was right with him.

I echo what smeer said about the Gibson TD – Skyler made that way harder than it had to be.

Not in the G&B: the curious almost INT Skyler threw down the middle of the field on the first TD drive. I have no idea why he lobbed a ball over the middle when there were ZERO defenders in the middle of the field. If he throws a sharp almost line drive ball, White had inside position on the defender and might walk into the end zone if he catches it in stride. Instead Skyler throws it high over his head and almost into the defenders hands. That was a strange play.

Slants! I group these together because of that. Let’s not treat all the slants the same. It’s different inside and outside the red zone. On the goal line, no, don’t give up the inside … and, yes, WVU did. Anywhere else, you’re reading and reacting. There are a dozen different routes he can throw at you. At that point, you play the ball in the air, and I thought WVU did all right in some spots and Oklahoma State kept the ball away from WVU in other spots. Bingo on the Wellman/Lingafelter play, too. That had Lingafelter spinning, and he’s better than that.

Diddybops said:

Re: The Skyler fumble did anybody else notice him cocking his arm back and the ball bouncing off of the defender’s helmet? That is what caused the fumble he attempted to throw.

I also thought the Gibson catch along the sidelines when he went out of bounds could have been a force out, and it looked very close to being a touchdown, yet there was no review.

Also on that same drive OSU, had 12 men on the field and the officials allowed them to call timeout, when it should have been a penalty, and it would have gave us a first down, prior to Molina missing the field goal. I thought that was a very huge break for OSU.

So much of sports between evenly matched teams comes down to who gets the lucky bounces, and it just wasn’t our day. Hopefully we get a few of those when it matters most in our upcoming games…

On the 12 men play, if I remember correctly, the sideline was calling for a timeout and as granted a timeout way before it was noticeable on TV. I don’t think the Gibson play would have survived a review, either, but I’m surprised they didn’t have a look. He was close when he caught it, but it was out of bounds I also thought he ran his route and bounced off the defender to step out of bounds. Would that have been running out on his own or would that be a force out? Either way, they can’t throw a flag in replay. That official was right there with his hat, though. (Aside: This was the first broadcast crew that didn’t make a huge deal out of an official throwing this hat. If that’s Rod Gilmore, he’s all over it and you’d expect a new pope or something to follow the reverence he has for that tradition.)

Sid Brockman said:

Honest question (and I don’t mean this to be derogatory): Who is the best team WVU has beat with Skyler Howard as QB?

Kansas State? BYU? Um?

smeer said:

SB – I think you asked the question that underlies all the animus or ambivalence toward Sklyer

here’s the wins . . .

Iowa State (14,15)
Maryland (15)
Mizzou (16)
BYU (16) – probably his best game
Texas Tech (15,16)
Texas (15) – won by run not pass
Kansas (15)
Arizona State (15) – if they only had a D
TCU (16) – in a down year
Kansas State (16) – a win by the D but impressive 4th quarter

the resume is incomplete, but to date not overly impressive – he’s yet to beat a team that finished in top three of B12 – but that’s only the mop-up of 2014 and 2015

this is his senior year – time (and last chance) to make a name for himself.

Yeah, I hadn’t really considered this with much depth. It’s interesting.

Foul Shot said:

Getting the K St and TCU monkeys off our back was nice this year.

Indeed, and for all we know, that’s the beginning of the story rather than the continuation.

CC Team said:

Why should Howard get singled out for no big wins? When was Holgersen’s last big win? A few years back we thought it was TX, but that ended up being not so important. They did beat OK St. in Trickett’s start but that was in a losing year. Guess we have to go back to Clemson in the Orange Bowl. Of course, that was with ol’ Bill’s players. Howard is a tough as nails fighter. HCDH is the guy whose record needs to be scrutinized.

I would agree with the premise. Other will say Holgorsen has had to bend to accommodate his quarterback. To me, inseparable, no matter the circumstances. But in this 11-2 stretch, the wins are Texas Tech, Texas, Kansas, Iowa State, Arizona State, Missouri, Youngstown State, BYU, Kansas State, Texas Tech and TCU and the losses are Kansas State and Oklahoma State. Eight wins are at home and both losses are on the road. 

JMitch said:

Going off of Sid, we are also drawn to Skyler because he punched above his weight to get to the point he is at. Also the biggest concern fans have of him is that he has reached his ceiling and that it isn’t enough against the top teams. So playing devil’s advocate I’d say its the team that needs to punch above its weight, not so much Skyler, allow him to play his role and not over reach beyond his capabilities.

I mean, we’re grown-ups here. We can talk about things others don’t talk about, if not at all than at least as civilly, in other places. If you’ve been following WVU for almost 23 months, this makes sense to you and there’s nothing wrong with it. It’s an offense that, good and bad, is tethered to the accomplishments, abilities and shortcomings of its quarterback.

I love you, Doug! said:

BTW, Holgorsen says Simms is the fastest player on the team.

Nope.

Daniel said:

In the past when asked about pocketing time-outs, Dana has said he didn’t want to interrupt the rythm of the offense. I don’t remember him ever being asked about when his D’s on the field, though. Has he ever been asked that?

I suppose he’d just say he had faith in the defense to make the stop, but even if they did I’m not even sure he’d use them after he got the ball back. It’s like he’s allergic to them or something.

He’s consistent.

Vaughn said:

I echo the sentiments of Down South – Karaun White has been disappointing. He has skills and physical abilities that should make him a monster player, but he’s underperforming to his talent level. In addition to the horrific missed catch in this game and the KSU one, he also dropped an easy third down catch against BYU that could have burnt the clock late in the game. I know superficially it looks overly critical to single out three plays in an entire season, but those weren’t hard plays to make. I wouldn’t criticize him if he’s not coming up with the plays when he’s well covered or in traffic. Those were easy catches that he has to make, and if he’s not going to make them, then Gary Jennings could and should get more run at Z.

Side note re: Simms’ poor route on 3rd down that led to a punt: Why is Simms next man up at Z as a true freshman in a road game? Jennings should be the first sub at both X and Z. Even the coaches have noted that Jennings can handle any WR position. You can play Simms significant snaps against Kansas and maybe in front of the desolate stands of Iowa State, not in a hostile environment. These are the things that sometimes frustrate me about the coaching staff. They do a LOT of things right, and then the few minor mistakes always seem to be exploited by our opponents.

Last thing on the WRs: Durante needs the ball more. He’s a difference maker. Get him the ball any way you can. I would love to see him run a tunnel screen out of one of those stacks + slot formations.

I’m all in on more Durante, but that’s the trend right now. It’s happening. Good question on Jennings, but opinions have cooled on him. He can play both, but he’s played mostly X. Someone has to play Z?

Eric said:

If only the men’s soccer team could have stayed ranked, too. Mike, how much work does the men’s soccer team have to do to make the tourney field? It seems they need a closing win and at least one more in the MAC tourney.

Probably has to win the MAC. No. 30 in the RPI isn’t particularly safe when you’re 8-6-1.

smeer said:

women’s soccer did not give up a single goal in B12 play. that’s domination

Absurd.

I love you, Doug! said:

And I’m a Man Booker Prize waiting to happen. : -)

…and away we go.

smeer said:

I’m a Fall, waiting to happen.

philip said:

i’m an h.r. disaster waiting to happen.

CC Team said:

This time of the afternoon, I’m a beer drinker waiting to happen

Diddybops said:

Kansas’ defense is a big play waiting to happen…

SheikYbuti said:

I’m a Mountaineer football or basketball national championship celebrant waiting to happen. Still waiting.

Pat Miller said:

Did somebody say big play waiting to happen?

Enjoy the weekend!