The Sock 'Em, Bust 'Em Board Because that's our custom

Not the finish they wanted, still not bad

April 6, 2016 by Mike Casazza

 

Villanova’s win formally concluded the 2015-16 college basketball season, one that ended 17 days earlier for West Virginia with its first-round loss to Stephen F. Austin. The book was pressed shut and placed on the shelf Tuesday when the final USA Today coaches’ poll was released, and the Mountaineers were ranked No. 14, third-best among the Big 12 teams and trailing only Kansas (3) and Oklahoma (4). It’s (only?) the fourth time in Bob Huggins’ nine seasons that his team made the final poll.

WVU, of course, was ranked in last season’s final poll, slipping in at No. 18 after the forgettable loss to Kentucky. WVU was also ranked in back-to-back season-ending polls in 2005 and 2006. You need to go back a long way to find a longer streak. The Mountaineers were ranked at the end of seven straight seasons, and in the top 16, no less, from 1957-63.

The USA Today’s poll has been around since 1993, and this is just the seventh time WVU was included in the end and the second-highest ranking (No. 3 in 2010 was the only one better). That’s not a lot of appearances, but consider that when United Press International ran the poll before USA Today took it over, the Mountaineers had only six appearances from 1960-92, and four of those were part of the historic seven-year run.

‘I knew I could do better, so I did’

April 5, 2016 by Mike Casazza

Nick Kwiatkoski didn’t run the 40-yard dash at West Virginia University’s pro day Monday. It was a calculated decision.

“My goal at the combine was to get everything to where I was happy with it so I don’t have to do it here,” said the now-former Mountaineers linebacker. “I kind of went back and forth with the 40, and I didn’t know if I wanted to do it. I basically came to the conclusion if I’m not all in, I’m not going to do it, so I chose not to.”

Kwiatkoski’s best 40 at the NFL Draft combine in Indianapolis was 4.73 seconds, which was No. 15 among linebackers, and his 20-yard shuttle was even better. The 4.73 was solid, and the risk outweighed the reward Monday. But Kwiatkoski knows how important that one drill and those scant few seconds are in this process and how it can sometimes trump years of stats and tape.

“A 40 shows a lot,” he said. “In some situations, I would say it’s not that big. You’re not going to see a lineman run 40 yards at top speed too much. But it’s big for special teams and seeing how you’ll run down on the kickoff or the punt and things like that. I think it’s definitely fair and it can be a good thing. It also helps a lot of people. Guys who are underrated come out and run a good time and it puts them on the map.”

Come out and run a bad time, and it’s a different story, which leads to how Daryl Worley spent his Monday and why Wendell Smallwood dared to do what he did.

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He knows everything!

by Mike Casazza

Everybody, a round of applause for Mike Schultz, who won the blog’s bracket challenge. Hopefully he’s a touch more excited than Jay Wright.  (Aside: If you tied Villanova winning with under 150 points last night, today sucked, and while you admire Marcus Paige’s crazy 3-pointer, you also dislike him for making it.)

Speaking of Jay Wright, good for him. People forget this, but he was in danger earlier in his career. He did make a Final Four years later, but he also went 0-2 in the 2010 NCAA tournament, and his recent legacy of early losses threatened to define him.

So much for that. He was masterful. His roster is skilled. His game plans were excellent. His decisions did not fail, up to and including the finish.

Bob Huggins says this all the time, and it’s relevant to day when you see how well the Wildcats shot for three weeks and how WVU’s shooting was just miserable at the worst time, but the best teams make open shots.

How Tony Gibson is lining up things

by Mike Casazza
cooldana

Saturday’s snapshot of practice was more like an oil painting. We were allowed to watch the whole deal and build and refine impressions, and it was pretty obvious WVU’s offense is in a favorable position.

If you quizzed yourself before it all began and wondered who’d be first-team players, you’d have Skyler Howard at quarterback, Rushel Shell at running back, Shelton Gibson and Ka’Raun White at wide receiver and Daikiel Shorts inside and then Yodny Cajuste and Marcell Lazard at tackle, Adam Pankey and Kyle Bosch at guard and Tyler Orlosky at center.

You would have been correct, if not for one exception: That’s 10, and you need 11. You never know how WVU will choose to get to 11. Is there a second running back? A tight end? A fourth receiver? No. 11 was Kennedy McKoy, the freshman running back who’s doing a Wendell Smallwood impression, and he promptly snapped off a long run on a simple draw play.

Now, is that WVU’s first game, first play first-team offense? There’s no way to guarantee that … but those are strong candidates, and maybe we won’t see a contested convention when the rest of the players arrive in the summer.

Defensively, it’s a different story for the Mountaineers. Not bad, mind you, bit different.

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Go figures: WVU pro day results

April 4, 2016 by Mike Casazza

Fortunately, the kind folks at WVU gifted us a stat sheet to show who did what Monday with 29 NFL teams in attendance.

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It all comes down to this

by Mike Casazza

It’s pretty simple tonight: If Vilanova wins, Mike Schultz wins the bracket challenge. If North Carolina wins, Jason Parmer, Matt Harvey or SheikYbuti wins. Those three have the same point total, meaning we’d use total points to pick a winner. Mr. Parmer has 155, Mr. Harvey 145 and Mr. SheikYbuti has 137.

And rest easy, if you care, because the One Shining Moment controversy is indeed settles, provided the explanation wasn’t an April Fool’s joke.

Missing in action

by Mike Casazza

That is Jovon Durante, and he was at practice Saturday. He did not practice. He is among three suspended for violating team rules while another is absent because his conduct was a detriment to the team.

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Friday Feedback

April 1, 2016 by Mike Casazza

Welcome to the Friday Feedback, which needs no agent to be a pro. I think we’ll get a few of these F Doubles in a row because the summer months are open and free of travel until I take some vacations later down the road. Then you’re on you own. I’m not sure what we’ll do to fill the blog space along the way, but I have some ideas. We don’t have to worry about that until after the spring game April 23, though.

Meanwhile, football practice is open tomorrow — prepare for a lot of practice facility photos … not from me! — and the three Saturdays after that, which includes the spring game at The Greenbrier. The gymnasts are in a NCAA regional. Football’s pro day is Monday. The baseball team plays 24 of its final 32 games at home. Other stuff will happen! We’re far from the dog days, though they are coming.

Onto the Feedback. As always, comments appear as posted. In other words, attack!

Mack said:

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that an assistant coach’s record at Mount Union has literally nothing to do with how good a coach he is/will be.

I want to be a football coach.

Disagree. Shocker, I know.

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Matt Caponi: Not used to losing

March 31, 2016 by Mike Casazza

Photo credit

It’s probably fitting Matt Caponi, who will have the seventh-longest tenure among WVU assistants when the season starts, has already received a raise … because he doesn’t have much experience with losses. I know it’s useful that he’s worked with Tony Gibson and he knows the 3-3-5, but let’s not forget the Mountaineers are not yet used to winning consistently, and it doesn’t hurt to have someone like Caponi around to keep that moving forward.

“The most important thing about Matt is that as a player he lost one college game in four years and won three national championships,” said Gibson, who hired Caponi as his graduate assistant at Pitt in 2011 and then brought him to Arizona a year later. “The guy knows how to win and what it takes to win. I want that kind of energy and enthusiasm around the team.”

Guesses, anyone?

by Mike Casazza

Terrible news: No more Luther.

Wonderful news: No more Jennifer Hudson.

Bets on who takes over Monday night? I’m thinking John Legend, but so help me God if it’s Bruno Mars. Or do we need to think outside the box? Country? Pop? I’m ready to believe you.