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

I (will) miss my friend

January 3, 2016 by Mike Casazza

Dana hard a large night

by Mike Casazza

We saw a fiery Dana Holgorsen from start to finish last night — literally … because he was blistering the head linesman after he picked up a pass interference penalty on the first drive and he was doing this after the game-winning touchdown — and you knew he wanted this one for reasons I likely don’t need to tell you.

But the prevailing emotion for much of the game was frustration, likely born our of execution falling short of expectations. The Mountaineers knew Arizona State’s defense was not merely sieve, but a sieve with holes and yet WVU was kicking field goals an missing throws and leaving points and plays on the field.
Q. Were you a little frustrated at all the first quarter with three field goals?
COACH HOLGORSEN: Slightly.

SKYLER HOWARD: Slightly (laughter)?

Q. You overcame it.
COACH HOLGORSEN: Yeah, I think a lot of it comes back to having skill guys that are confident and will make that extra play. I was yelling at them pretty good. I reminded them where the end zone was, told them to score. So they started scoring. I should have said it before the game.

That’s just inexperience at receiver more than anything. We got better in the pass game. A lot of the guys from Morgantown, they know my frustrations with the passing game.

I’m very proud of our run game right now. We didn’t run the ball very good today. We knew we wouldn’t be able to. So the emphasis was on the pass game. We finally did something on the pass game to warrant a win.

Q. You dove onto the ground. What was going through your mind when you hit the ground?
COACH HOLGORSEN: I don’t remember. I don’t remember. I guess frustration.

Todd Graham explains that which can’t be explained

by Mike Casazza

Thanks, Todd, because 4 hours, 19 minutes was more than enough. Nobody wanted overtime.

Q. Todd, what was the issue on the two-point conversion?
COACH GRAHAM: It’s my fault. In the fourth quarter we have a chart in the box that we go by. We’re supposed to be going for two. We didn’t. Mismanagement on our part. That’s my responsibility.

It was obviously difficult. I mean, just the communication stuff. (Quarterback) Mike (Berkovici) did a tremendous job. Mike was pretty much the offensive coordinator, did just a phenomenal job. Mike will be the first to tell you we’re so grateful to Coach (Chip) Lindsey (the new offensive coordinator) for coming in here in a couple of weeks and doing what he did. He actually, with Mike here, called the plays today. I’m really proud of him.

Talk about a difficult situation. We have a game management meeting, have a chart, go for two. Ball was snapped, kicked the extra point, tried to call a timeout. We had several things like that today. It was my fault. Should have made sure it happened.

Not much to say about that. Just mismanagement.

Earlier this morning, WVU won the Cactus Bowl

by Mike Casazza

We’ll be here all day with various updates and sendoffs for the 2015 season, but for now, let’s review last night’s game by addressing the obvious: You had your doubts about Skyler Howard and the game’s final game and/or possession.

Continue reading…

WVU v. Arizona State: Cactus bowl of fun

January 2, 2016 by Mike Casazza
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You are looking live at the today’s rendering at Chase Field, sight of the 27th annual Cactus Bowl. We’re at a baseball stadium, and we’ve done this before. It did not go well.

This looks and feels different, and it’s important to note football games in baseball stadiums are not as new as they were three postseasons ago. Hosts are better at configuring the place, and the fact there’s no chance of a blizzard is gravy.

We like the looks of this, though. Let’s look a little closer.

Continue reading…

The proof is in the picture! No, scratch that.

by Mike Casazza

It’s been so long since Todd Graham and Dana Holgorsen coached one another that the last time was way back in something called the … hold on, let me Wikipedia this … Backyard Brawl?

But that matchup in 2011 was the fourth time in four seasons those two had gone head-to-head. The series got the better of them and the people who followed their careers. This week, though, Graham downplayed the rift and Holgorsen had actually forgotten the time he called Graham a cheater.

Given the benefit of hindsight, they believe the condition was a little bit exaggerated for the purpose of provocateurs.

“It was new to the Backyard Brawl,” Holgorsen said. “We’d been common opponents for three straight years going into that Backyard Brawl, which was a good story. But there’s nothing to it now. It’s not a story.”

To hear them talk about it now, it was never about not liking one another. It was about not liking losing to one another. The games were typically played with a lot on the line. Tulsa was 7-1 and ranked in 2008. Houston was 7-1 and ranked the following season. The Golden Hurricane then had a chance in 2010 to win a major intrastate game. The 2011 matchup was the last time Pitt and WVU played.

“We’ve always competed against each other,” Graham said. “A lot of that stuff, we just had some epic battles, man. I remember being at Tulsa and they kicked a 53-yard field goal with one second left to beat us one year.

“So we were always going against each other and we’ve always been competitors. To be honest with you, that helps your career, probably in both ways, but there’s nothing but respect on my end. I have great respect for him as a coach and his knowledge. He’s one of the best there is in the business.”

Bob Huggins can’t turn the page

by Mike Casazza

West Virginia begins Big 12 play in just a few minutes on ESPNU with a road game against Kansas State, and then the Mountaineers travel to TCU, where I’ll meet the team for Monday night’s game in the new Horned Frogs facility.

The calendar has turned, but Bob Huggins just cannot turn the page on his most consistent critique of his 11-1 team.

“We turn it over too much,” he said. “We work like crazy to get the other team to turn it over and then we just give it back to them. It’s not good.”

This isn’t the first time this season Huggins has harped on the Mountaineers’ turnover bug. He said WVU had “taken being terrible to a new level” following an 18-turnover performance against Marshall. West Virginia committed 18 turnovers against Stetson, 16 versus Bethune-Cookman, 17 against Kennesaw State, 18 in a loss to Virginia and 17 in Wednesday’s 25-point win at Virginia Tech.

“I don’t know why we throw it away,” Huggins said. “I wish I knew. But we do. We throw it around, and it’s going to get us. Eventually, it’s going to get us. It has been [a problem] since the Bahamas. I’ve done a great job coaching, haven’t I? Hasn’t changed since the Bahamas.”

Huggins knows the turnovers could be a problem as Big 12 play commences today. No. 19 West Virginia travels to face Kansas State (10-2) on ESPNU at noon. The Mountaineers were predicted to finish sixth in the 10-team league, and the first opponent, K-State, has only lost to nationally ranked programs North Carolina and Texas A&M.

And while West Virginia ranks first nationally in turnovers created, the team is No. 272 in turnovers made (14.3 per game). The Mountaineers are tied with Southeast Missouri State and Lehigh in turnovers.

“You can’t be careless with the ball,” WVU senior forward Jonathan Holton said.

 

We’ve got a game in, like, 12 hours

by Mike Casazza

Arizona State hasn’t played since Nov. 28. West Virginia hasn’t played since Dec. 5. After 35- and 28-day breaks, they play in tonight’s Cactus Bowl. The Sun Devils are quite cozy in this environment. The Mountaineers gave it a shot.

Tuesday’s practice started around 5 p.m., and Holgorsen said it was “incredibly enthusiastic and very crisp.” Wednesday’s practice started a little after noon. Thursday’s practice began a little later in the afternoon and today’s workout is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Saturday’s Cactus Bowl against Arizona State kicks off at 10:15 p.m. at Chase Field. Holgorsen isn’t concerned about conditioning his players for the late start, though he considered later practices.

“Here’s the problem with that, and we talked about it,” he said. “You can practice later in the day, but there are bowl activities that you have to go to. There are dinners and functions. Say we let them sleep to 11 a.m. or 12 p.m., which sounds late, but it’s really not. If you let them sleep to 9 a.m. or 10 a.m., it will be noon here.

“Then you let them go to the pool for six hours or go buy a T-shirt and walk around, then you practice later in the day from 6-9 p.m., then your day is done. We will be as late as we can. If we’re not practicing, then these kids are going to probably walk around until whenever curfew is anyways. It’s all about getting their body clock to stay up that late, but I think that is overrated to be honest with you.”

The Sun Devils, meanwhile, are conditioned to the start time and had seven of their regular-season games start at 7 p.m. or later. They had practices on their nearby campus, which is about 10 miles and 15 minutes from Chase Field. Their biggest hassle was coming to Thursday’s media day activities at the Camelback Inn, a 30-minute trip from the team hotel.

“I think it’s great for us,” said Arizona State coach Todd Graham, the former WVU assistant and Pitt head coach. “I know when we went through things when we got to the end of the season, we were sitting waiting to decide where we want to go. I sat down with our seniors and this was where we wanted to go.”

 

A new look to old foes

January 1, 2016 by Mike Casazza

We’ll spend a bit more time on this tomorrow, but Todd Graham and Dana Holgorsen go back quite a few years and have had, shall we say, spirited interactions. But time passes and things change, so how does one look to the other now?

How coordinators change stripes as head coaches

by Mike Casazza