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

Macon to prep school…kind of…maybe…yes?

June 19, 2012 by Mike Casazza

(Edit: Add to hed: “Yes!” Got a hold or Mr. Macon. Poor guy’s sister is screening calls for him. He confirmed the report — and most of what’s speculated on below — and said he’s taking one summer course at Marion-Franklin and then three at his prep school. We then shared a laugh about the phrase “summer break.”)

Scout.com reports Elijah Macon is off to New Hampshire’s Brewester Academy and won’t be at WVU for the 2012-13 season. Citing Macon’s AAU coach, it’s heavily worded that this is not a de-commitment and that Macon, who previously committed and de-committed, will still enroll at WVU, with the proper grades, as part of the 2013 class.

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Cabell County kid ends WVU streak at 1

by Mike Casazza

This past February was the first signing day at WVU since 2006 that didn’t have at least one in-state player. Leave it to Cabell County and Spring Valley, nestled down in the supposed enemy territory of Huntington, to get the Mountaineers back on track in the Mountain State. Say hello to Elijah Wellman.

Sshhh! Mr. Garrison has been OK a while now

by Mike Casazza

David P. Hickman reminded everyone of this when we finally got to talk to Dustin Garrison last Tuesday and it’s a good anecdote: One of the first and only post-ACL looks we had at the WVU running back was at an Orange Bowl function when he got off the bus sans crutches and had the athletic trainers tell him what a terrible idea that was.

Turns out that Garrison, who just passed the latest quarter pole on the recovery trail and needs only to strengthen his quad before he can get back to football stuff, has been testing himself for quite some time.

Naturally, these things have happened away from the watchful and assuredly widening eyes of those athletic trainers who neither need nor want Garrison to limp into the office and explain away a kitchen juke gone awry.

“They really didn’t want me doing it, but I’d walk around the house and make a couple moves here and there,” he said. “It seemed stable enough.”

With his confidence raised, he’d push a little harder, though only away from the overseers of his recovery, who would surely flip out if they saw what Garrison was doing.

“I’d do a little running up the stairs at my apartment, run down the street, anywhere I could,” he said.

Give the kid this: His spirit is unbeatable.

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Speaking of long stories …

June 18, 2012 by Mike Casazza

Looks like Noah Cottrill has a new home and, somehow, four years of eligibility remaining to his name. He tried and tried to get into a Division I program and even some others that were below the lofty goals he once had, but truth be told, he might yet thrive at Mountain State.

“Coach Bolen is going to help me stay on the right path too,” Cottrill said. “That’s why I’m playing for him. He’s a great guy.”

“We have a plan in place to give Noah every chance to be successful in all areas of his life,” Bolen said. “I care about him. He has already started the process of getting his life back in order.”

“My family has my back too,” Cottrill said. “My brother Ricky has been a huge support for me. We talk every day. He reminds me that a lot of people do care about me. He’s been a big inspiration. Everyone’s support has been great.”

Cottrill had a lot of options to weigh in picking a school.

“I still had four years at either NCAA Division II or NAIA,” he explained. “The thing with NCAA Division I, when your D-I clock starts, you have five years to complete four years of eligibility. If I would have went somewhere and sat out (due to a transfer rules) I would only have one year left (to play). If I’d want to get my degree, I would have to stay another two years without basketball. So that was a huge factor. That was a lot to swallow.”

“I’ve been humbled. It’s been a great process of humbling, trust me, these last two years.

“I missed basketball; it was eating at me,” he added. “I’ve been working out hard core for the last three or four months. I feel great now. I’ll be back to where I was before, if not better. I’m excited.” 

And WVU’s newest cornerback has quite a tale

by Mike Casazza

Rick Rumph, an all-state player from Daytona Beach’s Mainland High, visited and committed to WVU Friday. And what a scene that must have been. Really, picture it in your head and it goes something like this, right?

The 5-foot-11, 185-pound Rumph said he was offered a scholarship Friday morning in the office of West Virginia head coach Dana Holgorsen and accepted on the spot.

“They brought me in and (Coach Holgorsen) asked (defensive coordinator Joe) DeForest, ‘Do you really want this guy?’ And he said, ‘Yes,’ ” Rumph said in a phone interview from a Pittsburgh airport. “Then, Coach Holgorsen said, ‘Well, we want you to be a West Virginia Mountaineer.’ “

That’s a standard thing for Holgorsen’s WVU. He wants to meet a kid first. He’s also unfailingly sarcastic. Rumph, who counts as the 30th player in the 2012 class, required a little more time and attention, too. 

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Patrick White: Thespian

by Mike Casazza

Seriously. I don’t even feel bad about chuckling when I first heard about this, what with my years spent covering the young man and trying to get drag something interesting from his mouth and into my notebook. Turns out Five sees the humor in the situation, too.

“I like to entertain, believe it or not,” says White. “It didn’t show very much, probably still not doing it now interviewing, but it’s a hidden passion of mine and I’m excited to have an opportunity, so we’ll see where it takes me.”

So, yes, (arguably? definitively?) WVU’s best football player is entering the world of acting. You may wonder about White and his post-WVU pursuits, but give him this: He sees what he wants and he goes after it. That’s an admirable trait a lot of people could stand to acquire.

Professional baseball and football now on the shelf and his mind at ease knowing the athletic glory days are done, White seems blissful about his new calling.

College football’s all-time rusher at the quarterback position, and the only signal caller to start and win four-straight bowl games, is beginning to look beyond the work he did on the field and to a new adventure on the screen.

“Recently, I’m cheering on my Mountaineers, taking care of a silly, crazy Doberman and I guess trying to start a new career,” says White. “I’m working in the world of the arts, becoming a thespian, and when that happens, life is going to be so wonderful.”

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Friday Feedback

June 15, 2012 by Mike Casazza

Talk about Friday Feedback, which doesn’t like when coaches or athletes get cute in the press conference and act like they don’t understand a question, or a tactic, when in reality they’ve heard all the questions and understand all the tactics.

That said, there are exceptions and this behavior is, in fact, encouraged.

Q. Can you talk about the match‑up with LeBron? It seemed like he was able to get to the basket basically when he wanted to until he put up that three there late in the ballgame. Talk about his ability to get to the basket.

KEVIN DURANT: Was that a question?  

Interesting question, Mr. Durant. The first part was. Had it been left at that, it’s passable. The second part, in which the reporter likely rambled on nervously? Nope!

Now, I doubt that happens if Oklahoma City’s Thunder wins the game last night and I suspect the response was born out of postgame frustration, but, man, so cool to see someone disarm “talk about” like that.

Look, there are so many places and so many ways to write now that the styles and the deliveries and the expectations vary. Truth be told, you don’t even have to be taught to be good at sportswriting these days. At least, not in the classical sense.

What drives a lot of us crazy is the way that people can’t conduct themselves in press conferences. That’s something that should be taught, or at least learned by teaching yourself. The ridiculous fan activity, prevalent incollege is one thing. The way people ask questions is another and usually draws a line between two crowds.

I don’t know who asked the question in this case. He or she could be a legend with a lot of awards for all I know, but “talk about” is a lazy way to ask a question and should be dismissed with prejudice.

Book! Check out Decision Makers Sunday morning (or the clips that’ll be online Sunday morning, though I don’t know where they’ll be). It was an issue-driven discussion about the texting ban, the next batch of state elections, mining legislation and a bit about the book and WVU football. One wonders what makes air!

Onto the Feedback. As always, comments appear as posted. In other words, be a family guy. 

I love you, Doug! said:

Apparently, Mike has written a new book, working off the first book’s theme:

“And after a few days we’ll pick a winner of the best caption on this picture, with the winner will receive a free copy of the new West Virginia football book “Waiting For Next Year” by Mike Casazza, on us. It’s that easy, that simple, and the book can be yours.”

http://bloguin.com/crystalballrun/2012-articles/june/caption-contest-dana-holgorsen-goes-shootin.html

Meanwhile, this edited version of the Holgo shootin’ pix is much better, courtesy the brilliant EDSBS.com:

http://goo.gl/uLJDF

The funny part about this? Check out the “Waiting For Next Year” blog. How about that?

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And in this corner …

June 14, 2012 by Mike Casazza

… something to pass the time. I’m actually in Charleston today to for real film a spot on Decision Makers. It’s not a joke — believe me, I asked. To fill some time, now and in the coming days, I’d like to examine how WVU’s offensive linemen are staying busy while the rest of the team does 7-on-7 stuff.

The big handsomes aren’t included in those pass drills, but they better stay busy. And, boy, are they.

But this year offensive line coach Bill Bedenbaugh has added a new twist.

The offensive linemen are boxing … and, yes, they are heavyweights.

Now boxing is not among your popular sports this week, considering the uproar over the controversial split decision awarded Timothy Bradley over Manny Pacquiao in a title fight.

These WVU linemen are not really boxing, though. They don’t square off against each other, but instead go through the training drills that boxers go through.

They work on the heavy bag, work on footwork and conditioning, all of it not with the goal of landing a haymaker to the chin of an opponent, but to improve themselves as offensive linemen.

“I’ve never boxed before,” Spain admits.

Not that we didn’t know that considering there have been no calls to 911 to come scrape anyone off the floor with a broken jaw. 

We’re crowning a champion here. Let’s begin today with seeding the fighters: No. 1 through No. 12.

Some time later, Nos. 1-4 will get a one fight bye. No. 5 will battle No. 12, No. 6 will battle No. 11, No. 7 will battle No. 10 and No. 8 will battle No. 9. I’ll rank thembased on your opinions.

More or better ring names are encouraged, too

John Bassler (6-4, 308)
Cole Bowers (6-5, 298) – Cole “Early Shower” Bowers
Jeff Braun (6-5, 321) – Jeff “100 percent” Braun
Pat Eger (6-6, 301)
Curtis Feigt (6-7, 316) – Curtis “Street” Feigt
Russell Haughton-James (6-5, 316)
Brandon Jackson (6-3, 326)
Josh Jenkins (6-4, 291)
Nick Kindler (6-6, 298)
Marquis Lucas (6-4, 317)
Joe Madsen (6-4, 310)
Quinton Spain (6-5, 335) – Quinton “Prediction” Spain

Go Figaro: Barber of Mocksville not used to winning

by Mike Casazza

You might call it The Futile Precaution, this offseason-long quest for WVU’s players and coaches to keep the players level after all the intoxications that could cause a kid to wobble.

To review: A string of breaks at the end of the regular season, the fortuitous place in the Orange Bowl, the 10 touchdowns and all the smiles against Clemson, the endless line of opportunities to contratulate and inflate the players ever since.

It all adds up and builds a concern that, perhaps, the Mountaineers won’t handle this all too well. Who, really, could be ready for something like that?

Certainly not Jared Barber, the sophomore linebacker from North Carolina’s Davie County High that went 27-25 in his four seasons.

But that’s a good thing.

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Let’s start the bidding …

June 13, 2012 by Mike Casazza

Haven’t gotten around to this RFP business yet, and really, there’s just about nothing in this that we didn’t anticipate before. In fact, it puts virtually everything on the table for the bidders.

And now the fun begins for WVU to see what price tag the bidders will hang on the sponsorship and media assets — all while plainly withholding the ability to do nothing.

Nevertheless, the RFP “does not obligate West Virginia University or its Board of Governors to award a contract or complete the proposed project and each reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel this RFP,” the document says.

Additionally, WVU “reserves the right to include all or a portion of the components” in the final contract, even though most schools choose to award everything to one party.

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