The Sock 'Em, Bust 'Em Board

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

And here’s how your Thursday starts

May 12, 2011 by Mike Casazza

Bruce Irvin has changed the profile picture on his Twitter page …

Time for a challenge

May 11, 2011 by Mike Casazza

From something Bill said sometime last week:

One final note – if any of you listens to Bill King on Sirius XM radio, you’ll know that he has also been soliciting a lot of feedback from callers on what to name our offense. I hope WE HERE can collectively brand it, and let him run with it….so let’s keep the ideas rolling! The only good one I’ve heard thus far is “Catch and Burn”.

You may have noticed this, but Hertz, first in the spring game’s review and then in revisiting of the school’s overlooked passing history, has labeled the offense the MountainAirs. Far better than “Catch and Burn” … and I’m not even sure what that means. Can WE HERE collectively get above the bar?

Las Vegas Classic almost set

by Mike Casazza

Can’t find this anywhere, but it’s been announced and also told to me WVU’s appearance in the 2011 Las Vegas Classic is all but set.

Step inside the laboratory

May 10, 2011 by Mike Casazza

Lots of people are doing a lot of projecting about WVU basketball, which, in May, is a pretty good sign many are awaiting the next time the orange thing bounces off the parquet thing.

So let’s indulge.

Here’s one guy who doesn’t see the Big East splitting

by Mike Casazza

So a WVU head coach was once again on the road for a speaking engagement and kind enough to give his time to someone local for an interview. And once again, the conversation shifted to the future of the Big East. Bob Huggins, heretofore mostly mum on the subject, asks you to chew on this.

Q: There has been a lot of talk over the years that the non-football playing schools will eventually break away and form their own league. Do you think the league will hold together?

A: They’ve been saying that for so long. I don’t think that happens because the Big East moniker is going to stay in Providence. That’s a lot of money, a lot of advertising. Then what are you going to do, start another league? We saw how long it took Conference USA to make its mark. Look at what’s going on around the country. Everybody’s getting bigger. Everything is so TV driven.

Joe Mazzulla not ready to mow his lawn just yet

by Mike Casazza

Joe Mazzulla, the guy who’s been readying himself for a career in coaching, could have started down his preferred path as soon as his career as a WVU player ended. An otherwise innocent interview after the NCAA Tournament game against Clemson was seen by the head coach at Division II Nova Southeastern College and that coach needed to see no more.

After Gary Tuell made a few calls to check out Mazzulla and gauge his interest, Mazzulla was offered an assistant coach position in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

So that was that. A long road reached a sudden end.

Then again, the mind and heart sometimes conspire to take a detour.

Brian Athey had an uneventful spring

May 9, 2011 by Mike Casazza

Pretty well placed in the No. 3 spot early on, the freshman from Minnesota, where he threw fewer than 100 passes as a high school senior, didn’t get a whole lot action in spring football.

How do I know this? Because I found the stats from all three scrimmages right here. Who needs to see a little more of Malek Redd?

What Kevin Jones returning to WVU means to WVU

by Mike Casazza

I haven’t heard from or spoken to anyone who thinks Kevin Jones made a mistake by withdrawing form the NBA Draft and returning to WVU for his senior season. I also hear Mr. Jones didn’t hear from or speak to anyone who told him it would be a good idea to stay in. No one assured him of first-round status.

So it is with the feedback in his pocket that he returns to WVU as the eyes he opened with a pretty promising performance at yesterday’s combine in New Jersey lock in on him for the next year. Life also becomes a lot easier for Deniz Kilicli and Kevin Noreen in the frontcourt and for Truck Bryant overall, to say nothing of Bob Huggins and his job. Jones, if nothing else, is the top role model.

Let’s examine the other side of the coin, though.

Will this be a good or great weekend?

May 8, 2011 by Mike Casazza

(Late-night update: Twas a great weekend for WVU.)

First, WVU basketball landed its 6-foot-10 transfer Saturday to end a fun little pursuit that was really three years in the making.

Aaric Murray won’t be able to play next season, but gone are the days of Craig Carey playing the part of Gary McGhee in practice. Murray, by participation in practice alone, will make WVU better because Deniz Kilicli and Kevin Noreen and Pat Forsythe will get to go against him every day. That’s a hidden perk here.

And when Murray is eligible in 2012-13, how big is WVU going to be? I foresee a formidable front court.

So that made this a good weekend for Bob Huggins and Friends. Now there’s a bit of the unknown awaiting the Mountaineers as Kevin Jones has a job interview for 27 NBA teams today in New Jersey at the NBA’s early draft combine.

Aaric Murray does indeed pick WVU

May 7, 2011 by Mike Casazza

Despite the emails from knuckleheads insisting I was corrupting his decision by reporting news, Aaric Murray used a sparsely attended press conference today to announce he’s transferring to WVU.

“Just all-around program, Big East is the best conference, Coach (Bob) Huggins put a lot of people in the (NBA), I love the players…the school, I loved everything about it,” Murray said.

Murray said he wanted to attend WVU out of high school, but got some bad advice.

“I had the wrong people in my corner,” he said.

“I felt as though I made the wrong decision going to La Salle,” he said. “I wanted to go (to WVU) out of high school. Now I have a second chance, why not take it.”