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

Hey, the lights were on today

January 5, 2009 by Mike Casazza

– Business as usual at the Coliseum to the point no one really offered more than a shoulder shrug to the news WVU is ranked No. 22 in the latest coaches’ poll. Old hat. The bigger news was that the Mountaineers were the ninth and final Big East team in the rankings, which were led by new No. 1 Pitt — by the way, how does UNC get a vote after losing at home to then-unranked Boston College?

– This may surprise you, but tickets remain available for tomorrow’s 7 p.m. game against No. 5 Connecticut. Otherwise, the game can be seen on something called ESPNU. I’d consider doing blog updates from the game, but for the first time in a long time, I’ll be on deadline. The Daily Mail became a morning paper today, so I have to spend my time wisely at an event, at least early on as I break some old habits.

– On that note, if you’re in West Virginia and you see a Daily Mail stand, please let tell me about it.

- If you’re outside West Virginia and you see a Daily Mail stand, please let me know about that, too.

– Joe Mazzulla seems convinced he will play this season, if for no other reason than he said he’d rather not take a medical redshirt and can’t see himself handling the rest of the season on the bench. He said he’s noticed progress in the past two weeks, which, he said, contradicts a reports suggesting otherwise, and he’s reached a point where the pain is tolerable. He’s resumed conditioning and actually runs up the Coliseum steps and on the treadmill voluntarily. He’ll push himself a little harder here shortly and see how the shoulder reacts. Mazzulla also said he’s running out of things to wear on the sideline, but getting an assist from the dapper Wellington Smith.

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Talking points

by Mike Casazza

…from the weekend that was. For your use in elevator rides, trips to the water cooler and other awkward moments on a Monday.

-WVU needs cornerbacks and Michael Carter needed WVU … or should I say Michael Carter needed UWV?  

– Only once before has WVU gone on the road and won a Big East game by a larger margin than the Mountaineers did Saturday.

– John Flowers’ line was pretty impressive — and, no, that’s not a typo. He really was 4-for-4 at the line and did not hit the rim once. So what? Well, he was 6-for-25 entering the game.

– Now UConn — and a different UConn at that with Stanley Robinson back in the lineup and Joe Alexander nowhere in sight — comes to town.

– Good for Vaughn Rivers. 

– Bonus: There was a change in Newark’s skyline. This is gone!

The good news? It wasn’t me

January 2, 2009 by Mike Casazza

I left the Coliseum around noon today and headed up I-79 to the airport, where I hoped to use my time wisely as I waited for my 4:35 p.m. flight to Newark. So how is it I’m just getting around to writing? You’d have to ask the knuckleheads — plural! — who freaked out security at Pittsburgh International Airport to the point the check was shut down. Twice.

Between one suspect who tried to lam it, another I never saw, impatient security personnel imploring a worried mass to ”BACK UP!” and the person in the large (word I’m not allowed to say in an airport) suit, it took me a while to get through.

Those new to the blog will find this alarming.Those who have been here a while will call it Friday. [Huzah! We’re delayed an hour!]

As for basketball, there was a power outage at the Coliseum today, which complicated the shootaround. Quote Huggins: ”Thank God they put windows in this place.”

Joe Mazzulla didn’t do anything that would make you think he’ll play in tomorrow’s 4 p.m. game against Seton Hall. Truck Byrant jammed his left (non-shooting) thumb yesterday and had it wrapped before practice. He said it’s ”killing” him, but he’d play — ”I don’t have a choice.” He popped a few pills to deal with the pain, took and missed a few shots, tore off the tape, took and made a few shots and went on with practice.

Somewhere in that series is an explanation of why he’s nicknamed Truck.

Let’s talk ‘09

December 31, 2008 by Mike Casazza

So this was a pretty neat year, yes? Taking one last look back as I prepare to step over the threshold and into 2009, I’m inclined to think I and we may never see one quite the same again.

Perhaps that’s a good thing in the sense of bitter lawsuits, sleazeball agents, egomaniac coaches, dopey lawyers, calculated presidents, faux degrees, blatant coverups, disregard for rules and laws, heart-shredding losses, clandestine power plays, depressing injuries and whatever other rotten apples managed to fit in that basket this year.

Conversely, there were the exhilarating victories, moments of chest-swelling and eye-welling pride, fantastic personalities, irresistible stories, rapscallions, quizzical comments, memorable moments, constant occasions of humor and happiness and, above all else, an unrelenting hope. You can never, ever get enough of those things, and fortunately, it happens here. It just does.

But as one animated monkey said to his animated lion friend, “It’s in the past.”

Let’s talk and think about the future for a bit. A year from today, what is it we’ll be looking back upon as moments that served as highlights and lowlights in 2009?

Serious questions about Mazzulla

December 30, 2008 by Mike Casazza

Joe Mazzulla has two games and 10 days to make a pretty important decision. Does he play this season or does he take a medical redshirt? By NCAA rules, which we’re becoming all too familiar with around here, he cannot play on or after the Jan. 10 game at Marquette and then decide to take a medical redshirt. 

The growth plate fracture he has is bad — seriously, it’s kept him on the bench — and it can get worse even if it gets better. The way things are going, he might not be able to test his shoulder before the deadline. Surgery is an option, but success rates are not great. It’s just going to take time to heal and Mazzulla is doing his part, going so far as to stay in town over the weekend to get treatments while teammates went home for their belated holiday.

To even guess what may happen, we must first consider a series of other questions for Mazzulla and the Mountaineers, who are doing remarkably well without their point guard, due in no small part to his backup, freshman Truck Bryant.

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The case for Pat White

by Mike Casazza

The text came through yesterday morning from one of my oldest friends who I regularly have long and insightful discussions with about sports. This wasn’t very different, even in text form, because it was actually two complete texts. Pat White will do that to you.

“Legendary performance by Pat White. He has to be one of the all-time greats now. Cemented a spot in the NFL now too, right?”

It went on a little more about the season and asked how fans felt, but what mattered most is what I mentioned above. To be honest, I didn’t think Pat could do anything in Saturday’s game that would change his all-time standing. He had the NCAA rushing record, he had the BCS games and he had the void where a national title win/appearance should rest. He was, for all intents and purposes, finished.

I’m pretty sure I was wrong.

If he had to go out in a way that wasn’t competing for a national title, then it would have to be something like what we witnessed in the bowl: third straight MVP performance (each uniquely different, by the way) in a rally to set a NCAA record for bowl wins.

The cherry? He did it with his arm — first 300-yard game and three touchdowns. The one knock was he couldn’t carry a team with the pass. Whoops. It still may be the case, but for one day — his last day — he did it.

So, yeah, legendary. That’s a strong word, but damn if it isn’t accurate. NFL? I refuse to believe the league can go on without giving an athlete/competitor like that a shot. He’s better than some sixth-round scrub receiver and I wouldn’t ever tell him he can’t play quarterback. Well, unless I was a G.M., and the next thing I would do is sign Pat because that slight would probably cause Pat to transform himself into Drew Brees.

It’s a long time until March and the beginning of spring football and April and the NFL draft, so time will be spent debating Pat’s place in history. This is not just a regional debate. It’s gone national.

CFB Bowling: If there was an MVP of all of the bowls between now and last Tuesday, it would be West Virginia QB Pat White, who not only put on a career-best 332-yard passing day vs. UNC, but he led WVU to his fourth bowl win as a starting QB, a record widely considered unprecedented in college football history. I think it is only WVU’s choke at home against Pitt last year — keeping them out of the national-title game — that keeps White from being considered one of the Top 10 QBs of the past 25 years in college football.

And away we go …

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Who’s No. 11?

December 29, 2008 by Mike Casazza

Why, that’d be WVU’s basketball team, which used Saturday’s upset at previously unbeaten Ohio State to pole vault in the RPI (not quite there in the coaches’ poll).

The Mountaineers squandered chances to get name wins against Kentucky and Davidson, but this was a signature win on another team’s floor. It was what WVU was –defensive-minded, determined rebounding, good-enough at scoring and alarmingly adept at handling adversity.

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Andy Katz can’t quit WVU

by Mike Casazza

Remember the guy who put the Mountaineers on upset alert in a game in which they were not once challenged? Well, Mr. Katz crowned WVU his team of the week Monday.

WVU’s Big East slate opens with two road games against Seton Hall and Marquette, sandwiched around a monster home game against Connecticut. Nothing about the way West Virginia is playing now seems to hinder the Mountaineers’ ability to beat anybody on their schedule the rest of the season. They’ll still take their share of lumps, but they’ll continue to have weeks like this one.

His runner-up for player of the week got the nod from the Big East.

Speaking of the Big East, conference play begins tonight with a doozie — Georgetown at UConn — and the members of the GREATEST CONFERENCE EVER ASSEMBLED will begin bloodying one another’s noses on ESPN.

HOW MANY ARE DANCING?

This has been the question tossed around for months now. First, a history lesson. As a 16-team group, the Big East received eight bids in both 2006 and ’08 and a stunning six in ’07. The eighth team in `06 (Gerry McNamara’s Syracuse) may not have made the tourney if it didn’t win the conference tourney. So getting eight is hard.

Even so, 10 teams are in excellent shape. The problem is team No. 9 or 10 is bound to own a 9-9 or 8-10 record (at best). That means the selection committee will go looking for quality non-league wins and make sure that some of your eight or nine Big East victories came against Syracuse or Pitt, and not Rutgers and St. John’s.

On Brandon Hogan

by Mike Casazza

No need for Talking Points today. Not only do I want to speed back into a rhythm here after letting things slip a little last week, but there were only two things that happened over the weekend and the bowl and basketball victories deserve increased attention.

Let us start, though, with an issues on everyone’s minds.

Whatever is up with Brandon Hogan is an intensely private matter. Most likely, it’ll stay that way until someone on the inside decides to take it outside … and that may never happen.

Does that automatically translate into something very, very serious? Not necessarily. It could just be the family’s wishes and the program respecting those. Does it look very, very serious? Well, given the 22 tributes and the secrecy, it does look as if it has everyone’s attention. I’m not going to say it’s very, very serious because I honestly do not know. I doubt anyone else in the media has any concrete idea, either. Theories is about all we have. 

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One more

December 24, 2008 by Mike Casazza

* Sources say WVU’s coaching staff feels very confident once-signed junior college defensive end Tevita Finau and high school receiver Logan Heastie will be enrolled at WVU in January.

* Safety Sidney Glover vows to play Saturday and was to participate in as much of Wednesday’s practice as his knee will allow. Cornerback Brandon Hogan stayed behind at the team hotel for a second straight practice. He needs to practice to play.

* Oll Stewart asked this take on Quinton Andrews be mentioned. Believe it or not, he was talking about how proud he was of the junior safety: ”I’m watching him closer that I’m watching my wife doing her Christmas shopping.”