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Blog: Five reasons why WVU’s 2017 regular season wasn’t a success

November 29, 2017 by Ryan Decker

I’ve told you the reasons why this season was successful for the Mountaineers. Let’s not forget that this year’s WVU team did end an extended losing streak against ranked teams.

But a seven-win season this year after a 10-win campaign last year is a bit of a step backward.

West Virginia may have outscored teams from the state of Kansas by nearly four touchdowns, but the Mountaineers gave up just 21 fewer points to the two teams from the state of Oklahoma than the four teams from Texas. West Virginia also defeated half the Lone Star State, while once against going winless against the Sooner State.

Not being able to win the biggest games of the year is one of the reasons this season wasn’t a success for WVU.

  1. Too inconsistent on offense

As good as the offense was at times, it was pretty absent in others. Over a three-game stretch against Iowa State, Kansas State and Texas, the Mountaineer offense was responsible for seven scoreless quarters, including five in a row over the last two contests mentioned.

It wasn’t the first time this season it happened either.

WVU took the third quarter off against Kansas and let the Jayhawks get back in the game; took the fourth quarter off against Baylor in a joint-effort near-collapse; turnovers and a slow start put the Mountaineers in a hole early on against Oklahoma State. The run game was non-existent at times, and whether that was scheme or execution issues – likely both –, that’s something that needs to be fixed moving forward. It’s been clear over the last few years that WVU is at its best offensively when its running the ball well.

  1. Not enough battles won in the trenches

One of the contributing factors to the offense not being at its best was the offensive line. A group that stayed relatively healthy throughout the year never seemed to fully jell.

Quarterback Will Grier was under a lot of pressure, though his play hid a number of his line’s imperfections. Despite only giving up 17 sacks all season, Grier felt the heat much more than that.

On the other side, the defensive line wasn’t getting enough push, either. To be fair, the group improved greatly from Week 1 to the end of the season, but still wasn’t getting in the backfield nearly as often as you would like to see.

  1. Tackling woes continue

One of the more glaring takeaways from the season opener was that the Mountaineer defensive players were wrapping up the Hokies. They weren’t arm tackling while trying to strip the football, they were making full body-to-body contact and completing tackles.

The longer the year went on, the less that happened. Tackling continued to be a problem and came to a head each of the last two weeks where a number of blown tackles allowed the Texas and Oklahoma offenses to get bigger plays than they should have.

  1. Minus-two in the win column

Hindsight is 20-20, but the argument can be made that this should have been a nine-win team.

Looking at the five losses, two were inevitable for the most part – Oklahoma State, because the Cowboys were simply the better team, and Oklahoma, because of the Grier injury and the Sooners being the better team. That leaves the three other losses – Virginia Tech in the season opener, on the road against TCU, and at home against Texas.

The TCU loss is arguably the loss where it’s easiest to see the path to victory. If the Mountaineers’ special teams unit doesn’t cause its own fumble on what would’ve been a punt return in the first half, TCU doesn’t score that touchdown, and maybe WVU puts the deciding points on the board. Later in that game, on the ensuing play following a Grier interception, TCU scored on a 45-yard pitch and catch that coaches said afterwards they knew was coming. There’s seven more points that could’ve been kept off the board.

Games against Texas and Virginia Tech turn into wins if uncontrollable things don’t happen.

Against the Longhorns, it’s simple: If Grier doesn’t go down the Mountaineers likely win the game. To be fair, Texas had been playing a number of close games against teams that were using their starting quarterback. Defeating the Hokies, I argue, would’ve happened if that was the second game on the schedule instead of the first. That would’ve given all the new pieces on offense a game to jell, and would’ve given Marcus Simms the chance to play in the game, both of which would’ve made a big difference.

  1. Winless in the “big ones”

Not beating Virginia Tech leads into the final point of why 2017 wasn’t a success for WVU.

Each game counts and is important, but obviously some are more important than others. Half of West Virginia’s schedule was played against ranked competition. WVU went 2-4. Neither then-ranked team WVU defeated finished the regular season in the polls.

The rivalry game against the Hokies: loss.

“ESPN GameDay” game against the Horned Frogs: loss.

Home game against the Cowboys: lopsided loss

Season finale against the Sooners: lopsided loss.

As detailed above, two of those games easily could’ve turned into wins.

West Virginia has proven to be capable of beating Oklahoma State in the past, but still needs to find the right recipe for beating Oklahoma. Being winless in big games isn’t a problem unique to this year’s team, it’s been an issue for the Mountaineers for years. Though, given how close the Mountaineers were in at least two of those games, not changing the narrative is why not winning the “big ones” hurts.

BLOG: With Oklahoma, WVU preparing for multiple QBs yet again

November 25, 2017 by Ryan Decker

West Virginia will aim to do something it has not done since joining the Big 12 – beat Oklahoma – and do so without its starting quarterback.

Chris Chugunov leads the Mountaineers (7-4, 5-3 Big 12) into Norman to take on a fourth-ranked Sooners (10-1, 7-1) team that already knows it’s playing in the Big 12 title game next week. But that doesn’t mean Lincoln Riley’s club can let their foot off the gas. A home loss to an unranked WVU team could knock the Sooners out of the race for one of the four coveted spots in the College Football Playoffs.

For the third week in a row the Mountaineers have to game plan for two different quarterbacks, but they’re mostly planning to defend Heisman candidate Baker Mayfield.

Murray, then Mayfield

It’s not known how long he’ll be on the sideline, but Mayfield is not starting the game at quarterback. Instead, that will be Kyler Murray.

Murray gets the start due to Mayfield’s actions last week against Kansas, though he possesses a number of the same skill sets that Mayfield has. Murray is an athletic quarterback that can be successful through the air and on the ground. But make no bones about it, once Mayfield enters the game after his disciplinary time out, the offense is his.

Mayfield’s numbers

With Mayfield controlling the offense, the Sooners lead the country in a multitude of stats including total offense, yards per play and plays of 20-plus yards. WVU head coach Dana Holgorsen himself highlighted that the Sooners average 8.3 yards per snap in his meeting with the media Tuesday.

“They’re really good, offensively – the most efficient team I’ve seen in a long time,” Holgorsen said Tuesday. “I’ve never seen anybody average 8.3 yards a play over the course of 11 games.”

Mayfield, OU’s numbers versus WVU

Mayfield has lit up the Big 12 during his three years as the starter for the Sooners. However, his numbers haven’t been fantastic against the Mountaineers.

In his two games against West Virginia, Mayfield has only completed 57.5 percent of his passes and is averaging just 244.5 passing yards per game. Both of those numbers are much lower than his totals against other conference foes.

A majority of his damage against the Mountaineers came in the 2015 meeting in Norman, when the Sooners won 44-24 early in the season. In last year’s 56-28 drubbing in Morgantown, the loaded Oklahoma backfield did a lot of the work, amassing over 300 yards on the ground.

A look at the Oklahoma defense

The Oklahoma defense hasn’t been great, but it’s been getting the job done.

The Sooners rank towards the middle of the Big 12 in a number of defensive categories, including scoring, total, rush and pass defense. They are, however, better than the Mountaineers, statistically, in all of those categories except for pass defense, though the difference is just 10 yards per game.

Schematically, the Sooners don’t appear to be too different from what West Virginia faced last week in Texas, according to Holgorsen. One area that Mike Stoops’ defense has not been excelling at all in is red zone defense. The Sooners are eight in the Big 12 and ranked 92nd nationally in stopping opponents once they get inside the 20-yard line.

Senior defensive end/linebacker Ogbonnia Okronkwo leads the Big 12 and is tied for 13th in the nation with eight sacks, and is second in the conference with three forced fumbles. He also has tallied 17 tackles for loss on the year and has registered at least one stop behind the line of scrimmage in every game.

BLOG: Holgorsen talks plenty about WVU quarterbacks

November 21, 2017 by Ryan Decker

Chris Chugunov’s tenure as WVU’s starting quarterback has begun in Morgantown.

West Virginia head coach Dana Holgorsen was asked multiple questions about the quarterback situation at Tuesday’s media session, including if it’s more feasible to try to tailor the offense to Chugunov or to try to tailor him to the offense that’s already in place. Holgorsen said the offense will change some, more so choosing the first option over the latter, but said the junior quarterback does have a lot of capabilities.

“He knows what to do,” Holgorsen said. “There wasn’t anything that he did last week that he didn’t know. He’s been here for three years.”

Holgorsen happy with Chugs

The head coach said he was pleased with the way his now-starting quarterback played in the place of the injured Will Grier on Saturday against Texas.

“I was happy with the way he competed last week,” Holgorsen said. “He went in there and competed his tail off. He got knocked around a little bit and kept getting up. He knew where to go with the ball. It’s just timing and reps.”

However, he did echo his statement from after the game, saying he wished the players around him on the offensive unit would’ve rallied around Chugunov better. He said the offense needs to step up and play above themselves to a degree in order to help Chugunov this week.

‘Oh crap’

That was how Holgorsen described the reaction of the team in the immediate moments following Grier sustaining his finger injury. He talked about that being the “human element” that took over the team for the second quarter, which is to be expected and is definitely understandable.

“I can’t just pinpoint just … our whole sideline was like, ‘Oh crap,’” Holgorsen said.

What do we have to lose?

The head coach posed this question Tuesday, with the answer being nothing. West Virginia isn’t expected to win Saturday – Oklahoma is currently a 22.5-point favorite and is given a 90.4-percent chance to win according to ESPN’s Football Power Index.

“I can’t remember the last time we’ve been in a situation (like this),” Holgorsen said. “What do we got to lose? Let’s go play ball. Let’s have fun. Let’s rally around Chugs. Let’s play our tails off.

“This season changes drastically if we go win this one. Nobody expects us to win.”

Thanksgiving Week

On a lighter note, Holgorsen said this is one of his favorite weeks of the year.

“It’s a football week,” Holgorsen said. “It has everything to do with just football and being with your football family.”

He said with school being out, and most students back in their hometowns, that there are fewer distractions and the team can focus just on football. Some players will go home Thursday, and those that aren’t close enough to be home with their family will be eating with teammates or coaches. This comes with the caveat that all players must be in their own beds Thursday night before the team heads to Norman on Friday.

Recruiting Opportunity

If there’s a positive outcome of not playing in the Big 12 title game next week, it’s that the WVU coaching staff can do more recruiting than they’ve been able to do the last few seasons at this time. Holgorsen said that based on the Mountaineers schedule over the past two years, that they’ve only had one week around this time of year to do recruiting.

This year, because of not playing in the conference championship game, and with the NCAA’s early signing period, Holgorsen said he and his staff has about three weeks to hit the road and talk to potential future Mountaineers and their families and high school coaches.

BLOG: WVU’s Big 12 title game chances slim, but still there

November 7, 2017 by Ryan Decker

No. 23 West Virginia’s (6-3, 4-2) win over then-No. 15 Iowa State Saturday evening accomplished a couple of things.

It arguably kept the Mountaineer season on the rails. It officially made WVU bowl eligible for this season. And it kept West Virginia alive in the chase to play in the Big 12 Championship game.

Although it’s a slim chance that you’ll see the Old Gold and Blue playing in “Jerry World” on Dec. 2, it’s still a possibility as we enter the final three weeks of the season.

A number of things need to go the Mountaineers’ way for it to happen, and it all starts in house.

The first part of the path is simple: WVU needs to win out. That means defeating Texas at home in two weeks and doing two things West Virginia has not done since entering the Big 12 – winning at Kansas State and winning at Oklahoma.

In the meantime, WVU will need some help.

Big 12 Standings

The Mountaineers don’t own the tiebreaker against either TCU or Oklahoma State, but now obviously do against the Cyclones, and will need to against Oklahoma to play in the Big 12 title game.

West Virginia will also need the Sooners to lose at least one more game, the more likely option being this weekend against TCU. The Horned Frogs can’t provide much help other than beating Oklahoma, though that’s a tall enough task on its own given the game’s in Norman.

Oklahoma State’s loss in Bedlam helped some, but Gundy and company will have to go the extra mile to help the Mountaineers. That means losing this week in Ames – something that isn’t out of the question given previous meetings between the two, and the season that the Cyclones are having.

WVU also needs the Cowboys to fall to Kansas State or Kansas in the final two weeks of the season.

What WVU needs to happen

All of those outcomes would put Gary Patterson’s squad as the top team in the conference at 11-1, 8-1. West Virginia would then follow with a 9-3 overall record – the same as Oklahoma – but the Week 13 win in Norman gives the Mountaineers the better conference record (7-2 as opposed to 6-3) and the tiebreaker for good measure.

OU would then finish fourth behind Iowa State, meaning Baker Mayfield, Mason Rudolph, and others sit at home, while Kenny Hill and Will Grier duel it out in AT&T Stadium.

screen-shot-2017-11-05-at-7-54-13-pm

Despite being a virtual home game for TCU, Mountaineer fans should want to see the Horned Frogs in the title game more so than other conference foes for a few reasons. Had WVU not gotten in its own way when the two teams played earlier this year, WVU may very well have won the meeting in Fort Worth. Not only that, but TCU’s offense is the least explosive of the teams atop the Big 12.

Also, much like how during basketball season it’s extremely tough to beat the same team three times, it’s tough during football season to beat the same opponent twice. That means OU comes back with a vengeance against the Mountaineers if that would be the title game, or WVU is the one getting payback against the Horned Frogs.

It’s a small chance, but there’s still a chance that West Virginia can play for the Big 12 title. A lot of things need to go the Mountaineers way, but as crazy as the Big 12, and college football in general, has been this year, it can’t be overlooked.

Big 12 Stock Evaluation

September 18, 2017 by Ryan Decker

Non-conference play is a good litmus test for teams and conferences to see where they stand against their competitors.

Only four Big 12 teams – Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU and Texas Tech – remain undefeated through the first three weeks of the season, meaning their stock is in good shape.

On the other end of the spectrum, Baylor (0-3) is the only Power-5 team to have played two or more games that remains without a win, and with its upcoming schedule including at least two ranked opponents, you couldn’t sell its stock to anyone if you were an owner.

As for the rest of the conference, their stock remains somewhat in question. But here are a few answers.

Texas – Sell Now

Texas is back? It’s a question asked for a few years now that seems to have an answer, but comes into question on a semi-weekly basis.

The Longhorns looked good against USC Saturday, but are still not “back,” which is why you should sell.

After a bye week, Tom Herman’s club hits the road to take on an Iowa State team that knows it should be undefeated at this point. Following their trip to Ames, the Longhorns must face Kansas State, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.

Stiff competition could bring out the best in Texas, but the program’s fourth 1-2 start in the last five years and the schedule that looms suggests otherwise.

Texas Tech – Buy Cautiously

In just two games, Texas Tech’s offense has put up 110 points and new quarterback Nic Shimonek is just 73 yards short of 1,000 passing yards. The post-Patrick-Mahomes-era is off to a good start.

The Red Raiders will look to move to 3-0 this weekend at Houston, but starting there things get tricky. The Cougar defense is giving up less than 10 points per game so far.

Next up is Oklahoma State, another quality defense. A trap-game trip to Kansas follows. Kliff Kingsbury’s offense will be tested over the next two weeks.

If you’re in a buying mood, take a look at the Red Raiders, but re-evaluate after Saturday.

West Virginia – Buy

Dana Holgorsen’s offense has been gaining yards at a frantic pace over the first three weeks of the season, and is coming off back-to-back 50-plus point performances.

The offense has been clicking and should continue to this weekend against the Jayhawks. The defense has not been as fluid, but potentially three consecutive weeks of a point differential of 30 or more looks good on paper, at least.

West Virginia will then have a week off to prepare for a trip to Dallas to face a ranked Horned Frog team.

Buy the Mountaineers for this reason: The schedule is still very manageable at this point. WVU should be no worse than 5-2, potentially 6-1, heading into its home game on October 28 against Oklahoma State. With that being the case, there is going to be a good return on investment for when the schedule strengthens up.

Oklahoma – Buy it all

The Sooners rank as the 12th-best defense in the Power-5 in terms of points allowed.

Oklahoma has already played what looks to be its toughest test until November, and Baker Mayfield has been one of the best quarterbacks in the country thus far.

With it looking more likely than not that the Sooners will enter the Bedlam rivalry undefeated, you should be all in on Oklahoma.

 

Ryan Decker’s Big 12 Football Predictions: Week 2

August 29, 2017 by Ryan Decker

Much like in the first week of the season, Week 2 in the Big 12 features one marquee matchup, and a number of very winnable ballgames.

Week 2 Matchups

Friday, Sept. 8 — Oklahoma State at South Alabama

Saturday, Sept. 9 — Charlotte at Kansas State

East Carolina at West Virginia

Iowa at Iowa State

San Jose State at Texas

TCU at Arkansas

Central Michigan at Kansas

Oklahoma at Ohio State

UT-San Antonio at  Baylor

Biggest Game

A rematch from last year’s drubbing in Norman will put new head coach Lincoln Riley against one of the best in the business in just his second game at the helm when Oklahoma travels to Columbus to take on Ohio State.

Potential Upset

Depending on what goes on in Week 1, TCU could be a ranked team heading into it’s game against the Razorbacks in Arkansas. Arkansas downed the Horned Frogs last year in Fort Worth, and were 5-3 in home games a year ago.

Earlier in the day will be a matchup in Ames for bragging rights in the Hawkeye State. The Cyclones likely won’t be favored, but a program that’s been improving over the last two years may have what it takes.

Winners

OK-State (55-13); K-State (35-20); WVU (40-19); ISU (24-21, OT); Texas (50-10); Baylor (38-7)

Losers

TCU (32-35, 2OT); Kansas (22-25); Oklahoma (38-45)

Standings

T1. OK-State 2-0

K-state 2-0

WVU 2-0

Texas 2-0

Baylor 2-0

Iowa State 2-0

  1. TCU 1-1

Kansas 1-1

Oklahoma 1-1

  1. TTU 0-1

Big 12 Notebook – August 10

August 10, 2017 by Ryan Decker
AP photo
AP photo | Hey guys, Tom Herman isn’t jazzed about his team’s special teams play, either.

 

With football teams across the Big 12 landscape heading towards the midway point in fall training camp and practices before the start of the 2017 season, there are a number of points to go over.

But here are a few of the biggest notes from camps are some of the contenders in the conference, and one saddening note from off the gridiron.

Tom Herman, Texas HC

  • One similarity between WVU head coach Dana Holgorsen and Texas head coach Tom Herman’s media availabilities this week have been the importance of special teams. The Longhorns fell victim to four blocked kicks last year, which Herman said was, “unacceptable.”

“One blocked kick on the year, whether it be a PAT, field goal or punt is too many, and the stats back that up,” Herman said to reporters.

  • Herman’s first year in Austin should be highlighted by his quarterback Shane Buechele, offensively. However, the running back position could be a potential issue if no one emerges as the true lead back, as is the case so far according to the head coach. He did say, though, that’s OK as long as multiple tailbacks are putting in good work in practice.

“Would you like a guy to really, really separate himself? Yeah,” Herman said. “But if they don’t, but they’re all playing to an above-average to a winnable level, then I think that’s a good thing.

Texas is replacing the Big 12-leading rusher from a year ago D’Onta Foreman.

Oklahoma State

  • The Cowboys have been said by just about all college football experts to be one of the two best teams in the Big 12. Sports Illustrated recently went as far as to predict that Mike Gundy’s team would be one of the four to make the College Football Playoff. If that were to happen, OK-State would be the second team from the conference to make the CFP.

Both Gundy and his senior quarterback Mason Rudolph said it’s good for the program to get that sort of national attention. But, Gundy did say Rudolph and some of the other senior leaders have been a big help to him managing team expectations.

Oklahoma

  • Defensively there has been a shift in the scheming in Norman. The Sooners have made the change from a 3-4 to a 4-3 base defense, and even though it hasn’t been deployed in a regular season game yet, Oklahoma players appear to like the change.

“Honestly I just feel more free because there are fewer guards getting to me fast and more holes to fill,” senior linebacker Emmanuel Beal said to reporters Tuesday. “It allows us linebackers to play faster.”

Texas Tech

  • The Red Raiders are mourning the recent loss of incoming freshman Luke Gonsioroski, who passed away Monday after battling cancer.