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BLOG: WVU-Iowa State Report Card — A solid outing

November 5, 2017 by Ryan Decker

A second win of the season over a Top 25 team isn’t something that often comes in Morgantown. It’s the first time that’s happened since 2012.

This is now just the fifth time in the last 16 seasons that the Mountaineers have picked up at least two wins over ranked teams in the regular season. And it’s a win that might not have happened had it not been for multiple defensive stops in big moments.

The defense rising to the occasion at the right times will help its grade, but what about the rest of the team?

Here is the WVU report card for this week.

Offense – C+

It was great seeing Justin Crawford running healthy in the first half. His explosiveness was back, he was making good cuts, and had it not been for multiple times he being dragged down by his jersey, Crawford could’ve been well on his way to a big day.

Will Grier was efficient, just throwing five incompletions, and once again eclipsing 300 passing yards against a stingy Iowa State defense.

Receivers had a bounce-back game after a disappointing performance against Oklahoma State.

Play calling was also much improved Saturday.

Things weren’t all great on the offensive side of the ball, though. West Virginia didn’t score in the second half. Not one point.

They also left some points on the field, having to settle for field goals three times in the first half, one of which was missed. Granted Iowa State’s defense has made a habit of being a much stronger team, defensively, after halftime than before, but WVU continuing to only be truly productive on offense for one half at a time is still an issue.

Defense – B+

A goal line stand early in the third quarter ultimately made the difference.

Stuffing the Cyclones twice inside the 3-yard line, and holding them to a field goal not only kept the lead at seven for the Mountaineers instead of three, but defensive coordinator Tony Gibson said that it kept momentum on WVU’s side.

To then hold the Cyclones to a field goal in the red zone in the fourth, and then force a turnover on downs later in the period proved to be the difference in the outcome of the game as well.

The defense played well for a majority of the game. A few of the committed penalties were unnecessary. However, the Mountaineers excelled most of the game at making Kyle Kempt uncomfortable, which coming in didn’t seem to be possible.

Some points were taken away for poor tackling that, at times, aided David Montgomery on a number of his runs, allowing him to gain more yardage than he should’ve.

Overall, though, it was a good day for the defense, especially since they were shorthanded due to injuries.

Special teams – B-

Another good performance out of the special teams unit.

Billy Kinney appears to be returning to form. Two of his three punts pinned the Cyclones inside the 20-yard line, including one that was downed at the three.

Evan Staley did a fairly good job once again filling in for the injured Mike Molina, making two of three field goals.

Kickoff coverage wasn’t as good as it’s been over the past two games, but punt coverage performed well.

Linemen – B

It wasn’t a great day, statistically, for the guys in the trenches, but they graded well on the eye test.

Starting with the offensive linemen, they did a much better job at keeping Grier upright. He did have to scramble some early on, but that lessened as the game progressed. Giving up six tackles for loss isn’t great, but that isn’t all on the O-line.

Switching to defense, they only registered one sack (a huge hit by Ezekiel Rose), and only four tackles for loss were collected on the day.

However, the defensive line performed well. They were physical and, even if they themselves weren’t getting to Kempt, they were creating holes for other players to do so.

The boys up front answered the call to be more physical.

Overall – B

West Virginia played well for the most part.

This wasn’t your average Iowa State team. The Cyclones were big, physical and also quicker than some may have expected.

WVU didn’t completely succumb to the second-half let down, and overall played one of its better games of the year despite the low score.

Saturday’s contest was one that many were saying was going to decide the rest of the season for the Mountaineers, who now have good vibes entering the final three games.

BLOG: Mountaineers face surprisingly strong Iowa State

November 4, 2017 by Ryan Decker

Possibly one of the biggest surprises of this college football season has been the success of Iowa State (6-2, 4-1).

The Cyclones enter Saturday’s matchup with West Virginia (5-3, 3-2) as the No. 15 team in the College Football Playoff Rankings, one of four teams from the Big 12 ranked inside the Top 15. While Iowa State’s playing some of its best football of the season, the Mountaineers are coming off their third loss of the year to a ranked team.

Before kickoff comes, here’s a look at the Cyclones.

Record Year in the Making in Ames

Last weekend’s victory over then-No. 4 TCU was Iowa State’s second win of the year over a top-five team. That doubles its career win total against such opponents, who ISU was a combined 1-54-1 against entering the season. The Cyclones are also 3-0 on the road this year and have won four-straight road contests dating back to last year. Iowa State’s last five-game road winning streak was in 1960-1961. The 4-1 start to conference play is also the program’s best start against conference foes.

History versus the ‘Eers

West Virginia owns a 4-1 series lead against the Cyclones dating back to the first meeting between the two in 2012.

Iowa State’s lone win against WVU came in November 2013 in Morgantown in a triple-overtime game. In last season’s meeting, running back David Montgomery ran for 141 yards but was outdone by West Virginia’s Martell Pettaway’s 181, as he led a banged up WVU ground game en route to a 49-19 win in Ames.

Balanced game plan

Since making the switch from Jacob Park to Kyle Kempt at quarterback, the Cyclones have become a very balanced offense when it comes to play calling.

Over that time, Kempt has attempted no more than 35 passes in a game, while Montgomery has gotten a healthy dose of carries out of the backfield. However, this doesn’t mean the production has been balanced. Iowa State’s ground game has been held to under 100 yards in two of the last four games, while Kempt has eclipsed 200 passing yards in all but one game.

Tall on the Outside

Like WVU head coach Dana Holgorsen and other coaches mentioned on Tuesday, Iowa State’s wide receiving corps has a height advantage.

Looking at the depth chart, six of Iowa State’s pass catchers (receivers and tight ends) are listed at 6-foot-4 and above. Eight out of 10 are listed at 6 feet or taller. This includes senior Allen Lazard, who is ISU’s career receptions leader (209) and paces this year’s team in catches (39), receiving yards (477) and touchdown catches (5). Lazard stands at 6-foot-5, which is at least two inches taller than any of listed WVU defensive backs on that side of the field.

Joel Lanning factor

Much like Lazard, senior LB/QB Joel Lanning has been playing in Ames for a while.

Yes, you read the position correctly, Lanning not only is the starting linebacker for Jon Heacock’s defense, but he also has lined up as a quarterback and run the ball for the Cyclones offense this year. Lanning leads the team with 87 total tackles.

The senior played quarterback in high school, and given that he has some experience at the QB position in college, but performs very well at another position, some could make the comparison between him and David Sills V. Holgorsen himself drew that comparison earlier this week, talking about how Lanning can dissect offenses quicker than some defensive players based on his knowledge from playing that side of the ball.

Defense wins

The Iowa State defense has been playing some of the best football in the conference, as a unit, as of late.

In its last 14 quarters played, ISU has surrendered just 27 total points, seven of which came on a kickoff returned for a touchdown last Saturday. The Cyclones have been especially good after halftime in Big 12 play, giving up just 24 combined points in the second half during its five conference games. Iowa State leads the Big 12 in scoring defense since conference play began, holding every offense its played to at least 10 points below its season average.

On the year, the Cyclones have surrendered the second-fewest total points

Closer look at the ISU D

Lanning paces Iowa State’s defense in tackles, but no one in Ames is better at getting into the backfield than J.D. Waggoner. Waggoner’s 8.5 tackles for loss is a team-best, and his 2.5 sacks give him a total of 11 stops behind the line of scrimmage.

Marcel Spears Jr. has been around the ball plenty this season. He ranks second on the team in tackles and is among the team leaders in tackles for loss. The linebacker also a pair of interceptions, and three pass-breakups.

As a unit, the Iowa State defense has picked off ten passes and picked up seven fumbles. The 17 turnovers created is part of the best turnover margin (+10) in the Big 12.

BLOG: Holgorsen talks toughness

October 31, 2017 by Ryan Decker

Mental and physical toughness dominated the talking points for West Virginia head football coach Dana Holgorsen on Tuesday at his weekly media session.

Holgorsen has been on record for several weeks, saying that his team hasn’t been physical enough at times. That came to a head on Saturday when after the game he said Oklahoma State was simply more physical than the Mountaineers.

Tuesday, though, mental toughness was also a sticking point. Holgorsen took ownership, saying, “If the whole team was not in the right frame of mind, mentally, that’s 100 percent on me.”

Here are some other news and notes from Tuesday.

Determination factor

Along with the physical and mental toughness, Holgorsen talked about the determination he hopes he sees in his team this week, both from players and coaches.

“I’m as anxious as anybody to see the determination of our team.”

Another Top 15 team

Saturday’s game against No. 14 Iowa State will be West Virginia’s fourth game against an opponent that’s spent at least one week ranked inside the Top 15, and fifth total game against a ranked foe.

“Nothing like facing another Top 15 opponent,” Holgorsen said.

Change in QB, Change in success

Four weeks into the season Iowa State was sitting at 2-2 after a tough loss to Texas in which it had opportunities to win.

Since then, as Holgorsen stated, the Cyclones made a quarterback change – inserting Kyle Kempt into the starting role – and, “since then they’ve been playing so good.”

“(Iowa State’s) playing well as a full team.”

Tall on the outside

One challenge that will be presented for West Virginia on Saturday will be the height of the Cyclones’ wide receivers.

Looking at the depth chart, six of Iowa State’s pass catchers (receivers and tight ends) are listed at 6-foot-4 and taller. Eight out of 10 are listed are 6 feet or taller.

An experienced bunch

Iowa State has a pair of players on its roster in Allen Lazard and Joel Lanning that have seemingly been in Ames since WVU’s arrival in the Big 12.

But they aren’t the only ones.

The Cyclones are planning on starting 15 upperclassmen Saturday, with more experienced players waiting in the wings.

BLOG: WVU defense trends in the wrong direction

October 30, 2017 by Ryan Decker

Through the first five games of the season, West Virginia’s defense was much stronger in the first half than in the second.

Some of that has to do with the opponent; some of it has to do with the offense building such a big lead in the first half that the defense was able to take its foot off the pedal in the second.

Whatever the case, in Games 1 through 5 of this year’s campaign, WVU’s “DAWGS” were giving up just 8.6 points per contest in the first half, while loosening up in the third and fourth quarters and surrendering 17.8 points per.

The trend has shifted from there, and it’s coming at a bad time.

Granted, playing better offenses like Texas Tech and Oklahoma State, the Mountaineer defense has gotten two times worse in the first half in terms of points (19) over the most recent three games. It has gotten worse in the second half, too, giving up just over three touchdowns on average after halftime (21.3 points).

Why does this matter?

Iowa State.

The Cyclones have also shifted – on offense – being forced to change quarterbacks, which has led to a points shift.

With Jacob Park under center, the Cyclones were seven points per game better in the second half. Now, with Kyle Kempt at QB, the Cyclones are a first-half offense but have still been potent post-halftime.

It breaks down to, with Kempt running the show, ISU scoring 18.8 points per game in the first half and 13.25 points in the second.

With West Virginia’s defense getting statistically worse in the first half, and the Cyclones getting better in the opening two quarters, the possibility looms of another opposing team jumping out to an early lead on WVU’s home turf.

Iowa State’s offense has also been scoring at a higher rate outside of Ames.

WVU will need more than just David Long, as was largely the case this past weekend, this Saturday to stop Iowa State from continuing its impressive season.

 

WVU Report Card: Oklahoma State

October 29, 2017 by Ryan Decker

A rainy day had little to no silver lining on the football field Saturday as the West Virginia Mountaineers (5-3, 3-2) dropped out of the rankings once again due to its 50-39 loss to Oklahoma State (7-1, 4-1).

The loss not only looked bad, but came at a bad time with an extremely tough schedule coming up for WVU.

But before the Mountaineers can look ahead, let’s look back at Saturday one last time.

Offense – D-

Play calling was bad. The running game was non-existent. Receivers weren’t turning around and locating the football. Will Grier threw four interceptions as part of a five-turnover day for WVU.

Yeah, not much went right.

Head coach Dana Holgorsen was noticeably and understandably upset with his offense post-game. He said he was somewhat exaggerating when he said the unit had, “12 three and outs.” In reality, WVU did that five times. However, it did have ten possessions that lasted three plays or fewer.

Outside of 68-yard touchdown pass to Marcus Simms, West Virginia couldn’t hit on any big plays.

The offensive line continues to underperform.

If looking for a positive here’s one: WVU became the first team this year to throw for multiple touchdowns against the Oklahoma State defense.

Defense – D+

Thank goodness David Long was on the field or OK-State may have hit 70.

Long, playing in just his fourth game this year, made 18 tackles, seven of which were for a loss – a school record.

West Virginia gave up over 200 rushing yards for the third time this season, 142 of which was given up to JD King, who entered the game averaging just 43.3 yards per contest. Mason Rudolph was held under 300 passing yards for the second straight game. Some of that can be credited to WVU’s defense, but a lot of that can be credited to the rain and the Cowboys’ success on the ground.

Not getting a single stop on fourth down is concerning, as is only getting one sack.

Long himself keeps the defense grade from being any lower, and he deserves a big round of applause.

Special teams – A-

The debacle by the special teams unit at TCU must’ve been the wake-up call that group needed. Since then, this group has been playing well.

Saturday extends the streak to three straight games that WVU’s special teams outplayed its opponent’s. Evan Staley and Billy Kinney played well while Mike Molina nursed a hip injury suffered in Friday’s practice. Marcus Simms still seems to be finding his footing in the return game, though is making strides.

Meanwhile, the Mountaineer gunners and tacklers did a fairly good job of keeping Oklahoma State’s returners contained, and not giving up any big plays to a return unit that has not fared well this season.

And you can’t forget the blocked punt in the end zone, which helped change momentum for the time being in the third quarter. That was a big-time play.

Linemen – D+

The offensive line wasn’t nearly physical enough. Holgorsen said it himself after the game.

Grier was under constant pressure, which has been a theme over the last few games, and they didn’t hold blocks well for the running game.

Offensive line play was bad.

On the defensive side, the output was disappointing considering that OSU’s O-Line was banged up entering the game. Even with a few starters returning for the Cowboys, the line wasn’t 100-percent and should’ve been susceptible to more pressure.

With that said, it’s naïve to think Long and the linebacker crew doesn’t get into the backfield without a little help from the D-Line. But, a little help was all they got.

Overall – C-

Holgorsen’s comments were, “It’s about to get real uncomfortable around here.”

It’s unclear exactly what that means, but what is clear is that there’s a lot to work on this week in practice.

With only five full days separating now and another Top 15 team coming to Morgantown in Iowa State next weekend, there’s no time to waste.

Holgorsen Press Conference News and Notes

October 24, 2017 by Ryan Decker

No. 22 West Virginia (5-2) is riding a two-game winning streak, with both wins involving fourth-quarter comebacks – one by the Mountaineers, and one against the Mountaineers that the Baylor Bears almost pulled off.

When asked about the recent comebacks, head coach Dana Holgorsen said they’re learning experiences that “give us confidence,” based on the fact that WVU has come out on the right side of the comeback both times.

“You go into that point up 25, to be in the situation we were in it’ll teach you a lot,” said Holgorsen.

Here are some other notes.

Oklahoma State worth the hype

Holgorsen and the rest of the Mountaineers that were available to the media Tuesday referred to No. 11 Oklahoma State as a top-10 team. Obviously, their ranking puts them just outside the top 10, but WVU believes the Cowboys are one of the ten best teams in the nation.

“They’re a good team. They’re an outstanding program,” Holgorsen said. “Offensively (they’re) as good as you’re going to see.”

He highlighted quarterback Mason Rudolph’s ability to throw the deep ball, and the Cowboys’ deep wide receiving corps that’s highlighted by James Washington.

Holgorsen admitted that the Mountaineers “got our work cut out for us on offense” based on what he said may be the best safety tandem they’ve seen this year in the Cowboys’ Tre Flowers and Ramon Richards.

Offensive coordinator Jake Spavital said, when asked about Oklahoma State’s defense, said the Cowboys like to keep everything in front of them, acknowledging that’s one of the biggest reasons they’ve only surrendered four passing TDs this season

Defense getting better

Despite giving up the points in the fourth quarter, Holgorsen felt good about the way the WVU defense played Saturday in Waco for the first three quarters.

He said his team simply “got gassed” in the final period.

“I thought we took a step in the right direction at stopping the run, they had minus six yards through three quarters,” Holgorsen said. “But then we got tired.”

Running Pains

The head coach said he wished they would’ve given the ball to Kennedy McKoy more with Justin Crawford not carrying the load against Baylor.

Crawford appears to be banged up and/or slightly worn down, but Holgorsen said he’s getting treatment and that those bruises come with the position.

According to the head coach, McKoy looked better than he had all year on Saturday.

Benton’s Improved and Productive

Asked about Al-Rasheed Benton’s improvement, Holgorsen praised the production that the team’s getting out of Benton.

“Probably the smartest player I’ve coached on that said of the ball,” he said. “Defensively, he’s off the charts intelligent.”

Holgorsen referenced it, and Tony Gibson confirmed, that Benton’s “production points” (a measurement of a player’s productivity on the field) are as high as any defensive player in Holgorsen’s tenure.

Noon Game Dilemma

October 23, 2017 by Ryan Decker

Fans hate them, media members tolerate them, and the football team thrives on them.

That’s the status of noon games at WVU.

All three home games played thus far have kicked off with both of the clock’s hands pointing straight up, as will this weekend’s game against No. 11 Oklahoma State.

Admittedly, it’s not fun getting up that early for games. However, they do have their merits.

Noon games allow college football fans to get going early (which some were going to do anyway) and give the opportunity to watch a game in person and then head out and catch the rest of the day’s action wherever you please.

As a lot of media members agree, the noon games are a necessary evil because we get done working at 5 p.m. instead of around or after midnight for later-scheduled kickoffs.

It’s for these reasons, and more, that many celebrated the Big 12’s announcement on Monday that No. 22 West Virginia’s Week 10 contest at home against No. 25 Iowa State will start at 3:30.

Looking past sleeping in a little later on a Saturday, and looking at the record on the field, maybe Mountaineer fans should be rooting for more noon kicks.

 

  Noon Afternoon (3:30) Evening (7:30/8)
2017 4-0 0-1 1-1
2016 3-1 6-0 1-2
2015 4-2 2-1 2-2
2014 4-0 2-4 1-2
2013 3-2 1-3 0-3
2012 3-0 3-4 1-2
2011 3-1 4-0 3-2
TOTAL 24-6 18-13 9-14
Win % 80% 58% 39%

 

During the Dana Holgorsen era, the Mountaineers have thrived on early kickoffs, winning 80 percent of those games, including winning five out of eight against ranked opponents.

That, of course, came to fruition two Saturdays ago when WVU knocked off Texas Tech at Milan Puskar Stadium at noon.

After that, things become less of a sure thing with afternoon games.

WVU made great use of 3:30 kickoffs last year, going a perfect 6-0, but in years before, afternoon starts haven’t been kind to the Mountaineers.

Even less friendly are night games. For whatever reasons, West Virginia has not fared well under the lights.

WVU has an 0-10 record against ranked teams in contests that start in the dark since defeating Texas 48-45 in 2012.

Night games are great for creating atmosphere; 3:30 kickoffs please just about everyone, and WVU has had success in them; but despite the early rise, noon games might be the best option.

 

Report Card: Texas Tech

October 15, 2017 by Ryan Decker

In what was truly a tale of two halves, West Virginia (4-2) pulled off its second largest fourth-quarter comeback ever Saturday to defeat No. 24 Texas Tech 46-35, ending a nine-game losing streak to ranked teams that dated back to 2014.

As you can expect, being that it was two very different teams on the field for the Mountaineers between the first and second halves (really the first three quarters and the fourth) the report card won’t be great.

 

Offense — C

This is the lowest grade the offense has gotten this year.

Will Grier was great, as always, completing 78 percent of his passes for five touchdowns, four of which came in the second half.

But the running game was practically non-existent.

Neither team finished the first quarter with positive rushing yardage, and the Mountaineers didn’t stay in the positives until late in the third quarter.

Two reasons stick out as to why, one that will be addressed here, and the other in another section.

The first is play calling.

Albeit, it is common for teams to abandon the run when trailing like WVU was, but for Justin Crawford to only carry the ball 14 times is odd.

And it highlights a trend that’s been growing over the last few weeks — West Virginia going to him early in the game and then going away from him for much of the first half.

 

Defense — D+

If not for a complete turn around in the fourth quarter, this group would’ve failed the test.

Missed tackles, bad coverage, not being able to recognize the opposing quarterback staring down his receivers, absolutely no push up front.

The troubling part was that early in the game Texas Tech wasn’t taking many chances down the field. It was a lot of screens and slants near, or behind, the line of scrimmage that turned into decent gains.

As we’ve seen before this year, though, the defense knows what time it is in the fourth. And you have to commend them for stopping one of the top offenses in the Big 12 when it mattered most.

However, giving up 190 yards on the ground to Texas Tech is disheartening. Texas Tech may be an improved team at running the ball, but to allow a team built around throwing the football to run it that well is sad.

You want to think a game next week against lowly Baylor could lead to some needed fixes, but that was the consensus heading into Lawrence, Kansas and it was not the case.

 

Special Teams — B-

It’s a good feeling to go a full 60 minutes of football and not see a kick-out-of-bounds penalty.

No missed field goals. Only allowing two yards on punt returns, and being better on kick return coverage all showed signs of improvement.

Compared to the lack of execution by Texas Tech and the Mountaineers special teams unit looked good.

You would like to see Marcus Simms be able to have better return lanes, especially when back to receive punts, but Texas Tech’s punt unit seemed faster than most.

West Virginia loses a full letter grade by allowing the long run on the fake punt. You could see it coming a mile away; Tech didn’t hide their intentions well yet it was defended even worse.

 

Linemen – D-

I won’t spend too much time here because it’s obvious to everyone. Line play is just not good.

Grier was sacked four times and was forced to move out of the pocket many others. Texas Tech also racked up five tackles for loss. On the other side, WVU was only able to register two sacks and four stops behind the line of scrimmage.

Offensive line play is the other reason I alluded to earlier as to why running the ball was so poor. The O-Line couldn’t get any push. Crawford is without a doubt the best running back in the Big 12, but he needs to have somewhere to go in order to help move the ball, and that wasn’t given to him Saturday.

 

Overall – D+

It was an amazing comeback despite a poor game played for three quarters, and Dana Holgorsen said that after the game. The Mountaineers have to be more consistent for the full four quarters if they want to continue to win ball games, especially with the meat of the schedule looming.

Holgorsen Press Conference News and Notes

September 26, 2017 by Ryan Decker

With West Virginia having this weekend off from game action, only head coach Dana Holgorsen spoke at Tuesday media availability. He started off on a somber note, confirming that Brendan Ferns will miss the remainder of the season with a shoulder injury that required surgery.

The head coach said that Ferns was, “Probably our most solid special teams guy.” He is likely to miss six months and be back from spring practice.

Here are some other takeaways:

Options, Feelings with Ferns

Asked about the possibility of whether or not the program could redshirt Ferns for the remainder of the year, Holgorsen said it’s an option but something they’re going to wait on.

It’s the second-straight season he’d suffered a season-ending setback.

It was also easy to tell that Holgorsen felt bad for, and appreciates, Ferns and what he’s meant to the team.

Getting Healthy

Despite Ferns’ injury, the head coach feels good about where the team is, health-wise, saying, “We’re as healthy right now as we have been all year.”

The bye week only helps the team continue to get back to as close to full strength as possible.

Holgorsen said that this week and next they’re going to start shuffling guys around on defense as they get players back, with David Long’s name being mentioned.

The Hogmollies

Holgorsen seemed very pleased by the performance of his offensive line Saturday.

“Pressure was limited,” said the head coach. “I thought we pass protected pretty good. I thought we ran blocked pretty good as well against a decent front.”

On the flip side, he was not happy with the production from his defensive linemen, outside of Lamonte McDougle.

“He’ll probably be playing more.”

Slip and Slide

Asked about quarterback Will Grier’s ability, or lack thereof, to slide when escaping the pocket, Holgorsen said it’s something he needs to work on.

He added, laughingly, that Grier is simply bad at falling or sliding down, saying he might need to bring baseball head coach Randy Mazey over to teach sliding technique.

On the plus side, Holgorsen has consistently commended his QB’s abilities inside the pocket and knowing when to escape.

WVU returns to action next Saturday, on the road at TCU.

Mountaineer Pick ‘Em Results

August 18, 2017 by Ryan Decker

By Ryan Decker

Major Harris, Noel Devine and Tavon Austin headline the fan version of the best Mountaineer football team.
Major Harris, Noel Devine and Tavon Austin headline the fan version of the best Mountaineer football team. Graphic created 

Wednesday’s post gave Mountaineer fans a task they were up for: create the best WVU football team possible using $15 of fictitious money.

The responses were great, and the suggestions for additions of Marc Bulger, Jeff Hostetler and Stedman Bailey are duly noted if I ever try this again.

Here are a few takeaways from the process:

  • Major Harris edged out Pat White by two votes, while Noel Devine beat his former teammate Steve Slaton by one vote, and Tavon Austin got just four more votes than Kevin White.
  • Austin tied Bobby Bowden for the highest percentage of votes (42%) for a single player or coach. They were only outdone by the 2007 defense, which collected nearly half the votes.
  • The top vote getters at each position – Major Harris, Noel Devine, Tavon Austin, the 2007 defense, and Bobby Bowden – collectively create a team within the price range, and actually leave two dollars to spare.   However, not a single person picked that exact team.
  • The combination of P. White, Devine, Austin, 2007 D and Bowden was picked by two different people, as was the team of P. White, Slaton, K. White, 2007 D and Bowden.
  • Biggest surprise: The great Don Nehlen only received two votes.
  • Favorite answer: A commenter by the name of “ML” created a team that only cost him $14, and he said the “extra dollar goes to Stewart’s charity.” Despite it being fake money, it was a great sentiment.

Below you’ll find the final results from all the entries.

QB RB WR DEF HC
P. White   33% S. Slaton   28% T. Austin   42% 1996 D   19% D. Nehlen   5%
G. Smith   12% A. Zereoue   14% S. Gibson   <1% 1988 D   9% D. Holgorsen   16%
M. Harris   37% N. Devine   30% K. White   33% 2015 D   14% R. Rodriguez   19%
S. Howard   9% A. Cobourne   21% D. Saunders   2% 1982 D   9% B. Stewart   19%
R. Marshall   9% R. Walker   7% C. Henry   23% 2007 D   49% B. Bowden   42%