Big East announces television slate for league this year in Basketball.

I know, I know it is football season but it was released today so I thought I would let you know:
For all of the BE games click on BigEast link.

• WVU vs Kent State November 15, 2011 at 10:00 am.  ESPN
• WVU at Mississippi State Big East SEC Challenge December 3, 2011 9:00pm ESPNU
• WVU vs. Kansas State Dec 8, 2011  at 9:00pm ESPN2
• WVU vs. Miami December 10, 2011 at 7:00 pm ESPN2
• WVU vs. Bailor  Las Vegas Classic Dec 23, 2011 9:00 pm ESPN2
• WVU at Setan Hall December 30, 2011 TBD ESPN2
• WVU at UConn January 9, 2012 at 7:00 ESPN2
• WVU vs Cincinnati January 21, 2012 TBD ESPNU
• WVU at St. Johns January 25, 2012 at 7:00 pm ESPNU
• WVU at Syracuse January 28, 2012 at 1:00pm ESPNU
• WVU vs. sPitt January 30, 2012 at 7:00pm ESPN
• WVU vs Notre Dame Feb 8, 2012 9:00pm ESPNU
• WVU vs Louisville Feb 11, 2012  Noon ESPN
• WVU at sPitt Feb 16, 2012 at 9:00pm ESPN/ESPN2
• WVU at Notre Dame Feb 22 at 7:00pm ESPN2
• WVU vs Marquette Feb 24 at 9:00 pm ESPN

Note all times Eastern additional games may be added later.

All and all an incredible slate of televised games coming this winter. 


The entire schedule is posted to the left.

Da GEEK

Texas A&M is has now officially informed the Big 12 of its intention to leave.

After days and weeks of speculation the inevitable happened.  aTm has decided to forgo its membership in the Big 12 for a membership elsewhere (all signs point to SEC).  The official statement includes the following: "After much thought and consideration, and pursuant to the action of the (Texas A&M University System) Board of Regents authorizing me to take action related to Texas A&M University's athletic conference alignment, I have determined it is in the best interest of Texas A&M to make application to join another athletic conference," President R. Bowen Loftin wrote to Big 12 Commissioner Dan Beebe in the letter dated August 31, 2011.

"We appreciate the Big 12's willingness to engage in a dialogue to end our relationship through a mutually agreeable settlement," Loftin added. "We, too, desire that this process be as amicable and prompt as possible and result in a resolution of all outstanding issues, including mutual waivers by Texas A&M and the conference on behalf of all the remaining members." Translation... We have wanted to leave for weeks now thanks for letting us do this on the most cheap.  We (aTm) don't really care a lick about the Big Texas conference and can't wait to get the hell out of dodge.   May University of Texas burn forever. 

As a result the dominoes may begin to fall with conference realignment.  What are the ramifications for WVU?  Well I see three real possibilities.   I will place them into order of likelihood.

1. WVU remains a member of the Big East with that conference picking up the remaining Big 12 pieces, after it is finally pummeled and plundered by the Pac 12 and Big 10/11/12etc.  That or the Big 12 and Big East for a football only alliance to preserve both.
2. WVU receives an invitation to become a member of the ACC.  This would be appealing to me if Va Tech, and Florida State were to remain in the conference.  I would also hope that the ACC extended invites to sPitt, Cuse, and UConn.  I would love the natural fit of this conference in terms of rivalry games and geography would fit.  
3. WVU receives an invitation to become the 14th member of the SEC.  Wow you say how can this happen?  It can happen because the SEC will want to balance the schedule and their wish list will narrow down quickly.  The likely teams they desire are  Missouri, Va Tech, Florida State, NC State, UNC, Clemson, West Virginia, and sPitt among others.  I know we fall down that list a great deal but due to the fact that those other teams are likely staying put or looking for other homes WVU very well could be the team the SEC decides to take.  Were this to happen I would be pretty darned excited.

So how do you see this going down?

Da Geek

Marshall

Just doing a little bit of research. So Marshall has 9 of 11 back on Def including Vinny Curry. For those of you who don't know, he's a projected 2nd rounder in the upcoming draft. He'll also be matched up against....well, I don't know yet. The coaches haven't decided who sucks less, Eger or Spain. Maybe that's unfair for a r-sophomore and a r-freshman, but the coaches really haven't pulled any punches with their displeasure at this spot. This match up causes me great concern. The last thing we need is Geno running for his life all night or worse, injured.

As a result, I expect a lot of short passes or running backs chip blocking on release routes. I know Holgorsen likes to stretch the field vertically as well as horizontally but this could be the limiting factor.

WV comes into the game as a 21 point favorite. Two things I don't like to bet on: my sentimental favorites and rivalry games. I'm avoiding this one altogether.

That being said here's some other things I expect to see:

Tavon Aston catching short passes and dancing through the secondary.

Stedman Bailey catching a long TD ball.

Turnovers...on both sides. Probably from sacks and fumbles but at least 1 Mountaineer interception.

A WVU defensive score, probably on said sack/fumble.

Tyler Urban posting up in the middle like Kevin Jones.

Freshman tailbacks making me say, "Did you see that?"

I expect Marshall to get an early field goal.

I expect WV to struggle for a quarter, quarter and a half.

I expect WV to score often in the 2nd quarter

What I don't want to see:

Injuries, we really can't afford them.

Turnovers-see above.

3 and out, 3 and out, 3 and out....makes for a tired Def and mental offense, not to mention fan base.

In other words, I expect this to be a run of the mill closer game than it should be with WV winning/pulling away in the second half.

Thoughts??

Greg

The rumors of the Earth-Quake being a Bruce Irvin hit are completely overblown.

That being said, I wouldn't want to be a QB that faces WVU this year.  WVU is blessed with a 1 2 punch of Irvin and Miller.  While Miller is currently on the mend there doesn't appear to be any reason to fret.  But what of the rest of the defense this year?  I assure you that our offense will score points.  Likely we will be able to outscore the vast majority of our opponents.  But to be a 10 or better win team I think we need the defense to prove to be reliable. 

We are solid in the Middle with Mr. Goode. We are set at the left Corner in Keith Tandy and we look to be pretty solid at safety in Garvin but how are we as a whole.  One issue of concern as was first opined on by the Signal Caller in a twitter post, is that our offense even if successful will by its nature keep our defense on the field an inordinate amount of time.  We are going to need to be not only in shape but also smart about our play-making.  This team looks to be more of a turnover producer than one that will cause a lot of 3 and outs.  Of course Jeff Casteel maybe has a trick or two up his sleeve to get the "D" off the field with more alacrity.   I do think that our Pass "D" will be stellar.  It faces our offense on a regular basis so those skills will be honed.  My concern and the concern of many I have spoken with is that of getting quality reps against a standard up the middle rush attack.  How will  this D perform against that kind of push.  We are clearly going to be smaller than we were last season.  I believe that the game-planning of apposing teams will include holding onto the ball as long as possible to keep it out of the hands of our play-makers.  Thus, our "D" needs to learn and adapt quickly.  I think that sound tackling is a key for a young "D"'s success.  If we have that and if we can make some plays we could have a very special season.  I am getting excited to feel the ground shake soon as the Irvin Miller express unload upon the opposition.

Da Geek

Sorry for my long absense. Da Geek has been under the weather.

To my loyal readers I apologize for my long absence. I have been dealing with some ailments that have prevented my necessary attention to this blog.  I realize many things have happened since my last post.  WVU got another commit, conference expansion silliness out of control and WVU football camp is in full force, and the WVU Men's Basketball team is in Italy.  My hope is to explore all of those topics in the very near future.  Suffice to say EER football is on the way.  I hope all EER nation is doing well.

Da Geek

Make that 17... Another Receiver decides to give his verbal to WVU!!!

Darreal (Dee) Joyner a 6' 1" 170 lb., Miami Central HS receiver decides WVU is going to be his new home.  This would be the 5th receiver commitment of this class.  He had an offer from Illinois as well.  Does one think that Holgorsen offense recruits itself.  I think that we are doing just fine this year in terms of generating a pre-season interest in our program.  Welcome Home Darreal!!!  This has been a fun and appropriate day to give props to KENO as he has once again broken the recruiting story.  (See Below)

Da Geek

WVU Football Recruiting Class balloons to 16 commits over the weekend.

Noble Nwachukwu a 6'2" 240 defensive tackle from Wylie, TX was recruited by Roberts and yet again Coach Roberts comes back with a verbal.  Mr. Nwachukwu is looking forward to being a part of a dominant WVU defense.  He had offers from Houston, Kansas and Memphis among others.  With yet another defensive lineman in the fold it is becoming apparent that this class is going to address several needs.  Welcome home Noble!!!

Tony Matteo a 6'5" 280lb center from Akrin Ohio.  He pushes 360 from the bench and 450 from the squat.  None to bad for an incoming frosh.    He won't be called upon quickly if all goes well, but he will have time to develop into an even more impressive specimen hitting the weights and working with the conditioning coaches, by the time he begins to snap the ball for the Eers.  Among his other offers are Pitt, Cincinnati and UConn.  Welcome home Tony!!!

Sam Lebbie an inside line-backer from DeMatha in Hyattsville, Maryland.  He stands at 6'2" 240 lbs. adding more depth at this position in this already impressive class.  He was recruited by both Jeff Casteel and Daren Roberts.  Ironically he was recruited also by Chris Beaty now of Vanderbilt.  He had offers from Vanderbilt, Illinois, and Cincinnati among  others.   Welcome home Sam!!!


This class just gets more exciting every day. It has filled out so nicely and as Keno said in the previous post.  A great season should make the class as impressive in February as well. 

DaGeek

Keenan Cummings of WVSports.com (Yahoo Sports), a must read for Mountaineer Football Recruiting

Keenan Cummings aka (KENO) does most of the recruiting related posts on WVSports.com.  He was a Graduate of the West Virginia School of Journalism and has been passionate about Mountaineer Sports all of his life.  I have found his information to be both entertaining and informative.  If he makes a call on a recruit it usually is spot on.  He has been proven a reliable source of information.  I simply will not post a recruiting commitment on here, until I see that he has first confirmed it.  I don't need to be first on this blog but I do like to be accurate.  Keenan's information is reliable and accurate.  He develops the relationships with the players and coaches and utilizes those relationships to make analyze talent and make calls on commitments.  I don't think that your reading is complete in this arena as a Mountaineer fan until you have read what "KENO" has said. I did a Q and A with Keenan to discover a little more about where he is coming from.  It is as follows:

Da Geek:     From there to here what steps did you take to become a WVU recruiting beat guru?

Keenan:   Guru is a strong word, but seriously I've always had an interest in recruiting, especially West Virginia's efforts for as long as I can remember.  I've followed our recruiting for a long time and my interest has only grown over the years.  I graduated from West Virginia with a degree in news-editorial journalism and found a job at a newspaper right out of school. But I've always known my passion is in West Virginia sports, so when the opportunity arose I was both thrilled and excited. It was kind of like a dream come true for me. 

Da Geek:     Do you read other websites and blogs concerning WVU sports?

Keenan:   As a fan I try to keep an eye on what's going on elsewhere, but a lot of the information is from the networking and the relationships that you quickly build in this field. It definitely isn't the days of old just surfing the net to find out information. 

Da Geek:  Relationships with college athletes is key to closing the deal I would guess that is the same for recruiting networks?

Keenan:        This is the most important thing in the business, especially with recruiting.  The misconception is that just because you're in a position such as mine that these high school athletes will roll over to take a call from you.  That is just not the case. These kids are taking calls everyday and the process can often become overwhelming for them. It takes a lot of hard work and relationship building and you really get to know the kids and their families. And although I'm just asking them objective questions in interviews, its the times you talk to them about the everyday things going on in their lives such as they got a good grade in school or had a good game, that makes the interviews particularly rewarding. 

Da Geek:  I have been on the WVSports.com for what seems like forever and I have been very impressed with your work this summer.  Have you been enjoying yourself?

Keenan:   Thank you and that really does mean a lot to me when people say that, because that's what we do this for is the readers.  I'm loving life right now.  Like I said earlier, this is kind of a dream position for me at this point in my life, so I'm enjoying the opportunity to cover and provide news on the West Virginia Mountaineers.  Definitely working hard, and I've been busy, but I really enjoy what I'm doing. 

Da Geek:   What is your Twitter handle?  

Keenan:    WVSportsDotCom, that's the sites.  Do not have a personal one at this point.  

Da Geek:   Has Vernon Bailey been treating you well?

Keenan:     Vernon and I have a great relationship. We're either talking or bouncing ideas off each other everyday. We're both very excited about the direction of the site and are looking forward to continuing to bring the best coverage available.

Da Geek:     This summer you have spoken with (it seems like everybody) the recruits... who has really impressed you in terms of dedication and determination to bring a National Championship to Morgantown?  

 Keenan:     Really this might seem like the 'stock' answer, but all of our recruits have mentioned that as the ultimate goal.  Our commitments have been very energetic and are really excited about both the coaching staff and the direction of the West Virginia program.

Da Geek:     I have been really impressed with Coach Roberts this summer who on the coaching staff has been impressing you in terms of recruiting?

Keenan:     All of the coaches have been doing a great job building relationships and recruiting thus far. But two that have really impressed me are Robert Gillespie, and like you mentioned Daron Roberts.  All of these coaches targets go out of their way to mention the comfort level these coaches provide, and the family feel that they promote. 

Da Geek:     Do you see this class closing out at signing time as it seems to be opening at verbal time?

Keenan:       Yes, a big season will only aid that fact.  This class has the potential to be very successful, especially if the team has the success that's expected from it.

Thanks To Keenan for giving me some of your valuable time.  I should point out that WVSports.com has been a link from this site since its inception.  You may directly link to it from the link to the right.

Happy reading.... Let's Go Mountaineers!  
Da Geek