The Fat Lady's Not Singing Yet!

There's still a reasonable chance WVU can make the field of 64. Sitting tied for 6th in the BE, there are 4 teams that have a chance to pass them in the standings. (Cincinnati, Pitt, Syracuse, and Villanova) If we can finish 3-1 with the loss being to UConn, then the 4 teams behind us should all expect to finish 10-8, one game behind us. That would place us in sole possession of 6th place and a win in the BE Tourney should be enough to seal a bid. If the loss comes to Pitt, however, or if we finish 2-2, then we're looking at a 7th or tied for 7th place finish and we would likely need to win two games or at least be extremely impressive in the BE tournament. Pitt plays Louisville today and a Louisville win would be a huge boost.

And congratulations to Tennessee in taking over the #1 spot in the next poll. I wonder how long it has been since the Men's BBall team has been ranked higher (#2) than the Women's (#3) and the football team (#12).

I Hate to beat a dead horse

I recently read this article on MSN Sports net. http://msnsportsnet.com/page.cfm?story=12264&cat=special One particular thing stuck in my head that Bill Kirelawich said. Here's an exert:

Kirelawich has tried to downplay all the drama and controversy that has come with the recent coaching change, recognizing instead that the coaching business is by nature a nomadic existence.
“In the coaching profession, in the best of times you’re going to make enemies. There are going to be people who for whatever reason, don’t like what you do, what you say or how you coach,” Kirelawich said. “That’s true no matter what level you’re on. Over time, a lot of times people feel like they have to leave just to stay ahead of it.”

Although he doesn't specifically say it, I get the feeling this is very insightful as to Coach Rod's style and the nature of his ego. Stay ahead of the trouble! His style wears on people until things finally start to crumble around him. Perhaps Rod leaving is a blessing in that Stewart can build upon his success without wearing on others. I think he's put together the staff to do it.

NIT Bound?

With our performance last night against Villanova, it's looking like another NIT visit. That was a must win game. We still lack a good road win and haven't proven worthy of making the tournament. With our 5 remaining games, we'll probably end up with 21 wins and a first round matchup with the likes of Syracuse, Pitt, or Villanova in the Big East tourney. An early exit there and we have no chance of making the dance.

When does spring football start?!

NJ Tilts go Mountaineer's Way.

After some heart-breakers in previous weeks the Mountaineer roundballers came to play against the NJ schools. With these two wins the win tally is inching toward the 2o mark. More importantly they are getting nearer and nearer to the seeding necessary to have some early round success in the Big East Tourney. Let us hope these winning ways can continue.

Ingram, Collington, Holmes arrested

These three players were unfortunately pulled over by the Morgantown po-po during an expedition to seemingly, allegedly, distribute tiny 1-gram baggies of cannabis to party-goers for profit. It seems from the reports I've read that there wasn't a large aggregate amount of grass involved, but there are felony charges due to it being packaged in a form incongruent with personal recreational consumption (baggies in the shoe).

I have several thoughts on this matter. Assuming that these charges result in the dismissal of all three players, the results will be clearly bad for the football team, although not necessarily devastating. These guys are all solid backups who were likely to get significant playing time this year. So it's somewhat bad news from a football perspective.

From the standpoint of the players, this was stupid. Whatever profit margin you can gain from reselling an OZ is not worth risking a D-I scholarship and even an outside chance at getting on an NFL practice squad or roster. The math just isn't there. Lets say they bought an ounce of weed for $100. Then they resell it in gram bags for $20 each. They're going to make less than $400 in profit to split three ways, while assuming a great deal of risk and going to a lot of trouble. Not smart.

And finally, Morgantown, like every other college town in America, is awash in weed. It's not a big deal. They may as well just legalize it and tax it. Maybe that way Monongalia county could acquire they funding they need to build their precious new roads instead of trying (and failing- props to my brother) to garnish the paychecks of everyone who works there.

Coach Stew takes action against the players:
“These three players are dismissed from all aspects of the Mountaineer football family,” Stewart said. “The players will retain their scholarships through the end of the academic school year, pending the legal process.”

Letter of Intent Day is upon us...

Well to the college football enthusiast this day is Christmas morning. You have the opportunity to size up the incoming class and determine whether the school is moving forward, standing still, or sliding backwards. For this college football mountaineer maniac it is very much like opening gifts. As each letter of intent is faxed to the school and confirmed on the various news-sites and message boards I sit back and get excited. It looks like this day will bring great news indeed to the Mountaineer faithful. 1st off the it appears that in the lottery for the Scout.com number 1 rated offensive lineman has been won. That is right my faithful readers Josh Jenkins is suppose to sign his letter tomorrow. As was confirmed in a Parkerburg newspaper article. "Jenkins was the first West Virginia high school player to be invited to play in the nationally televised U.S. Army All-American Bowl, where he was a member of the victorious East squad. It was his performance there that solidified his rating as the No. 1 offensive guard in America, as rated by Scout.com, an online recruiting information service. Jenkins most recent honors came when he was named a first-team, all-American by USA Today and Parade magazine. Jenkins is known around the PHS football camp for his leadership skills — he was one of Parkersburg’s captains — and for his intensity in the weight room and on the field. Stewart and Holliday made the signing of Jenkins — a five-star recruit and the top in-state player — their No. 1 recruiting priority. Their hard work has paid off with the biggest commitment WVU has received thus far and one in which anxious West Virginia fans across the Mountain State finally can rejoice."

In addition to that fantastic news WVU will land the younger brother of the greatest QB in WVU football history. Scout.com *** Coley White will be joining his big brother Pat in the Gold and Blue. "We have learned that Pat White's brother Coley has decided he will attend West Virginia University next year. His High School Football coach Glenn Vickery has confirmed this and says Coley will sign his letter of intent to attend WVU Wednesday morning." -WBOY-TV

This post will be updated throughout the day as information becomes available. To the extent I can post biographical details on the signees I will try to do so. I would ask any of the authors to please begin to opine on the class of 2008. GO EERS!!! It should be noted that Coach Stews Press-or is scheduled for 3:00 tomorrow. It will be streamed on WBOY's website.

Signees thus far Source MSNsportsNet.com website:

John Bassler, 6-5, 285, OL, New Windsor, Md., 7:22 am; Jorge Wright, 6-3, 260, DL, Miami, 7:30 am; Bernard Smith, 6-2, 220, DL, Atlanta, 7:35 am; Jeffrey Braun, 6-5, 315, OL, Westminster, Md., 7:41 am; Donovan Miles, 6-2, 225, LB, Stafford, Va., 7:47 am; Joseph Madsen, 6-4, 270, OL, Chardon, Ohio, 8:03 am; Tyler Urban, 6-4, 240, TE, North Huntingdon, Pa., 8:07 am; Ryan Clarke, 6-1, 25, FB, Glen Burnie, Md., 8:18 am; Chris Palmer, 6-4, 290, DL, Philadelphia, 8:20 am; Jerome Swinton, 5-9, 160, CB, Daytona Beach, Fla., 8:28 am; Tyler Bitancurt, K, 6-0, 180, Springfield, Va., 8:37 am; J.D. Woods, WR, 6-2, 180, Naples, Fla., 8:30 am; Josh Jenkins, 6-5, 305, OL, Parkersburg, W.Va., 9:07 am; Ja'tavious Miller, 6-1, 210, LB, Pahokee, Fla., 9:14 am; Robert Sands, 6-6, 205, S, Opa-Locka, Fla., 9:42 am; Brantwon Bowser, CB, 6-0, 180, Phoenix, Ariz., 10:07 am; Larry Ford, DE, 6-5, 240, Georgetown, S.C., 10:08 am; Corey Freeman, DL, 6-3, 220, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, 10:53 am; Coley White, 6-1, 175, QB, Daphne, Ala., 12:04 pm; D.J. Shaw, 6-1, 290, DL, Bude, Miss., 12:06 pm; J.J. Dorsey, 6-0, 180, CB, Winchester, Va., 12:55 pm; Tevita Finau, 6-5, 290, DL, Phoenix, Ariz., 3:15 pm; Courtney Stewart, 6-3, 220, S, Chandler, Ariz., 3:15 pm;

Welcome home all.
Da Geek

College Football 2008 How does this schedule look?

As Super Tuesday begins and the eve of LOI day commences we shall look through the looking glass at next years contests. Clearly we better fill some holes for we will have nothing short of an incredible gauntlet run to come through next season unscathed. Coach Stew and the boys will have a rather tough road to hoe this coming season. Any pendants that believe we don't have "strength of schedule" will have a tough time supporting the same. Nova appears to be the only "bad" team on the lot. Our road tests will be severe at times. We have to face the Pirates in North Carolina; the "big" Buffs in Boulder; the Cards at the Ville; an upstart UConn team in Storrs/Hartford; and a Panther team that beat us at our house in Pittsburgh. The home slate is looking rather appealing if not daunting as well: We start off with Nova and we get to play that other buffalo team from Huntington, a still beleaguered Cuse team but other than that a solid crop of teams including an out of conference blockbuster with Auburn clashes with the Scarlet nights and revenge time against the yet another cow team from South Florida and arguably our toughest test at home against Cincinnati late in the season.

Date: Time: Opponent: Site: TV:

08/30/2008* TBA Villanova Mountaineer Field

09/06/2008* TBA at East Carolina Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium

09/18/2008* 7:45pm at Colorado Folsom Field ESPN

09/27/2008* TBA Marshall Mountaineer Field ESPN/ESPN2

TBA TBA Syracuse Mountaineer Field

10/23/2008* 7:45pm Auburn Mountaineer Field ESPN

TBA TBA Rutgers Mountaineer Field

TBA TBA South Florida Mountaineer Field

TBA TBA Cincinnati Mountaineer Field

TBA TBA at Louisville Papa John's Cardinal Stadium

TBA TBA at Connecticut Rentschler Field

TBA TBA at Pittsburgh Heinz Field

*Non-Conference Game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Hope Springs

The loss to Cincinnati was a major setback. Not only in the respect that it was a home loss to an inferior opponent, but because it was such a lopsided victory, the committee could possibly use the performance to exclude us from the tournament if we end up a bubble team. I was very pleased with the response on the road against Providence on Saturday. We started slow but responded with a 17-2 run to end the half and overcome a 12 point deficit. The second half was more of the same and we were able to pull away comfortably for the win. Though Providence has been struggling (3-6 in BE), after losing to the Bearcats, this was a must win if we are to have any hope at making the NCAA Tourney.

So here we are halfway through the conference schedule in a 3-way tie for 7th. Of these 9 teams that still have a legitimate spot at making the NCAA's (Villanova could also still be included), we are 2-3 versus those teams. We will likely need to finish the BE at 7-2 and win a game in the BE tourney to have a chance to make the NCAA's. Last year's team finished 21-8 (9-7) prior to the BE postseason and was overlooked for the Tourney. A 7-2 finish would have us at 23-8 (12-6). Though 12-6 would be considerably better than last years 9-7, we didn't have any bad home losses last year and we beat #2 UCLA and #9 UCONN. We only have one significant win this year (Marquette). If we slip to 6-3 in the last half, we will likely have to win 2 games in the BE tournament to be considered. It seems to be a task that will be extremely difficult, but if we can win the next on at (sh)Pitt, we may find the confidence needed for such a strong finish.