Big East Football Preview '07: West Virginia

West Virginia and coach Rich Rodriguez have been building over the past seven years from a team that went 3-8 in 2001 to two top 10 pre-season rankings last year and this. Like the building of this program, the offense has been building to one of the most dominant rushing and scoring offenses in the country. But with a defense that has been suspect, the team has not been able to make it over the hump and get to the national championship. Will the defense finally come together and make this a truly dominant team? That's what we'll be looking to find out this year and right now as we take a look at our second ranked Big East team, the West Virginia Mountaineers.

Why They'll Win

Any conversation about why the Mountaineers will win in '07 starts and ends with Pat White and Steve Slaton. Call them what you want, the dynamic duo, etc., they are the best one-two rushing combination in the country. If you're good, you can take one of them away, but not both.

White and Slaton are joined in the backfield by bruising fullback, Owen Schmitt. Who if you don't keep an eye on him, will be running down the middle of the field on a draw play, looking to take some poor defensive backs head off. And after you've been beaten and bruised by those three, slot receiver Darius Reynaud will show you that he is just as good in open space with the ball as anyone on the team on a reverse or wide receiver screen.

Despite the departure of offensive line coach Rick Trickett, the line returns three starters and should be more than adequate to create holes for the backs. And junior place kicker Pat McAfee returns after making 17 of 22 field goals and all 62 extra point attempts.

Why They'll Lose

The defense was good against the run last year, ranking 13th nationally, but the pass defense was nothing short of atrocious, finishing 109th nationally. And with the loss of the top two linebackers, Boo McLee and Jay Henry, as well as the departure of nose guard Pat Liebig and defensive lineman Craig Wilson, there are some holes to fill.

There is some talent on the defense. Eric Wicks returns at safety along with Quintin Andrews. And John Holmes moves from safety to outside linebacker as well as promising red shirt freshman linebacker J. T. Thomas. Along the defensive line, Keilen Dykes and Johnny Dingle return.

But until this defense proves that it can stop anyone from passing all over the field on them, they are always going to be a liability to the Mountaineers chances at a national championship.

How To Beat Them

This is a task that very few teams have been able to accomplish over the past few years. First and foremost, you can not fall behind on the scoreboard. West Virginia scored on their first possession in almost every game last year. No one has come back to beat this team, at least in the last two years. The offense is based on rhythm and speed, and when they get on a roll, it is very hard if not impossible to stop them. So controlling the clock and field position are absolute musts.

Teams that play straight up defense and don't crowd the line of scrimmage are just asking for it. West Virginia likes to get the defense flowing in one direction and make one block on the back side that will open up a huge hole. Having many defenders on the line of scrimmage helps to lessen this. But if you constantly over pursue, prepare to see Darius Reynaud going the other way on a reverse.

The defense has been very good against the run and very bad against the pass historically. You don't need to be able to gain huge amounts of yards on the ground, but you do need to be able to run enough for the defense to respect you. Teams like Louisville and Georgia Tech proved last year that you can use your passing attack to control the clock against this defense if you can pick up the blitzes. Which were too few and far between to mount much pressure in either one of those games.

How To Lose To Them

Play them in a night game at Morgantown for starters. I can't remember the last time West Virginia lost a night game at home. Maybe the '99 Virginia Tech game? Aside from that, get in a shootout. As I mentioned above, when the offense gets in a rhythm you might as well pitch it in.

Make stupid mistakes like penalties that keeps the offense on the field, or turn the ball over. Not so much last year, but historically West Virginia has won the battle of turnovers since Rodriguez came to Morgantown. And if you want to have any chance of winning, you can not turn the ball over. This only adds another couch to the fire.

You are not going to stop this team from running the ball. Only they can do that. If you don't respect the pass, you will before the night is over.

Prognosis

The Mountaineers won't tell you this in an interview, but this season all boils down to if they can beat Louisville on November 8th in Morgantown. There are three other games on the schedule that they will need to be up for and they are all on the road. The South Florida, Rutgers, and Maryland games are all games West Virginia can lose if they don't come ready to play. But all things being equal, those are games that should be won. And unlike last year when West Virginia limped to the end of the season, all of those games come before November.

And having said that, this team has huge expectations on it. Another 10-2 regular season will not be good enough. Talks of a national championship run have been lingering since the last second ran off the clock at the Sugar Bowl two years ago. Schmitt is a senior, and Slaton and White may not be back next year. If it's going to happen, it is going to happen this year. 12-0 wouldn't surprise anyone, but with the current state of the defense, most likely the Mountaineers are looking at an 11-1 season and a very nice bowl.