It's Gameweek! Orange Bowl Primer

Matchup:  WVU v Clemson


When:  Wed, 8:30p, ESPN


Line:  -3 Clemson


West Virginia Players to Watch:
Geno Smith, QB:  3,978 yards, 25 TD, 7 INT
Shawne Alston, RB:  354 yards, 10 TD
Tavon Austin, WR:  2,294 all-purpose yards, 7 total touchdowns 
Stedman Bailey, WR:  67 rec, 1,197 yards, 11 TD


Clemson Players to Watch:
Tajh Boyd, QB:  3,578 yards, 31 TD, 10 INT
Andre Ellington, RB:  1,062 yards, 10 TD
Sammy Watkins, WR:  77 rec, 1,153 yards, 11 TD
Andre Branch, DE:  78 total tackles, 16 TFL, 10.5 sacks


Storylines:


Welcome to the BCS, Dana.  You'll love it here...and the fans will love you even more if this becomes a constant.  Of course, it will be much more difficult when WVU moves to the Big 12, but for now the Mountaineers will be a force every year in the weak Big East.  Holgorsen did well to silence critics in year one, but by his own admission he'd tell you the team needs to get better.  There were certainly some inconsistencies in all facets of the game, but a strong finish propelled WVU into the Orange Bowl.  Now, how do Holgy's boys close out the season.


Shawne Alston, it's your time to shine.  Especially with the injury to Dustin Garrison.  Alston won't be the fastest guy out there, but the junior has been a very solid piece to Holgorsen's offense.  Alston does have 10 touchdowns this year, and is very effective on short-yardage.  Now they will look for Alston to hopefully break a few tackles and help WVU control the clock...and the scoreboard.


West Virginia's defense will be in a battle to try to slow down the tiger attack.  Clemson is more balanced than possibly any team WVU has faced this season, with elite plamakers at all the skilled positions.  Sammy Watkins might be the best receiver in college football, and he's a freshman.  Andre Ellington rushed for over a 1,000 yards this season.  Meanwhile, former WVU commit, Tajh Boyd has had a breakout year throwing for 31 touchdowns.  The Mountaineers may have to sacrifice some aggression if things are slipping early.  If this is Jeff Casteel's final game has DC, let's hope it's his finest hour.  


What if we're all wrong?  What if neither offense shows up, and the game ends 10-6?  Or both defenses just dominate, and neither team scores 20.  That would be epic.  Hell, even Dabo Swinney thinks it's going to be a shootout.  So, whats the possibility of the unexpected?  Slim to none.  Don't be crazy, take the over.  

Orange Bowl Updates

Every few days we will try to provide you with stories and tidbits surrounding the Orange Bowl that will tide you over till gameday in early January.

Wait, Brodrick Jenkins and Sammy Watkins were high school teammates?  I haven't heard this yet.


J.D. Woods excited to play in Bowl and potentially start.


Alston to get the start with Garrison being injured.


Dana Holgorsen on the right amount of preparation.  


Hey, a WVU article from Big 12 country...sweet


Interesting take on WVU from the view of officials.  


Follow the press conference live this morning on the Orange Bowl Facebook page.

Big East Bowl Preview: Liberty Bowl

Cincinnati v Vanderbilt:  Zach Collaros will be back for the Bearcats, who would probably be getting ready for the Orange Bowl if he had never gotten hurt.  The Bearcats looked like the best team in the conference with Collaros healthy this season, and we'll see if he can shake off the cobwebs quickly against Vandy.  This is basically a home game for the Commodores that put together a pretty good year.  The offense continues to be a work in-progress, but the defense has been a rock.  The Commodores allow just over 20 points a game.  That's one of the best in the nation.  But, they are about to face an offense that is a bit more explosive than most of what they saw this season.  With Collaros back, it may open things back up for Isaiah Pead.  The Bearcats can be very balanced if Pead gets going early.  Look for Cincy to consistently go to Pead to slowly get Collaros back up to speed.  Meanwhile, the Bearcats defense will be going after it all day long.  The opportunistic unit has been under-appreciated all year, and should have some good success against an unexperienced line.  The Bearcats should control this game from the beginning if Collaros is truly healthy.  Vandy will try to win the time of possession, but could struggle to find space against the Bearcats' defense.  it's not every day you think a Big East team is better than an SEC team, but this is the case in this one.

Prediction:  34-24 Cincinnati

Big East Bowl Preview: Pinstripe Bowl

Rutgers v Iowa State:  The Scarlet Knights are essentially playing a home game against Iowa State later today.  Yankee Stadium will have plenty of Jersey boys screaming and yelling, and hoping for a big victory over Iowa State.  The Cyclones come in hitting one major landmark this season:  beating Oklahoma State.  The Cyclones offense isn't anything to write home about.  The running game is nearly last in the country.  The passing game is average.  And defensively, they allow more points than they score.  Iowa State just finds ways to win.  In fact, only one of their wins was by more than six points this year.  Rutgers should have a good opportunity to move the ball.  Unfortunately for the Knights, their offense isn't anything to write home about either.  Two young quarterbacks will see playing time, and will undoubtedly force the ball to best player, Mohamed Sanu.  Look for Rutgers to try and run the ball early, but not be afraid to open it up as well.  If the Knights can get on the board early it will truly put the Cyclones in a hole.  Iowa State isn't going to play well from behind, especially in what should be a hostile territory.  It will also be asking a lot for freshman quarterback, Jared Barnett to win the game for the Cyclones.  They will need help from the running game, as well as the defense.  Expect both offenses to struggle early, especially if it's a cold afternoon.  Too many mistakes from the Cyclones will allow Rutgers to take control.  And, by the 4th quarter a close game will open up with Rutgers receivers being to big of a mismatch.  The Knights win it.

Prediction:  31-21 Rutgers

Orange Bowl Updates

Every few days we will try to provide you with stories and tidbits surrounding the Orange Bowl that will tide you over till gameday in early January.

WVU has reached South Beach.  

Though, not all made the trip.

Meanwhile, Clemson is realizing why the Orange Bowl may be the best bowl. 

Cool story about the U of Miami will help the Orange Bowl preserve the its history.

Can Clemson help the ACC's reputation in BCS bowls?

Keith Tandy getting ready for a busy game.

WVU-Villanova Final Thoughts

A strong finish helped WVU pick up their first Big East win of the year.  The Mountaineers were paced by their upperclassman, once again, but the youngsters came on at the end to help WVU close it out.  The Mountaineers now have 10 wins on the season, essentially halfway to making postseason play.


Player of the Game:  Truck Bryant.  The most polarizing player on the team had a career day, finishing with 34 points, including many big buckets down the stretch.  Truck also played very good defense late, disrupting many plays.  Overall, a solid start to Big East play for Truck.


Play of the Game:  Kevin Jones Returning.  The team looked completely lost when KJ had to get stitches early in the second half.  Villanova took complete control of the game when KJ was out, and could have really built a lead.  Fortunately, the medical staff got KJ back to the floor as soon as possible.


Other Thoughts:


I loved the three guard set late.  The freshmen PG's matched up well together, and really opened things up for the Mountaineers.  The rebounding was a bit week, but overall it was a big hit.


Dominic Rutledge continues to improve.  Yes, he didn't play a whole lot last night, but the kid is starting to get it, and has shown flashes of what kind of offensive game he can bring.  


Kevin Noreen is like watching Cam Thoroughman on PCP...and I'm not sure that's a bad thing.


Seton Hall will be a true test tomorrow night.  They got embarrassed last night, and will be looking to avoid an 0-2 start in conference by any means necessary.  The first five mins is going to be a major factor for the Mountaineers.

Orange Bowl Updates

Every few days we will try to provide you with stories and tidbits surrounding the Orange Bowl that will tide you over till gameday in early January.

WVU to arrive in South Beach later today.


ESPN's Andrea Adelson looks back on Dana Holgorsen's wild year.


Clemson is looking to build for the future, and the Orange Bowl could be the springboard.


The Ballad of Tajh Boyd.  


Another update on the ticket sales.


Sure, the game is important, but at the end of the day it's South Beach, baby.