It's GAMEWEEK! WEEK 6 PRIMER

Matchup: West Virginia v Connecticut

When: Saturday, Noon, Big East Network

Line: WVU -20.5


WVU Players to Watch:
Geno Smith, QB: 1709 yards, 12 TD, 3INT
Dustin Garrison, RB: 356 yards, 7.9 ypc, 4 TD
Tavon Austin, WR: 35 rec, 480 yards, 1 TD, 1 Return TD
Terrence Garvin, S: 33 total tackles, 2 TFL, 2 INT

Connecticut Players to Watch:
Lyle McCombs, RB: 608 total yards, 5 total TD
Kashif Moore, WR: 16 rec, 220 yards, 3 TD
Jory Johnson, LB: 44 total tackles, 4 TFL, 2 INT
Kendall Reyes, DT: 18 total tackles, 9.5 TFL, 4 sacks
　
Storylines:

Big East play is here. What does this mean for WVU? Well, it should mean seven wins. Will it mean seven wins? Only time will tell, but if WVU plays to its potential I just don't see any of these teams beating the Mountaineers. But, that's why they play the game.

Has Dana Holgorsen finally found a primary back? For now. Dustin Garrison's coming out party against Bowling Green was outstanding. However, will his production continue? That's the question. Even if he slows, Shawne Alston and the other young backs should be there to pick up the slack. The holes are now there to take advantage of thanks to the improved offensive line.

Special Teams still an issue. Corey Smith needs to figure out how to consistently punt or he is going to be out of a job. And the coverage is worse than shaky. Only WVU can make 11 guys like like four in coverage. This has been an ongoing problem for the last five-or-so years. At some point you would think it would get better. Apparently not. Maybe its the Curse of Bill Stewart...who yes, used to coach Special Teams.

Can the defense slow down Lyle McCombs? It will probably be the objective. Much better to have Johnny "Trickshot" McEntee try to beat you than a solid rushing attack. McEntee hasn't been efficient this season, which could play right into the hands of the WVU secondary.

WVU-Bowling Green Final Thoughts

West Virginia improved to 4-1 with an impressive 55-10 win over Bowling Green. Dustin Garrison was the story, as the Mountaineer ground game destroyed the Falcons all game long. Too bad nobody was there to see it.

Most Valuable: Dustin Garrison. The kid was fantastic. In his first start, Garrison rushed for 291 yards and scored two touchdowns. He averaged over nine yards per carry, as West Virginia finally found a running game. The offensive line gave Garrison some huge holes, but the freshman showed plenty of skill to hit that hole, and strongly hit the second level. Look for Garrison to be the number one back moving into conference play.

Least Valuable: Corey Smith. Yes, this is a little picky, but WVU didn't have a lot of problems in this game. However, punting continues to be brutal. Smith only had one punt against Bowling Green, and it went a whopping 14 yards. In the last two games, Smith has two kicks of 14 yards, and one for 27. WVU continues to be last in net punting. This isn't much of a surprise considering the kick coverage is shaky as well.

Most Surprising: Um...hello...291 yards from Dustin Garrison. Sure, the ground game was going to get going at some point. But 291 yards from a freshman? Just fantastic.

Least Surprising: Weak Attendance. The stadium holds 60,000, but just 46,000+ were there to see it. Sure, the weather was poor, and the competition wasn't sexy. However, if Mountaineer fans want to be compared to the best, then that stadium needs to be filled for every game. And, once again, the students show their true pathetic colors, with scores of empty seats. Way to man up, students!

Play of the Game: Travis Bell Fumble Recovery. First kick of the game finally brought WVU its first fumble recovery of the year...in the fifth game of the season. Funny thing is Boo Boo Gates nearly got clear. If it wasn't for the Eain Smith strip, who knows how far Gates is running. The fumble set up a WVU field goal, and 52 points later, the Mountaineers called it a day.

Grades:

Quarterback: Geno Smith had a good day. Completion percentage was a bit low, but still made plenty of big throws to help WVU to the easy victory. Smith also went to the rush more often on the run/pass option. Apparently those choices worked well.

Grade: B+

Running Back: The group played well. Dustin Garrison was on fire, and Shawne Alston also went for two touchdowns. Garrison did lose a few balls, but the Mountaineers were lucky enough to retrieve them. But, rushing for over 300 yards makes you forget about those.

Grade: A

Wideout: The group wasn't used as much, but still solid when needed. There were a few drops, but really did fine in a rainstorm. The receivers also helped the ground game quite bit with decent blocking.

Grade: A-

Offensive line: The blocking was outstanding, as the balanced attack couldn't be stopped. Not one group has improved as much as the o-line.

Grade: A

Defensive line: Better pressure this week from the boys up front, creating sacks and turnovers. Needs to be more consistent.

Grade: B

Linebacker: Injuries forced some youngsters to play significant minutes, and did well. Tackling remains an issue, but the effort and intensity were there.

Grade: B

Secondary: Caused havoc on the Bowling Green passing game. Coverage was tight, and took advantage of every opportunity given. Three interceptions highlighted the big day.

Grade: A-

Special Teams: Tyler Bitancurt was perfect, but kick coverage and punting continue to be a huge issue. This group still needs major improvement.

Grade: C-

Coaching: No true complaints for the offense and defense. And, special teams problems may be more about players than schemes. The coaching staff seems poised for conference play.

Grade: A-

From the Blue Lot

Each week, Chris and Dookiestyle will answer questions about the Mountaineers upcoming game…

How big are Geno’s onions, really?

Dookiestyle - I wanna say they are huge, based on last week’s record breaker. But I think we’ll really find out the answer to that question this weekend against Bowling Green. Geno had big numbers against LSU, but also had a few turnovers.

If Geno can light it up again this weekend and lead this team to a huge victory after such a high emotion loss, I think we can classify Geno’s juevos as extra large and hop on his back to a BCS Bowl Game appearance.

Its all about how he handles this weekend though.

Chris - I think the onions are rather large and impressive. Smith has shown he isn't afraid to hang the pocket, and also moves well to the outside. The guy has had impressive drives late in games, great arm strength, and true leadership ability.

Does he need to improve in the redzone? Yes, but his quip from Bruce Feldman's piece earlier this week on cbssports.com says it all. Geno Smith walks by and heads back to the offensive staff room. It's 1:30 a.m. ET. More film?"Yep," he says. "Have to."

The atmosphere at a 3:30 game against Bowling Green will be very, very different than the atmosphere for a night game against LSU. Are Mountaineer fans fair-weather fans?

Chris - Yes in our view, mainly because we want to be LSU or Ohio State, and sellout every single game. However, having 55,000 to 60,000 a game is nothing to be ashamed of. The bigger issue is the student section. When it empties at halftime, the entire atmosphere of Mountaineer Field changes.

The new policy that doesn't allow you to come back seems to have paid off. Keeping seats filled for four quarters not only helps the atmosphere, but also looks good on television. Looking good on ESPN, MASN, SNY or whatever the station may be is more important than one may think.

Dookiestyle - I don’t think they are any more fair weather than other schools. Big games, especially night games, bring more people, more out of towners and more booze to the game.

Smaller opponent...smaller crowds, less out of towners and less time to get wasted.
Also, as prices for things at WVU sporting events skyrocket...you find less and less people from around the state that can come to every game. They’d much rather spend their money on Pitt, LSU, Marshall or another Big East game than to see Bowling Green.

Will WVU win the turnover battle?

Dookiestyle - I’m going with the law of averages here. They HAVE to at some point, right? This BG team is very young, and I have to believe our defense is going to be really on their game for the rest of the season. They basically got a full season’s experience last week.

I hate to overstate that, but we won’t play another team like LSU again this year, until we get to our BCS bowl. That will do wonders for both the offense and the defense. Time to rebound. Time to learn. Time to win the rest of our games.

Chris - Yes. At some point this team needs to force and recover a fumble. They haven't done it in four games, so you would have to think they are due. Same goes with pressure on the quarterback. Only one sack through four games is a disaster. The two can seemingly go hand-in-hand, so we'll see if that occurs.

It will also help if WVU can get up early on Bowling Green. This will force the Falcons to take risks down the field, which could play into the hands of the Mountaineers.

But, defensive leaders need to step up. Bruce Irvin, Julian Miller, and Keith Tandy have to start making plays for this young team.

WVU-Bowling Green Preview

West Virginia looks to get back on stride against a tough MAC team in Bowling Green. The Mountaineers continue to improve under new coach Dana Holgorsen, but how will they react off the first loss of the season? The Falcons are no pushover. Statistically, a very proven team already this year, Bowling Green will give everything they have at the Mountaineers. Will it be enough to hang with the high-flying West Virginia?

Offense:

West Virginia: The unit continues to make big strides. Geno Smith and the boys ended up gaining more than 500 yards against LSU. The team was 3-for-3 in the redzone, and even ran the ball well against the Tigers. As good as the skilled positional players were, the offensive line was the real story. The boys up front kept Geno on his feet the entire game, and also push around the big boys from Baton Rouge a little bit. Stedman Bailey, Tavon Austin, and Ivan McCartney continue to create havoc for the secondary, and Tyler Urban may be the new go-to in the redzone. Dustin Garrison may have emerged as the number one running back after his performance last week. Tempo has improved as well. The biggest problem for this unit is the mistakes. The team has to hold onto the football, and just play cleaner.

Bowling Green: The balanced offense has had a lot of success early on. Matt Schilz is one of the more efficient quarterbacks in the nation, having already thrown 14 touchdowns. His top targets, Kamar Jorden and Eugene Cooper will be tough covers for the WVU corners. Anthon Samuel has nearly 500 yards on the ground already, with a very impressive 7.0 average per-carry. The Mountaineers better have learned how to tackle if they want to slow this offense down. The line is good, but has been suseptable to the sack this year, allowing 11 in four games. The Falcons are also nearly 50% on third downs. Efficiency is the word.

Defense:

West Virginia: No pressure and no technique continue to haunt this unit. It's not a bad group at all. In fact, there's a lot of talent, including guys (Bruce Irvin, Julian Miller, Keith Tandy) who will play at the next level. However, this "unit" has struggled to play as one. In fact, it looks more like three units playing on the same field. That shoudn't come as a big surprise. This is a young group, which had many new parts coming in. Overall, they has been pretty good. They didn't give up a touchdown in the first two games, but struggled the last few weeks. The effort has been there, the technique has not. The line can't get a puss rush, the linebackers are not wrapping up, and the secondary look lost at times. They go up against another good offense on Saturday, so the spotlight will certainly be on.

Defense: The Falcons are allowing less than 20 points per game. This is one of the better numbers in the nation. Now, it's not against stellar opponents, but the bottomline is they're getting the job done. The line has done well to keep teams honest. The Falcons have consistently gotten to the opposing quarterback, and have done well against the run. That pressure has relieved a young linebacking unit. The secondary has done well, but haven't faced a passing attack like West Virginia's. It will be interesting to see how aggressive the Falcons play early against the West Virginia offense.

Special Teams:

West Virginia: Just a train wreck so far. Yes, Tyler Bitancurt has been fine kicking, and Tavon is a good return man. But everything else needs major work. Net punting is dead last in the country, tackling on coverage is shambolic, and blocking on returns isn't much better. Dana Holgorsen talked about this being potentially the major issue, and changes may be made before tomorrow's game. Mistakes from this unit can be a death sentence.

Bowling Green: The kicking game is strong. All averages are fine, including punter Brian Schmiedebusch's 49 per-kick. The return game has been fine, nothing huge. Look for Steven Dunlap to get most of the opportunities. WVU will have to not make any of these kids household names.

Overall: West Virginia is going to score. So, will the Mountaineer defense step up? Bowling Green will have to take risks to stay in this game, so look for WVU to play aggressivley to force mistakes...something that has eluded this defense so far. Expect a close game early, but just too much Geno and company will ultimately make the difference. Bowling Green will need the perfect game, which won't be the case. The Mountaineers make it big late.

Prediction: 49-24 West Virginia

Big East Preview, Week 5

Conference play opens up for the first time this year for the Big East. It's highlighted by another big Thursday night game that could push South Florida even closer to the Top-10. Or can Pittsburgh finally get their season rolling? On to the picks...

Last Week: 6-1

Overall: 24-6

Bye Week: None

Marshall at Louisville: The Cardinals are coming off a bye, with a whole lot of confidence. Louisville handled some adveristy in the last game, and took down not-so mighty rival, Kentucky. Young quarterback, Teddy Bridgewater played solidly after starter Will Stein went down. Stein may be out again this week, so look for Bridgewater and the running game to attack the Herd as much as possible. Marshall has been completely run over the last few weeks, so the Cards should have success. If the Herd stack the box, look for Bridgewater (or Stein) to go down the field. DeVante Parker and the boys should be able to beat Marhsall's secondary at will. Louisville has struggled to finish drives this season, but this is the kind of game that could change that. Dominique Brown being under center at times could also be another factor in finding more consistency in the redzone. It might stay close early, but the Herd just aren't scary enough to hang around.

Prediction: 29-13 Louisville

Cincinnati at Miami(OH): The Bearcats go on the road to take on a MAC opponent. It's been a strange year so far for Miami. Three games that could have gone either way have them as a scary 0-3 team. Have the Redhawks faced an offense like Cincinnati? Yes and no. They did play Missouri in week 1 and held them to 17 points. However, it was the first game of the year, when teams tend to be susceptible. The Bearcats' offense is clicking on all cylinders, and is coming off a dismantling of NC State. Cincinnati is now 4th in the nation in scoring, and shouldn't have too much trouble moving the ball this weekend. The only thing that could slow down the train is mistakes. The Redhawks will have to play opportunistic, which certainly could backfire...and probably will. This is just a solid matchup for Cincy. Expect another comfortable.

Prediction: 38-17 Cincinnati

Bowling Green at West Virginia: The Mountaineers fought LSU hard last week, but turnovers and tackling would be their downfall. WVU now faces a solid offensive team in Bowling Green, and better be ready defensively. Geno Smith and company should be able to move the ball on the Falcons, and look for the rushing attack to have their first big game. But can Bowling Green keep it close? Probably early on, but too much Geno will seperate the two in the second half. Full preview coming tomorrow.

Prediction: 49-24 West Virginia

Western Michigan at Connecticut: The Huskies better be ready, and better be disciplined this weekend. The Broncos are certainly no pushover, and nearly took down an undefeated Illinois last week. The Huskies struggled to score against Buffalo. So, it's no surprise that UConn is only a 3-point favorite. Connecticut's defense will make it difficult for WMU to move the ball. UConn has done well staying in games due limiting opposing teams opportunities. The Husky defense is ranked 13th in points against. Meanwhile, the Broncos have had their own struggles offensively, especially holding onto the football. Look for UConn to play an aggressive style to try and force mistakes. This will probably be the Huskies' saving grace. Until the offense gets more consistent play, primarily at the quarterback position, UConn has rely on the solid defense. This one will be close all day, with the Huskies holding on late.

Prediction: 17-14 Connecticut

Rutgers at Syracuse: I honestly have no idea what to make of Syracuse. The Orange have played four games, and practically underachieved in all of them. However, a 3-1 record is solid. Sure, two of those games were won in overtime, and the other was a tight game against Rhode Island, but the team is winning. Meanwhile, Rutgers is coming off a nice win over Ohio, and continue to get good play from Chas Dodd, and his dynamic receivers. The Knights should have success moving the ball against the banged up defense of Syracuse. However, the Orange have done a pretty good job in the redzone, so Dodd will have to be more patient than he has been in those tight situations. Rutgers has struggled to run the ball so Syracuse can be more cognizant of the pass throughout. However, the same goes on the other side of the ball. Rutgers can key on the pass until Syracuse can prove they can pound the rock. And, with a few injuries to deal with this week don't expect the Orange to bust out Saturday. So, does this game come down to Dodd v Ryan Nassib? Possibly. Both have performed well, limiting the big mistakes. Expect Nassib to play a bit better, considering he'll have the home field advantage, and already has a step on maturity. Should be a fun game to watch, back and forth all the way. A few big plays for the Orange in the second half will be the difference in this one.

Prediction: 31-27 Syracuse

Game of the Week: (16) South Florida at Pittsburgh: The Bulls have just been killing people since beating Notre Dame. The Panthers have lost two straight, including one to Notre Dame. Though, Pitt did look better...kind of. While the defensee kept the Panthers in the game, Todd Graham's offense continues to struggle to get off the ground. As talented as Ray Graham is, the running back is starting to dance a little too much. Meanwhile, Tino Sunseri continues to look timid behind the center, and needs a breakout game to get going. Will it happen tonight? Maybe. The Bulls' defense hasn't been lockdown, but haven't had to be. With giant leads in the majority of their games, USF has essentially breezed through second halves. The Bulls will certainly stack the box and make Sunseri prove he is a threat. A quarterback who hasn't struggled with complacency is B.J. Daniels. The junior is having an outstanding start to the season, with nine total touchdowns and only one INT. The running game has been solid too, with Darrell Scott averaging nearly seven yards a carry. Look for the balanced attack to just be too much for the Panthers' defense. It's a Thursday night game in Pittsburgh, which could help, but if Sunseri doesn't have a dynamic game it's hard to see the Panthers winning this game.

Prediction: 27-17 USF

Steve Slaton now a Dolphin

A day after being released by the Houston Texans, Steve Slaton has been claimed by the Miami Dolphins. Slaton will join a backfield that includes rookie running back Daniel Thomas, classic underachiever Reggie Bush, and some guy named Lex Hilliard.

Slaton was a 1,000-yard rusher his rookie year, but due to a case of Fumbilitis and a few bad injuries, he found himself buried on the depth cart in Houston. And, after a good start for Ben Tate, it was evident that Slaton was expendable.

It will be interesting to see what kind of opportunity Slaton gets in Miami. It seems that he could be a pretty solid 3rd down back in the NFL. And, with Reggie Bush struggling to get going, maybe Slaton will get a chance to prove his worth.

Big East Power Rankings, Week 4

1. South Florida (4-0): The Bulls continue to cruise, after dismantling UTEP. Next Step...Thursday night at Pittsburgh.

2. West Virginia (3-1): Hung around with LSU for three quarters, then fell apart. Next Step...avoiding a letdown against Bowling Green.

3. Cincinnati (3-1): A solid statement win last week on national television over NC State. Next Step...On the road at Miami...no, not that one.

4. Louisville (2-1): Probably spent the bye week still celebrating the win over rival Kentucky. Next Step...Hosting Marshall.

5. Syracuse (3-1): Literally stole a win from Toledo, but that's on the refs not Cuse. Next Step...Still looking for a good four quarter performance against Rutgers.

6. Pittsburgh (2-2): Could be lower, but given the benefit of the doubt with the tough schedule. Next Step...Tough Thursday night battle against USF.

7. Rutgers (2-1): Nice win over Ohio to ignite some momentum. Next Step...Looking to keep that momentum going against Syracuse.

8. Connecticut (2-2): Tough win over Buffalo, but a win is a win. Next Step...Hosting a pretty tough Western Michigan.