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Offseason concerns for WVU Football

  • Since the move Oliver Luck and his office pulled off to get WVU into the Big 12, WVU Football is getting more media coverage since the glory days of Pat White and Steve Slaton. Magazine covers, photo shoots, and college football shows have been finding their way to the mountain state of West Virginia. So what does this have to do with off-season concerns?

    For starters, players need to keep their noses' clean and stay out of trouble. WVU players need to realize they have a lot of people watching their every move. There have already been some recent off-field issues concerning some Mountaineer football players. I don't know what these players were thinking, but you have a whole state watching your every move, and when you have a lapse in judgement, it gets the attention of the national media.

    Even though those were considered minor incidents, WVU players don't need to pull a TCU fiasco where 4 players on the team failed their drug tests and get busted for marijuana. The Mountaineer program was in the media last year for all the wrong reasons with what transpired between Bill Stewart and Dana Holgorsen, and now they're actually getting a good rep. Just don't ruin it.

    Another concern is getting everyone healthy and maintaining that health throughout the whole season. The 'Eers need sophomore running back Dustin Garrison to fully recover from his torn ACL he injured during a practice prepping for the Orange Bowl. Garrison posed as a huge threat to the little used running game last year and seemed to make as much as possible out of each rep he got resulting in 742 rushing yards and averaging 5.5 yards a carry as a true freshman. If Garrison doesn't make it back fully ready to go, then the unit takes a drastic hit in depth and potentially relying on true freshmen for the second consecutive season.

    Don't forget about the defense, too. The coaching staff needs to make sure everything gets settled on the defensive side of the ball with the new 3-4 scheme being implemented. Even though the squad forced three interceptions in the annual Blue and Gold Game, it's hard to tell in those types of games if the offense isn't showing all they have or the defense is just playing outstanding.

    Joe Deforest knows how the Big 12 works with being at Oklahoma State for over ten years and he knows what needs to be done to get wins. Even though Oklahoma State finished 107th overall in defense last year, they finished #1 in the country in turnovers gained and that is exactly what co-defensive coordinators Joe Deforest and Keith Patterson want to do. They understand WVU has the 15th best offense in the nation coming back from the year before, and all they want is wins. It's what Joe Deforest understood at Oklahoma State, and he did his part in forcing turnovers and giving the offense more chances on the field. Stick with the recruiting on the defense, and you could see more parts improve in other statistical categories come the next couple of years.

    As long as everyone stays out of trouble, the injured get healed, and the defense gets the new scheme under their belt, you can expect big things come this season for the Mountaineers.

    A season to never forget.

    Ranger60 ●

  • The r-game was more then little used They ran the ball about 40% of fhe play calls last year

    signature image

    MJScragg

  • Ranger60 said...

    Since the move Oliver Luck and his office pulled off to get WVU into the Big 12, WVU Football is getting more media coverage since the glory days of Pat White and Steve Slaton. Magazine covers, photo shoots, and college football shows have been finding their way to the mountain state of West Virginia. So what does this have to do with off-season concerns?

    For starters, players need to keep their noses' clean and stay out of trouble. WVU players need to realize they have a lot of people watching their every move. There have already been some recent off-field issues concerning some Mountaineer football players. I don't know what these players were thinking, but you have a whole state watching your every move, and when you have a lapse in judgement, it gets the attention of the national media.

    Even though those were considered minor incidents, WVU players don't need to pull a TCU fiasco where 4 players on the team failed their drug tests and get busted for marijuana. The Mountaineer program was in the media last year for all the wrong reasons with what transpired between Bill Stewart and Dana Holgorsen, and now they're actually getting a good rep. Just don't ruin it.

    Another concern is getting everyone healthy and maintaining that health throughout the whole season. The 'Eers need sophomore running back Dustin Garrison to fully recover from his torn ACL he injured during a practice prepping for the Orange Bowl. Garrison posed as a huge threat to the little used running game last year and seemed to make as much as possible out of each rep he got resulting in 742 rushing yards and averaging 5.5 yards a carry as a true freshman. If Garrison doesn't make it back fully ready to go, then the unit takes a drastic hit in depth and potentially relying on true freshmen for the second consecutive season.

    Don't forget about the defense, too. The coaching staff needs to make sure everything gets settled on the defensive side of the ball with the new 3-4 scheme being implemented. Even though the squad forced three interceptions in the annual Blue and Gold Game, it's hard to tell in those types of games if the offense isn't showing all they have or the defense is just playing outstanding.

    Joe Deforest knows how the Big 12 works with being at Oklahoma State for over ten years and he knows what needs to be done to get wins. Even though Oklahoma State finished 107th overall in defense last year, they finished #1 in the country in turnovers gained and that is exactly what co-defensive coordinators Joe Deforest and Keith Patterson want to do. They understand WVU has the 15th best offense in the nation coming back from the year before, and all they want is wins. It's what Joe Deforest understood at Oklahoma State, and he did his part in forcing turnovers and giving the offense more chances on the field. Stick with the recruiting on the defense, and you could see more parts improve in other statistical categories come the next couple of years.

    As long as everyone stays out of trouble, the injured get healed, and the defense gets the new scheme under their belt, you can expect big things come this season for the Mountaineers.

    A season to never forget.

    Ummm andrew buie is a better back than garrison, and thhen theres alston, and like 2 other back that got plsying time, so how wld we have to rely on true freshman, your an iidiot for posting this bc I can see u kno nothing about our team, and theres no offseason concern 2 players got in trouble so what, nobodys in trouble for drugs like tcu, and and u act like this is the first time we have gotten all this media coverage and front page pics on cfb mags, in 2007 we were preseason #3 and were the talk everywhere,

    bam4wvu

  • MJScragg said...

    The r-game was more then little used They ran the ball about 40% of fhe play calls last year

    Loll I kno, and he musta forgot about the most important backs on the team, buie and alston. Garrison dosnt need to be healthy, we dnt even need him, buie jus got hurt early last yr thats y garrison got his carries, BUIE IS A WAY BETTER BACK THAN GARRISON, HEY RANGER, GO READ ABOUT R TEAM AND LOOK AT ROSTER B4 U MADE STATEMENTS LIKE THIS OFFSEASON CONCERN U SAY WE HAVE, WVU NEVER HAS A BIG PROBLEM WITH OFF THE FIELD ARRESTS AND SUCH, YEA U GOT UR occasional few on the team but that's it

    bam4wvu

  • For one I stopped reading after the first few sentences of your 7 page article.

    However, the whole reason Quincy Wilson was brought in was to help these kids avoid those off the field issues. He is there to help them and to mentor them so they stay out of trouble.

    Follow me on twitter: @JoshScottWV

    WickedJester

  • bam4wvu said...

    Ummm andrew buie is a better back than garrison, and thhen theres alston, and like 2 other back that got plsying time, so how wld we have to rely on true freshman, your an iidiot for posting this bc I can see u kno nothing about our team, and theres no offseason concern 2 players got in trouble so what, nobodys in trouble for drugs like tcu, and and u act like this is the first time we have gotten all this media coverage and front page pics on cfb mags, in 2007 we were preseason #3 and were the talk everywhere,

    I don't know how you can possibly say that Buie is the better RB. Based on what? There is only one way to prove that, on the field, when it counts. I'm not saying Buie isn't the better back- but he certainly hasn't done anything, yet, to make me say he is. I know he was dinged up for much of last season. Dustin will likely not be 100% for at least a portion of this season. Kind of hard to make much of a comparison at this point.
    Having said that, Dustin coming back is not going to make or break the running game. We have multiple capable backs. As long as the OL does well, the running game should be at least adequate.

    tntWVU

  • tntWVU said...

    I don't know how you can possibly say that Buie is the better RB. Based on what? There is only one way to prove that, on the field, when it counts. I'm not saying Buie isn't the better back- but he certainly hasn't done anything, yet, to make me say he is. I know he was dinged up for much of last season. Dustin will likely not be 100% for at least a portion of this season. Kind of hard to make much of a comparison at this point.
    Having said that, Dustin coming back is not going to make or break the running game. We have multiple capable backs. As long as the OL does well, the running game should be at least adequate.

    Awww stop pressing your little red arrows you guys are just hurting my feelings lol I pay for this just like everyone else so I'm going to givemy opinion . and you're crazy if you think dustin garrison is better than andrew buie. are running game will not take a hit if he's out. just look at the orange bowl. Buie there is a way better athlete than garrison.

    This post has been edited 2 times, most recently by bam4wvu on 6/11/2012 at 7:19 AM

    bam4wvu

  • bam4wvu said...

    Awww stop pressing your little red arrows you guys are just hurting my feelings lol I pay for this just like everyone else so I'm going to givemy opinion . and you're crazy if you think dustin garrison is better than andrew buie. are running game will not take a hit if he's out. just look at the orange bowl. Buie there is a way better athletes and garrison.

    I pressed no little red arrows, never even crossed my mind, so thanks for reminding me!
    You are entitled to your opinion, never said you weren't. Doesn't mean you're right. Never said you were wrong- only that there really isn't enough of a body of work to say you're right.

    tntWVU

  • Like others have stated on what are you basing this?

    So Buie had a good Orange Bowl game. I will give you that one.

    Garrison had 291 yards in a game last season. By what matrix are you measuring the players? Just because YOU think Buie is better doesnt mean you are right? Are you a coach or a scout? Do you have experience grading players.

    Buie showed me nothing in his first year that would indicate he is better than Garrison. Alston is better than both of them and if Ryan Clarke can hold on to the ball he is one of the most punishing runners on the team. I think we see more of Clarke this year.

    Follow me on twitter: @JoshScottWV

    WickedJester

  • WickedJester said...

    Like others have stated on what are you basing this?

    So Buie had a good Orange Bowl game. I will give you that one.

    Garrison had 291 yards in a game last season. By what matrix are you measuring the players? Just because YOU think Buie is better doesnt mean you are right? Are you a coach or a scout? Do you have experience grading players.

    Buie showed me nothing in his first year that would indicate he is better than Garrison. Alston is better than both of them and if Ryan Clarke can hold on to the ball he is one of the most punishing runners on the team. I think we see more of Clarke this year.

    garrison had that against bowling green come on dude

    bam4wvu

  • Bam4wvu, I believe your picking "the best" running back with your heart.... Garrison made the most of his carries last season and beat out Buie, and Alston is a stud power back, last season Buie was fumble prone, and often went down on the slightest contact.....Buie looked good in the Orange Bowl, and I'm dying to see his speed in space.....he has tons of potential, and he may prove to be our "best" back in the future, but he was 3rd string last year!!

    As for the orginal poster, I agree, all the eyes around the nation are on us, and I love it!! Like everyone else, I love my Mountianeers and my state, and I also hope our young men continue to represent this great state in a positive manner!!

    BlueandGold81

  • Ok not to thrown oil on the fire or anything but Buie beat out garrison by a good amout to be the starter but lost it dus to injuries hampering preformance ... Both backs have a differnt running style ... Buie was actually healthy for the orange bowl but i think i could of ran on the klumpson played that day .... Garrison is going to have to learn to trust his knee again, Buie has to stay healthy and away from those nagging injuries, Shawn needs to keep the 5 inches between his ears in the game and yes u will see Clarke touch the ball as long as he can show he can hang on to it ... He would of done some last year of it were for his fumble troubles even in practice but i beliee he hasnt fumbled yet in his rare touches during practices ... No we dont have that one stud yet but we have 4 experienced well qualified ball carriers

    signature image

    MJScragg

  • bam4wvu said...

    Ummm andrew buie is a better back than garrison, and thhen theres alston, and like 2 other back that got plsying time, so how wld we have to rely on true freshman, your an iidiot for posting this bc I can see u kno nothing about our team, and theres no offseason concern 2 players got in trouble so what, nobodys in trouble for drugs like tcu, and and u act like this is the first time we have gotten all this media coverage and front page pics on cfb mags, in 2007 we were preseason #3 and were the talk everywhere,

    just curious how is buie a better back ? his production and stats dont seem to agree ?

    Dont get me wrong I do like Buie alot, but I think Garrison had a better season last year and obviously stats are all that matter when it comes to the end.....

    wvu2003

  • I think we are going to need Garrison AND Buie a lot this year.

    follow me on Twitter - @IrishBillATL

    IrishBillATL

  • wvu2003 said...

    just curious how is buie a better back ? his production and stats dont seem to agree ?

    Dont get me wrong I do like Buie alot, but I think Garrison had a better season last year and obviously stats are all that matter when it comes to the end.....

    Thank u mjscrag, and wvu2003, so its geno smith got hurt next year and paul millard came in a threw for more yards than him that means he's better right that's what you're saying, because andrew buie got hurt last year and garrison came in and got more yards obviously then him at the end of the year obviously. What buie did against clemson garrisin didnt do all yr against same compitition, and no bowling green isnt same comp as clemson. Buie BEAT garrison for the starting job last yr, so jus not me, but the staff must agree that buie is better jus to throw this in there too, garrison 2 star, buie 4 star, I kno that has nothing to do with last yr, but obviously people think he is better than garrison.

    bam4wvu

  • MJScragg said...

    Ok not to thrown oil on the fire or anything but Buie beat out garrison by a good amout to be the starter but lost it dus to injuries hampering preformance ... Both backs have a differnt running style ... Buie was actually healthy for the orange bowl but i think i could of ran on the klumpson played that day .... Garrison is going to have to learn to trust his knee again, Buie has to stay healthy and away from those nagging injuries, Shawn needs to keep the 5 inches between his ears in the game and yes u will see Clarke touch the ball as long as he can show he can hang on to it ... He would of done some last year of it were for his fumble troubles even in practice but i beliee he hasnt fumbled yet in his rare touches during practices ... No we dont have that one stud yet but we have 4 experienced well qualified ball carriers

    I'll give you that Buie got more opportunities early, and it could be argued that he was 1a on the depth coming out of fall camp, i don't recall exactly when he got dinged up, but aside from him rolling over the defender at the orange bowl, he was unable to break tackles or find holes with any consistency...I kept expecting a Slaton type run from him where he turns on the jets and is gone, but it never came.... Garrison and Alston both run with a ton of heart and more often than not fall forward, and use thier skill sets (Garrison vision, and Alston pure toughness) to get the job done.

    The intention of my posts isn't to bash Buie though, as I previously posted, he has a lots of talent and potential, perhaps the most of all the RBs on the team...he simply wasn't the "best" back last season

    And Scragg I agree that when Clarke holds onto the ball he is an animal, from what I remember, I used to always wish he would just go down bc his second and third attempts is when he would get stripped lol

    BlueandGold81

  • bam4wvu said...

    Thank u mjscrag, and wvu2003, so its geno smith got hurt next year and paul millard came in a threw for more yards than him that means he's better right that's what you're saying, because andrew buie got hurt last year and garrison came in and got more yards obviously then him at the end of the year obviously. What buie did against clemson garrisin didnt do all yr against same compitition, and no bowling green isnt same comp as clemson. Buie BEAT garrison for the starting job last yr, so jus not me, but the staff must agree that buie is better jus to throw this in there too, garrison 2 star, buie 4 star, I kno that has nothing to do with last yr, but obviously people think he is better than garrison.

    That anaolgy sucks lol....Geno is a PROVEN commodity, Buie has potential....Big difference

    BlueandGold81

  • All I can say to this entire conversation is that it must really suck to have someone piss in your wheaties every single day. grumble

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    DubVMike ●

  • I'll just say this, if Buie, DG, improve HALF as much in their second and third years ( hard to believe BOTH these cats were playing HS ball just a year before) as Tavon, Sted, Geno ect.. We are gonna be terrific in the RB dept.

    Goldrusher35 ●

  • If you did not write this, you should probably give credit to the individual that did on www.eerinsider.com on May 30. Just saying.

    signature image signature image signature image

    Ryan

    PincusWVU ●

  • Garrison had better vision, explosion and elusiveness all season. He also has better hands out of the backfield. This really isnt even a close comparison. This year and next year may be different, but Garrison was/is the best of the two until proven different. Neither of them are elite speed guys.

    jaaronnut22 ●

  • Buie had a good Orange Bowl game but two of his biggest runs in the game happened because the defense made poor tackles which resulted in Buie not being downed by contact. Buie did have good recognition that he was not down and got back up and continued to run down the field. But I agree with jaaronnut22. Garrison is a better back at this point IMO. But who knows how Garrison's will be after recovering from injury

    This post was edited by adammanter on 6/11/2012 at 10:36 PM

    adammanter

  • What I get out of all of this is that they are both good backs. To me that equals depth.

    I was taught to honor and respect my elders. They are getting much harder to find these days.

    oldgoldandblue

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