West Virginia's Inside Slant
Often times, coaches worry when they hand the reins of their team to a young quarterback. The Mountaineer staff, on the other hand, believes they have a mature, solid player that they can trust in 18-year-old true sophomore Geno Smith, who takes over at West Virginia.
As the team went into the final week before the opener, offensive coordinator Jeff Mullen indicated just how much faith he has in the quarterback when he noted that he doesn't just correct him in film studies between practices.
"He's the kind of kid when he makes a decision and you might think something else as a coach, you don't just correct him," Mullen said. "I think the best way to approach Geno is to ask him what he sees because quite often he does see something out there during the play because he has that kind of vision and that sense of the play and those kind of eyes.
"I certainly think with that kind of guy, he's a little different from other kids who you might tell, 'Don't do that. Go here.' That's what's pretty neat about the guy. He has a wonderful sense of football. It's fun to coach him."
The Mountaineers, with an experienced defense and an explosive offense ready for the Coastal Carolina opener, will certainly give Smith a chance to show what he can do while hopefully building confidence.
He has some receivers with whom he made acquaintance last year such as slot back Jock Sanders and Brad Starks, but he also has two of his high school receivers on hand out of Miramar (Fla.) High, both highly regarded. Stedman Bailey and Ivan McCartney have worked their way up the depth chart and give Smith a feel he can be comfortable with.
And, of course, he has alongside him in the shotgun a running back named Noel Devine, a senior who with a spectacular season could break WVU's career rushing record, held by Avon Cobourne, and certainly bail Smith out of some tough situations.
Devine's presence leaves defenses guessing on those third-and-7s as to whether they will throw the ball or go to Devine.--WVU has been a college football power over the past 64 games, going 51-13, and has the eighth best record in college football over the past six years.
--WR Jock Sanders carries a streak of 28 consecutive games with a reception into the season.
--FB Matt Lindamood, a hard-hitting, hard-running star out of Parkersburg (W.Va.) High, impressed so much in camp that he was awarded a scholarship at the end of camp. "He's tough, works hard and I feel very confident with what he can do," coach Bill Stewart said.
--WVU is 10-0 in games against NCAA FBS opponents since 2000.
SERIES HISTORY: West Virginia and Coastal Carolina have never met.
SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: West Virginia has tremendous skill-position athletes, and if sophomore QB Geno Smith can play without mistakes, it should be as explosive as any offense in the country. The Mountaineers have a multiple offense built around RB Noel Devine's breakaway ability, but he is hardly the only weapon and they don't want to run him more than 20-23 times a game to keep him fresh. Devine gained 1,465 yards last year. The Mountaineers will use FBs Ryan Clarke and Matt Lindamood a lot to block for him and can go with many formations as they have two different types of tight ends and a host of fast, sure-handed receivers led by Jock Sanders, who caught 72 passes last year. Tavon Austin, the top running back ever in Baltimore, is biding his time at wide receiver until Devine leaves and he is threat both catching the ball and running reverses. Untried receivers such as Steadman Bailey, Ivan McCarty and J.D. Woods, all highly touted, could make the passing game dangerous. The problem is a questionable offensive line, especially on the right side.
SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: This is a hard-hitting, athletic, experienced defensive team that should challenge Pitt as the Big East's best. It is led by tough NG Chris Neild, who is an anchor in the middle, but he has a lot help up front with the veteran Scooter Berry at tackle and pass-rushing Julian Miller at end. When they go to a four-man front in passing situations, they add a junior college transfer in Bruce Irvin, who is something of an athletic freak and figures to be a big factor. The linebackers are led by senior J.T. Thomas while the secondary has hard-hitting 6-foot-5 safety Robert Sands as its centerpiece and the veteran Brandon Hogan as a shutdown corner.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "People who think this is a walk in the park have no idea what college football is about." -- WVU coach Bill Stewart, when it was proposed that opening with Coastal Carolina is an easy game.THIS WEEK'S GAME: Coastal Carolina at West Virginia, Sept. 4 -- This is a huge step up for coach David Bennett and Coastal Carolina (5-6, 3-3 Big South) but the game is far more important for WVU. The Mountaineers need to make a big showing to build confidence in a young quarterback, Geno Smith, and to get Heisman candidate Noel Devine off and running. The defense, which is deep and experienced, needs to work on a few changes, especially in the pass rush as it builds toward the annual showdown with intrastate rival Marshall in Huntington.
KEYS TO THE GAME: If you are going to stop West Virginia, you have to first find a way to stop RB Noel Devine. Containment is crucial as he is not only fast but deceptively strong for a smaller back and has a lot of moves. Pressure the young quarterback, Geno Smith, with a lot of blitzes, trying to confuse him. And key the defense toward the left, as that is where WVU likes to run and is strongest. Offensively, try to stay out of clear passing situations as the WVU pass rush is much improved and could create a lot of turnovers.
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
QB Geno Smith -- Smith takes over the starting job after five years of Patrick White and Jarrett Brown and brings a steady hand, good vision but inexperience to the job. Expect offensive coordinator Jeff Mullen to work him slowly into the game, using him mostly on possession passes, but Smith does have a group of fast, sure-handed receivers who can go deep and Mullen figures to mix this in to get his feet wet.
RB Noel Devine -- He surprised a lot of people by coming back for his senior year and the Mountaineer staff would like to reward him for that dedication by helping him toward a Heisman Trophy run, if such a thing is possible out of West Virginia. He has been more vocal and more of a leader as a senior and has shown flashes of big play brilliance in scrimmages against a good defense. He has a lot more than just yardage to gain this year.
RT Jeff Braun -- The Mountaineers have been trying to figure out how to make their right side stronger and Braun won the tackle spot, but there will be much shuffling going on as they look for the right combination. Cole Bowers and Eric Jobe will also come in at tackle and guard as they experiment.
ROSTER REPORT:
--LB J.T. Thomas, a senior, missed a good deal of camp with a neck injury. Coaches said it was only precautionary to keep out of live drills and he is expected to play against Coastal Carolina.
--MLB Pat Lazear was lucky to avoid serious injury when he was leg-whipped in the knee during camp. He did not play in the closing scrimmage but is expected back.
--OT Quinton Spain, a 6-4, 360-pound freshman, was delayed getting into camp by an NCAA Clearing House issue, but was cleared and has begun practicing.
--RB Noel Devine was on the watch list for the Doak Walker Award, given to the nation's top running back.
--LBs J.T. Thomas and Julian Miller were both named to the Lombardi Award watch list, honoring the nation's top linebackers or defensive linemen.
--OT Marquis Wallace, a 6-5, 295-pound freshman who had NCAA Clearinghouse trouble after practicing 10 days in the Mountaineer preseason camp, has transferred to Marshall. Wallace, out of Richmond, Va., will sit out this year.
