With a potential return trip to the Gator Bowl on the line, West Virginia must first turn its attention to another Big East road test at Rutgers, making sure to put itself in the best possible position to earn a berth in the Jacksonville New Year‘s Day Bowl. The players and coaches know very well what’s at stake and what they have to do in order to round out the season the right way.
Even though No. 23 WVU (8-3, 4-2 BIG EAST) has not lost to Rutgers (8-3, 3-3 BIG EAST) since 1994, the Mountaineers have had their share of woes in road games this season, posting a measly 1-3 record away from the friendly confides of Mountaineer Field.
“I understand the weather is going to be good and they will be chopping wood,” WVU head coach Bill Stewart said of Saturday‘s game in Piscataway. “We have been in some pretty hostile environments this season. I’m not pleased with our away record. We got to break this road jinx.”
“People tend to feel more comfortable playing at home,” said WVU corner back Brandon Hogan. “We get out on the road and we start off slow. We just need to click on all cylinders when we go on the road and execute our game.”
WVU did do just that once on the road this season -- a 34-13 thumping at Syracuse. There is little reason to get excited about that feat, however, because the Orange finished just 4-8 and won only one Big East conference game all season.
Robert Sands sees the problem as stemming from going into games with the wrong mindset and lacking a killer instinct to perform from the fist play from scrimmage. “We started off slow,” said the WVU free safety. “It’s just a mentality -- you’ve got to mentally come out prepared and ready. The first snap already has to be going through your head. You got to already be thinking about what the team is trying to do against you.”
Saying and doing are two different things, but Sands is right -- WVU has fallen behind initially in games against East Carolina, Marshall, Louisville, Cincinnati and Pitt. WVU came back to defeat all of those teams at home, save the Cincinnati game, which ended up being a critical three-point road loss that directly cost the Mountaineers a shot at contending for the Big East championship.
“We waited until we were down and we tried to turn it on,” Sands said. “We can’t do that on some teams.”
Point taken.
So could it be that Mountaineer Field is perhaps an underrated asset to WVU’s success? And this being the same place where WVU has heard boo birds more than once last season and this season, the latter such year where the Mountaineers finished undefeated at home for the first time since 1993.
WVU linebacker J.T. Thomas muzzled that notion.
“Any college player would tell you the game is played out there on the field,” Thomas said. “It doesn’t matter where we’re at. Of course, we’d love to be at home and love to perform for the fans, but it doesn’t matter. We could play out there in the parking lot.”
To Thomas, the simple difference lies with personnel. “It’s all about the guys on the field and what they bring to the game,” he said.
What the Mountaineers bring on Saturday against the Scarlet Knights may weigh heavily on where WVU will end up playing its bowl game this season, though it seems the Gator Bowl is as high as possibility as any. Like a receiver who is thinking about running before catching a pass, WVU will try to not look ahead and let their ninth win out slip out of their grasp.
“If we look ahead, then we’re not going to focus on the task at hand which is Rutgers,” said WVU nose guard Chris Neild. “We all know that and sometimes that gets a little carried away with some players. At this point of the season, we’re all focused in and we know what’s at stake.”
Hogan said, “All the coaches have been putting it in our heads to not overlook them. If we slip up, we could easily take an ‘L.’”
Sands and the rest of the Mountaineers know exactly what Rutgers is capable of doing. Back on Nov. 12, the Scarlet Knights embarrassed South Florida, 31-0, which was the same South Florida team that bulldozed WVU, 30-19, at home, on Oct. 30.
“They are emphasizing the fact that they can come out there and beat us. If you saw film, they destroyed South Florida,” said Sands. “That goes to show that Rutgers is a pretty good team. If we don’t go out there ready to play, then they could potentially do the same thing to us like they did to South Florida.”
Quarterback Tom Savage, along with receivers Tim Brown and Mohamed Sanu are among the weapons Rutgers possesses who may dash WVU’s chances at a second place Big East finish.
As a true freshman, Savage has come out rolling, amassing more than 1,700 passing yards and 11 touchdowns.
“He’s very poised,” Hogan said. “He’s very calm to be a freshman quarterback.”
But Hogan revealed WVU would mix up coverage in its 3-3-5 based defense to try and confuse the freshman. “I don’t think he’s seen a defense like ours yet. It will get him some problems,” said Hogan. “We’re going to move around a lot and show some different things and switch it up before he calls hike.”
Brown, a 5-foot-8, 165-pound senior speedster from Miami, Fla., leads all Rutgers’ receivers 51 catches for more than 1,000 yards and eight touchdowns. “It’s always hard dealing with the short, fast guys because you really can’t see them getting out of their cut or breaking down,” said Hogan. “It’s going to be a challenge this week with Brown.”
Sanu, also a freshman, is dialed up in the Scarlet Knights’ wild cat offensive package in situations and presents multiple threats. He has totaled nearly 700 offensive yards and four touchdowns in his debut season.
“He’s a good athlete -- real tough, real stout,” Thomas said. “He also use to play quarterback in high school, so he has the ability to throw the ball when you’re not expecting. They use him a lot and he will be a big part of their game plan on Saturday.”