'18 Recruiting Forum: Official West Virginia Pre-Game/Game Thread

#51
#51
LA Vol said:
I think it's a want-to game. We know what we're going to do and the coaches don't think their guys can stop us. If the players buy into that 100% and keep punching, it's one result; if they start to doubt and let up, it's another. IDT anyone knows how mentally tough this team is, or can be, yet.
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One of my questions is what is the level of "want to"? Have the coaches been successful in washing off the stinch of last year? Is the the team truly a team? One thing that leads me to believe that maybe the locker room has been healed is the lack of transfers.
 
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#52
#52
InVOLuntary said:
One of my questions is what is the level of "want to"? Have the coaches been successful in washing off the stinch of last year? Is the the team truly a team? One thing that leads me to believe that maybe the locker room has been healed is the lack of transfers.
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That and the way they talk during their interviews tell me most bought in
 
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#55
#55
InVOLuntary said:
One of my questions is what is the level of "want to"? Have the coaches been successful in washing off the stinch of last year? Is the the team truly a team? One thing that leads me to believe that maybe the locker room has been healed is the lack of transfers.
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Yep, how strong is the want-to is my question too, and it could end up being a swing in several games... and really, our season. How determined are they not to be denied, in games where the teams are more or less evenly matched or UT has an advantage (like UF in Neyland)? I think the chemistry is there and the players have bought in... but consistency and fortitude haven't been tested yet.

That's why I think a WVU win is so important. Lose WVU and how will the players react, with the Gators looming and @UGA, @Auburn, Bama and @SCar on deck right after? Win WVU and they feel empowered heading into the UF game. JMO.
 
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#56
#56
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#57
#57
Read through all of the position previews, and overall they appear to have a significant amount of homer for a returning 7-5 team. The writer even admits his homerism in the QB article.

My thoughts and breakdown of what I read.

QB - Will Grier has been discussed ad nauseum. WVU has the advantage here by a drastic margin.

RB - Actual quotes "Don't look now, but West Virginia's backfield could low-key be kind of loaded. It might feel weird to think that we could lose a back-to-back 1000-yard rusher and former Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year and be in a better place, but that might be exactly what we see happen this year." In reality they have no proven RB, and their listed 3 deep are all mid to low tier three stars. TN has the advantage here off of pure talent and depth.

WR/TE - Sills and Jennings are proven commodities at WR, but they are relying upon unproven depth behind them. They list 3 starting WR and a TE which are rounded out by two transfers TJ Simmons (Alabama - 3 Star) and Trevon Wesco (CC - Low 3 Star). WVU wins at WR easily but I think TN has a better situation at TE based off of pure talent.

OL - "The West Virginia Mountaineers are currently boasting what should be one of the best offensive lines in the Big 12 Conference this season, and what certainly is one of the largest in school history." Another bold homeristic statement, however they do return 4 of their 5 linemen from 2017. Their lineman are big, but all were mid to low rated 3 star prospects. I expect Pruitt to blitz with speed. I think our linebackers could have a field day with their big/slow OL. TN should have the better OL from a talent aspect, as our lowest rated player in our two deep would be their highest rated lineman. However, with their returning experience and how bad our OL was last year, I have to give the advantage to WVU here.

DL - It has been discussed that WVU brought in two transfers for the DL, however, the positional preview puts those guys on their second string. They only return one starter and this is how they feel about him "While Donahue has proven to be reliable, he will need to make more of his time and up his production for the Mountaineer front to be successful." They were atrocious on the line last year, and it appears they lack optimism for this year as well. I fear our lack of depth on the DL but I still feel like TN has a distinctive advantage on the DL.

LB - This appears to be WVU weakest unit. They return one proven starter in David Long, however they lack depth and are relying upon a low rated 3 star CC transfer to be a starter week 1. On top of the aforementioned issues, they are small. The largest starting line backer weighs in at 222. DWA should be able to dominate and be a complete mismatch for us to utilize. TN has a distinct advantage over WVU at the linebacker position.

CB - They have no returning starters at CB however they are confident in their potential, despite the fact their two deep consist of another CC transfer and only has mid to low rated 3 star prospects. Despite CB being a huge question mark for TN, I still feel like we have the advantage here.

S - Safety is the defensive position both teams have the most confidence in. WVU returns all three starting safeties, however they have dealt with injuries in years past. This is the position I feel is the closest to a wash, however through the orange shaded glasses I feel like Warrior is the trump card here giving TN the advantage again.

Once again this is just my opinion, but I feel like we have the positional advantage over WVU at every position except QB, WR, and OL. We will soon find out if Grier and co. are enough to overcome the discrepancies elsewhere.

13 DAYS BABY!!!!
 
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#58
#58
Gonna be a long 13 days.

I feel good about this game. We give them hell and win by 5-7. DL harasses Grier all day and sacks him 4 times. Rush for 175 and shortens the game.
 
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#59
#59
D looked a bit suspect on sat but they still have time to get these guys up to speed on assignments etc. JG and the balanced running attack will wear down the WV D. This will be the type of football you have wanted to see for a while. I think our RB’s will have a field day...we just have to slow down their high powered offense enough times to squeak out a W. If we can it will set up for what will be what I suspect to be one of the rowdiest crowds in Neyland in a long time when the Gators come to town. See y’all in charlotte!
 
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#61
#61
Got a new head coach, new offense, new defense and we play @ WV. I think the odds are in our favor. Got them right where we want them. :D
 
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#63
#63
ChattaTNVol said:
After the scrimmage last night Hank Hill in the football talk thread gave a thumbs up to our run blocking and a thumbs down to our pass blocking. I chosed to interpret that as we have a formidable rushing offense and our pass rush on defense is absolutely unstoppable. That seems like a perfect game plan for this opponent. :)
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I hope he is right. You can’t beat a strong run game and excellent pass rush.
 
#65
#65
LA Vol said:
I think it's a want-to game. We know what we're going to do and the coaches don't think their guys can stop us. If the players buy into that 100% and keep punching, it's one result; if they start to doubt and let up, it's another. IDT anyone knows how mentally tough this team is, or can be, yet.
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I think our boys will be hungry enough. It all hinges on slowing Grier down in the passing game
 
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#67
#67
nicksjuzunk said:
I think our boys will be hungry enough. It all hinges on slowing Grier down in the passing game
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Even if we relatively "slow" him down, we still have to score at least 24+ to win...I hope the offense is better than I think it will be.

If I was WVU I would roll everybody up, jam the WRs and make us throw.
 
#70
#70
Perhaps the most important matchup in this game will be Holgorsen vs Pruitt. Holgorsen is an offensive guru, Pruitt a defensive one. Until the end of last season Holgorsen was still calling the offensive plays. Spavital was given the reins I think in the bowl game and will have offensive play calling duties full time this year. Will Holgorsen pull rank if Pruitt shuts down Spavital?

Helton clearly has better talent than Gibson. Will he and Friend be able to impose their will at the line of scrimmage?

We have real SEC defensive coaches facing B12 offensive coaches for Strength vs Strength. Defense wins games.

ScreenHunter_31 Aug. 20 07.17.gif
 
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#72
#72
This game goes either way in my opinion. It will be good to see some real coaching from our sidelines. New staff, new year, new results. Can't wait to see this team come out with fire this year. After the debacle from last year, we should need no more motivation than that.
 
#75
#75
Orange Studs said:
My @ has been misinterpreted. The @ means we ain't here which would be home game. @ means away game cause if we @ we ain't here. Hope this clears everything up. :D
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Nice save. Haha. Probably more of a home game for us though.
 
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