Stuck in the middle. No analogy is more befitting of the Mountaineers as November quickly approaches.
Through 7 of twelve games on their schedule, WVU has found themselves with a 3-4 overall record, with only one of four wins within the tough Big 12 Conference.
Middle of the season, middle of the conference rankings, middle of the road in terms of execution. Some flashes of brilliance, some flashes of ineptitude, but mostly a display of mediocrity. This season has been one of frustration for Dana Holgorson. The man pulls few punches when dealing with the local media, and his mounting exasperation has become palpable in recent press conferences.
This bodes well for fans of the Mountaineers, in reality. Despite the team’s best efforts, they are still in a position to finish this season on a better note than the first 7 games have produced. WVU has already played the top 5 teams in the Big 12, save for the 3rd place Longhorns, who they will meet in Morgantown on November 9th, and honestly, they have fared well against 2 of the 3 nationally ranked teams they have met. Holgorson does not find his team’s play acceptable, and expects much more from them week in and week out.
The proliferation of a culture of winning takes one key component: winning. Dana knows that the route between 3-4 and the very real possibility of finishing 8-4 goes straight through the counties of Execution and Confidence. With the tougher half of their schedule behind them, the Mountaineers can focus on putting together first a complete game of solid execution in each facet of their game plan, then carrying over the confidence regained in themselves to the following week, and improving on their play from the prior game.
Clint Trickett (who has a future in NASCAR on the strength of his name alone) showed better communication and play calling for over 2 quarters of WVU’s meeting with Texas Tech last Saturday, although his accuracy was not all that it could be. Dreamius Smith ran for a pair of TD’s, and the Mountaineers running game seemed to grab a foothold. Holgorson has taken the brunt of the blame for this loss, stating that coaching was the Achilles Heel in their 4th quarter fall from gridiron grace.
All of this adds up to a football program that is on the rise. Improvements have come in spurts, but have definitely shown their face. A developing team that is relatively young has the opportunity to take their experience from the first half and apply it to the second, and could very well find themselves in a post-season game in a warmer climate. All does not appear to be lost, Mountaineer Fans. Batten down the hatches and have faith in your Captain. Coach Dana and his crew are working diligently to weather this storm, and calmer waters are on the horizon.
