Against Kansas State, Howard will come full circle

The senior quarterback saw his first significant collegiate action against the Wildcats two years ago when starter Clint Trickett left the game with a concussion in the third quarter. While not the way he wanted it to go, it was the situation he had been waiting for as the backup quarterback.

Howard entered the game on that cold November night trailing 23-3 and led a comeback attempt that fell just short in the 26-20 defeat to the Wildcats. The Texas native completed 15 of 23 passes for 198 yards and a pair of touchdowns and showcased that he had ability as the backup.

“I was just having fun playing ball,” Howard said.

Since then, no other quarterback has started for the Mountaineers. Howard got his second opportunity against Kansas State last season but struggled with various injuries. At less than 100-percent, he completed 19 of 42 passes for 281 yards and a touchdown in another defeat, this time 24-23.

Now he enters his final opportunity to secure a win in the place where his career as the starting quarterback began on the artificial turf of Milan Puskar Stadium against the Wildcats.

Already this week Howard has spent time re-watching both of his performances against the Wildcats in order to see what has worked and what hasn’t worked over the years. But perhaps even more important is the fact that he is able to see how far he has progressed as a quarterback.

“It’s night and day compared to where I was at even last year,” Howard said.

This season Howard is completing 68.5-percent of his passes a number that is significantly better than his previous marks of 50.9 and 54.8. The senior has been efficient throwing the football, taking advantage of what the defense has given him and working at the intermediate levels.

It was the focus of Howard during the off-season to slow down his feet in the pocket and go through his progressions to find where to fit the football.

“It’s just knowing when I don’t have a shot down the field to come back to an intermediate throw. It goes a long way. The routine plays go a long way against a team like this,” he said.

And if West Virginia is going to clear the hurdle that has been Kansas State since joining the Big 12 Conference, Howard will have to show that improvement on the field against the Wildcats defense.

“I’m ready to get a good week of practice in,” Howard said.