Holgorsen, WVU ready to switch gears after longer camp
If you’re tired of waiting for the West Virginia season opener, well you’re not alone.
Count head coach Dana Holgorsen among those that also have had his fill of an extended fall camp that will span five weeks when the Mountaineers open the year against Virginia Tech.
“I really wish this was game week,” he said.
It’s not that the prolonged fall camp has been a bad thing when it comes to player development and preparing the Mountaineers for the rigors of the season, but at some point practicing against the same offense and defense becomes a tad redundant.
“Absolutely, you get tired of hitting your buddies across the line all the time and you get worn out with that. After a while you’re ready to go hit somebody else and to see somebody else’s face in a face mask,” redshirt senior fullback Elijah Wellman said.
West Virginia will have been in school for two and a half weeks prior to the kickoff against the Hokies and began fall camp July 30 meaning that it will be over a month of preparation. That has resulted in more time to allow student athletes to rest and get away from the game but focus becomes a concern.
Development can quickly give way to stagnation if not careful. The doldrums of the prolonged fall camp make it difficult to make any judgements on the team without seeing them against somebody else and Holgorsen has taken the reins when it comes to keeping his team engaged.
“I’m incredibly sick of practicing against each other. I’m ready to switch gears,” Holgorsen said.
West Virginia introduced some of Virginia Tech this week, but the coaches have to be careful with splitting the player up into scout teams to avoid losing the speed of the game. That means a week-long practice against themselves before getting into game week against the Hokies next Sunday.
So for now when asked about questions on his team’s progress or concern, Holgorsen has an answer.
“You really don’t know until you go out there and play against somebody else,” he said.
Holgorsen fully admits that it will never happen at the college level, but the head man is even in favor of a possible pre-season joint practice or scrimmage in the future against another opponent similar to what unfolds at the NFL level.
Just last week, he made the trip down to The Greenbrier in order to watch that exact thing unfold between the New England Patriots and Houston Texans.
That was the first time that Holgorsen has been to one of those practices, but it showed him a glimpse of how much can be accomplished in that setting especially with special teams and with situations.
“It’s unbelievable how much work you can get done,” Holgorsen said.
But for now that is nothing more than a pipe dream. The challenge for Holgorsen and is coaches is getting the team motivated for one more week before the real work begins.
West Virginia will then dive head first into Virginia Tech with game-planning, splitting into scout teams and getting the season started.
Bringing to a close an off-season that was a little longer than anybody had hoped.
