Neal's deal: Five key items from West Virginia football
WVSports.com looks at the weekly press conference from West Virginia head coach Neal Brown and determines the five most interesting topics of discussion.
We examine what was said as well as what it means for the football team both this week and moving ahead as the Mountaineers navigate the 2023 schedule.
Next up a mid-week Thursday night contest on the road at Houston (2-3) where West Virginia will take on former head coach Dana Holgorsen.
1—West Virginia used the open week to get better. Yes, it's cliche but it was a focus for the coaching staff on top of giving the players some time off to heal up and get ready for the next seven games of the season. The Mountaineers simply haven't started well enough in football games and they have to come out of the gates better on both sides.
The offense also has to find a way to throw the football better as the Mountaineers are near the bottom of the country in passing offense and would be even lower than that if you took out the matchup against FCS level Duquesne. Yes, of that is directly related to the issues that have unfolded at quarterback with starter Garrett Greene going down but it still must improve if this football team wants to have success.
The Mountaineers used that time during the bye to introduce some more passing concepts and work on their timing in order to try to take a step there.
2—Injury updates. The bye week came at the right time for this West Virginia football team as a majority of the players on the roster were able to use the time off to get healthy. That can be said for the quarterbacks, both Garrett Greene and Nicco Marchiol, as well as others that were dealing with various bumps and bruises that come with a series of consecutive physical football games especially the past three.
West Virginia changed the routine in practice only going hard once Wednesday before heading into Houston prep over the weekend.
But while the majority of the players will be healthy there are still some players still dealing with injuries as starting left guard Tomas Rimac has been ruled out after being injured on a point after touchdown attempt against TCU. Starting left tackle Wyatt Milum is considered a game-time decision after getting poked in the eye which could be significant if he isn't ready to go against the Cougars.
The final major piece of injury news is that starting safety Aubrey Burks is considered questionable after he left the TCU game on a stretcher after a scare with his neck. All of the tests were negative and the issue will be when he is ready to return to the field.
3—Move past the connection. Yes, Dana Holgorsen was the football coach at West Virginia for eight years. He also was the coach that preceded Brown in Morgantown. And while there might be some ties there with the former staff in Houston, the overall connections between the two programs have waned with time. It's been five years since Holgorsen left to head to lead to the Cougars and the Mountaineers only have three players on the entire roster with any ties to that previous staff.
Malachi Ruffin is the only player that played under Holgorsen, while two players were recruited by him during his last year here in Jalen Thornton and Brandon Yates. As for the Houston side of things, there are multiple West Virginia players with four on the roster in wide receiver Sam Brown, running back Tony Mathis, tight end Mike O'Laughlin and safety Noah Guzman and a list of coaches and support staff that were once here.
Brown credited the job that Holgorsen did while he was in Morgantown and admitted there is no ill-will between him and that previous staff. This matchup is about moving onto the next one and while there might be some emotions this is an opportunity for the program to win on the primetime stage as the program has done in the past.
4—Developmental options standing out. Brown pointed out that while both defensive linemen Asani Redwood and Hammond Russell have played at this point in the season both took full advantage of the bye week to impress in developmental practices. The future for both is very bright and in the three scrimmages last week, those two took advantage of the reps and made the most of their time on the field.
Outside those two on offense running back DJ Oliver showed flashes on offense but could make a mark on special teams while offensive lineman Johnny Williams continues to grow after arriving in the spring.
Others on defense include defensive lineman Corey McIntyre who as he continues to change his body could have a very bright future after making a bunch of plays in scrimmages. Also Jordan and Josiah Jackson stood out with their time on the field.
There are certainly going to be opportunities available in the future for these players but coming and performing well now is laying the groundwork for more time moving ahead.
5—Just win. The most important part of being a head coach is winning. Regardless of the background of the coach or how it's being done, winning is what matters the most. And while Brown is from the air raid tree, he has fully embraced the strength of his team and running the football behind the offensive line.
Brown understands that West Virginia is going to have to get better throwing the ball at just 155-yards per game and some of that could come with connecting on some of those play-action deep shots, but the focus is to rely on the strengths.
Checking the ego at the door is important for any coach and not always easy, but Brown believes that it's a must to play to the strengths of the personnel. That is what this West Virginia team has done well thus far and while other areas must improve, this football team is doing what it can do and playing within themselves.
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