Each week WVSports.com Managing Editor Keenan Cummings provides a look at some of the things that stood out to him during the course of the game and on the stat sheet.
These observations are a snapshot of what unfolded in the West Virginia 41-39 loss to Houston and what could happen next for the Mountaineers.
--We can point to the final play of this game as much as we want, but West Virginia lost this football game throughout with an absolute inability to put it away or create any comfortable distance when they had opportunities to do so. In fact, the Mountaineers were trailing 14-10 at half despite for the most part dominating the game in every category outside the scoreboard. But as I often said under Dana Holgorsen, you can't score yards. This team had made it's bones by playing smart, sound and not beating themselves. This was everything but that. The Mountaineers finished with 8 penalties for 84 yards, including yet again getting tagged with one for taking their helmets off on the field after the go-ahead touchdown with 12 seconds remaining. That simply can't happen and the fact it's now happened twice in big moments is unacceptable. West Virginia also lost the turnover battle in crushing fashion on a pass that quite literally bounced off a running back's chest on a wheel route which should have been six points but instead was an interception in the end zone. We can sugar coat this all we want, but this was a game that a good team finds a way to win and West Virginia couldn't do it. Houston was begging to be put away at times early in this game and this team just couldn't make enough plays to do it. Some of it can be attributed to early play calling, some of it just players not making plays when they were there -- but if you continue to play this style you can't afford to do it without discipline.
--West Virginia had 39 points, 546 yards of total offense, 26 first downs, was +29 in plays and 14-20 on third and fourth downs, 4-4 in the red zone, had almost a 14-minute advantage in time of possession and still somehow lost this football game. That is the second time that West Virginia has gone for at least 540 yards under Brown against FBS opponents since he arrived in 2019 and are 0-2 with the last one the 38-17 loss to Texas Tech in his first season. You can't score yards.
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