Taking defenses out of their comfort zone

Al-Rasheed Benton doesn’t have to guess how opposing defenses feel going against the myriad of formations that the West Virginia offense can utilize without substituting.

The redshirt junior linebacker knows it all too well. That’s because he goes against the offense in practice and understands how the various formations can take you out of a comfort zone.

“It makes you think. It makes you start that thought process and if you’re thinking you’re not reacting and not playing football,” Benton said.

Take the game against Texas Tech for example. West Virginia took a goal line package and transformed into a five wide receiver set with fullbacks Elijah Wellman and Michael Ferns in front of running back Justin Crawford.

The result? A quick pass to the junior running back where he waltzed in the end zone.

The Mountaineers also utilized a new wrinkle to one they broke out earlier in the season. The twin stack wide receiver look now had a slot wide receiver as opposed to the running back look they had shown in the past. A new thing for defensive coordinators to prepare for when watching West Virginia.

“We like making people uncomfortable. Making people uncomfortable is what we do,” wide receivers coach Tyron Carrier said. “It will make you have to figure out a bunch of situations.”

Carrier pointed to what the New England Patriots do at the professional level to exploit teams by putting them in situations they aren’t comfortable with and taking advantage of those.

“That’s what we’re trying to do,” Carrier said.

Because of the versatility of the West Virginia running backs and fullbacks, the Mountaineers can line up those players at various spots on the field and do it without substituting.

Meaning defenses have to act quickly in order to defend the various looks they are given on any play.

Take the twin stack look for example. It has been a key formation for West Virginia on third downs and has allowed the Mountaineers to get the ball out quickly while forcing the defense to play sound.

“You can’t squeeze the box inside the gaps and you can’t overload the gaps outside,” running backs coach JaJuan Seider said. “I’m a defense it would scare me because I don’t know where that ball is going to hit. It’s always fun to get into it and see how people match up with it.”