The Day After: West Virginia football vs. North Carolina
The West Virginia football team closed the season on a high note knocking off North Carolina 30-10 in the Duke's Mayo Bowl in Charlotte.
The Mountaineers moved to 894 on the season and WVSports.com takes a look back at what unfolded in our weekly feature The Day After.
HOT:
Closing the season strong. You've read it before, but for a team that was picked 14th in the Big 12 but won nine games and did it in convincing fashion in the bowl.
Garrett Greene. The redshirt junior has been at the center of the success for this team down the last eight games of the season offensively and that was no different here. Greene eclipsed 200 yards passing and 75 yards rushing in the same game for the fourth time this season and outside that it's only been done six other times in school history. Greene is the engine of this offense and has become a major weapon that gives this football team a chance every time they take the field.
The opening play. It doesn't start much better than a 75-yard touchdown, does it?
Hudson Clement. The redshirt freshman hauled in 5 catches for 89 yards including some critical grabs in key situations. Over his final two games, Clement had a total of 169 yards and became a centerpiece to the wide receiver room.
The defense. West Virginia's defense did not allow a single point in the second half while recording a total of 7 sacks and 11 tackles for loss in the game. The unit wasn't perfect but did keep the Tar Heels from closing the gap and kept them from keeping drives alive with two turnovers in the red zone along with holding them to 6-18 in critical down and distance situations. Players such as linebacker Lee Kpogba, defensive lineman Eddie Vesterinen and others stood out.
Special teams. Outside one kickoff return where the returner bounced it and an offsides penalty that gave the Tar Heels punt team a first down, it was nearly flawless with this unit. West Virginia returned a punt 78-yards for a touchdown, made 3-4 field goals with the only miss from distance, forced a fumble and controlled field position.
The crowd. There were only 42,925 in the stands but considering the game was played in the state of North Carolina it was essentially a home game for the Mountaineers. The crowd was by far in favor of the gold and blue and it was a great representation for the fan base in turning out for a regional bowl game.
NOT:
Penalties. West Virginia came into the game averaging only 44.3 yards per game in yellow handkerchiefs but was called for 9 infractions for 70 yards some of which completely derailed drives and killed momentum.
Red zone execution. West Virginia had chances to put the game away at times but struggled to score touchdowns in the red zone to do it. The Mountaineers had just 16 points on four trips into the red zone, which has to be better.
DEFINING PLAYS:
1st and 10 from WVU 25. On the first play of the game, quarterback Garrett Greene dropped back on play action and fired the ball to a wide-open Traylon Ray who took the ball 75 yards for a touchdown.
3rd and 15 from UNC 31. The Tar Heels were backed up with a false start penalty, but Harrell picked up 17 yards on a designed draw to keep the drive alive. It would stall, but North Carolina would be able to flip the field in the process and back the Mountaineers up to their own 8 after a punt.
1st and 10 from UNC 31. After a West Virginia punt, the Tar Heels would connect on a 47-yard pass down the field on a perfectly delivered ball to Gavin Blackwell. After a penalty, the North Carolina offense would set up inside the red zone for the first time of the day.
2nd and 12 from WVU 12. After a two-yard rush, Harrell attempted to find Deems May in the back of the end zone but Aubrey Burks picked off the ball in the end zone for a touchback.
3rd and 1 from 50. After recapturing most of the penalty yardage off a hold, the Mountaineers gave the ball to DJ Oliver on a carry where he gained six yards but fumbled the football for a turnover.
4th and 1 from WVU 6. North Carolina took that drive down to the Mountaineers' six-yard line and on a fourth and one play elected to roll the dice. The ball was snapped over the head of Harrell but a flag for a false start kept the Tar Heels from turning over the ball and they’d boot a 28-yard field goal.
2nd and 7 from WVU 40. After an explosive 37-yard pass to Hudson Clement, the play was called back on an illegal man down the field and erased a significant play. The Mountaineers would punt two plays later to give UNC the football back.
4th and 12 from WVU 35. The punt by Straw hit a Tar Heels player to give the Mountaineers the ball at the North Carolina 26. But again a penalty pushed the drive back and West Virginia would have to settle for a 50-yard field goal attempt that was short to keep the score 7-3.
2nd and 10 from UNC 46. West Virginia was able to force Harrell into a grounding penalty and after a five-yard loss which forced a punt. Then Beanie Bishop took the ensuing punt back 78 yards for a touchdown to give the Mountaineers a 14-3 lead late in the first half.
2nd and 4 from WVU 16. The Mountaineers defense allowed the Tar Heels to move right down the field to get a touchdown to completely recapture the momentum on a 16-yard touchdown toss to JJ Jones despite a blatantly missed offensive pass interference call.
1st and 10 from WVU 25. On the next possession, West Virginia was able to get North Carolina to jump offsides and Greene connected on a 33-yard pass to Hudson Clement. From there, the Mountaineers would move the ball down to the UNC 12 and tack on a field goal as time expired to take a 17-10 lead entering the halftime break.
2nd and 9 from WVU 26. The Tar Heels came out with all the momentum moving the ball deep into the Mountaineers' own end but Tyrin Bradley snagged a one-handed interception and brought the ball back to the WVU 45 although it would result in a three and out.
3rd and 4 from WVU 37. Greene took the ball off the right side and was able to pick up a key first down to move the chains. But after that, the offense would drive to the North Carolina 20 before stalling out and the offense would settle for a 34-yard field goal to move ahead 20-10.
2nd and goal from UNC 11. After two plays put West Virginia inside the Tar Heel's ten-yard line, a false start put them back outside of it. From there, Jaheim White would go off the left side for an 11-yard touchdown to put the Mountaineers ahead 27-10.
4th and 3 from UNC 26. Trailing 27-10 with over 11 minutes remaining, the Tar Heels were forced to go for it and a deep pass play fell incomplete giving the Mountaineers the ball deep in their territory. But the Tar Heels would hold and it would lead to a 40-yard field goal attempt.
4th and 5 from UNC 21. On that field goal, West Virginia would fake it with Leighton Bechdel carrying the football inside the North Carolina five to extend the drive. However, that again just resulted in a field goal attempt this time through the nets to make it a 30-10 game with 8:02 left.
4th and 14 from WVU 28. After North Carolina drove the ball down to the Mountaineers' end of the field, the defense once again forced a stop and effectively closed out the game.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
0 - Second-half points allowed by West Virginia.
1 - Sacks allowed by the West Virginia offensive line.
2-1 - Record for West Virginia against North Carolina all of those bowl meetings.
3 - Punt return yards allowed by West Virginia in this game which also is the total for the entire 2023 campaign.
4 - The number of times that Garrett Greene has rushed for at least 75 yards and thrown for 200 yards in the same game this season. It's happened six other times in the history of the football program.
7 - Sacks for the West Virginia defense, the most since the Mountaineers had 7 against Iowa State during the 2017 season.
7.3 - Yards per play for the West Virginia offense, a number that the Mountaineers only hit once during the entirety of the 2022 season.
12- Tackles by Lee Kpogba in his final game at West Virginia.
16 - Games in a row that West Virginia has rushed for 140 yards or more. Also the number of points in four red zone trips.
31-29 - West Virginia record under Neal Brown.
48.3 - Average yards per punt on three attempts.
75 - Total yards on the Traylon Ray touchdown reception to open the game, matching the longest pass-play of the season which was the touchdown catch by Jaheim White against Cincinnati.
78 - The longest punt return since Antonio Brown traveled 80 yards in 1999.
572 - Rushing yards by Jaheim White over the final five games of the season.
2012 - The last time before the 78-yard Beanie Bishop return that West Virginia returned a punt for a touchdown when Tavon Austin took it back 76 yards against TCU.
2020 - The last time West Virginia won a bowl game before this one.
GAME BALL:
The defensive line. West Virginia dominated this game up front as the Mountaineers recorded a total of 7 sacks and 11 tackles for loss. Early in the game some of the quarterback run game worked for North Carolina but it was a strong performance up front by a group where many will return next season.
BIGGEST QUESTION/CONCERN MOVING FORWARD:
Can West Virginia hold this team together? Like most teams, West Virginia is going to experience some losses in the transfer portal because it's just the nature of the beat in today's college football. It's already happened in some instances with players like defensive lineman Mike Lockhart, safety Hershey McLaurin, edge rusher James Heard and running back Justin Johnson all exiting the program before the Duke's Mayo Bowl was played. And that list will definitely grow now with football over for the year. But the question and concern is who will join that list and can the program keep the players that they want to keep without any significant damage to the core of a very young roster. The transfer portal will close on Jan. 3 which means that we'll know sooner than later.
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