The Day After: West Virginia football vs. Texas Tech
The West Virginia football team snapped a four-game losing streak to Texas Tech by getting past the Red Raiders 20-13 inside Milan Puskar Stadium.
The Mountaineers moved to 3-1 on the season and and WVSports.com takes a look back at what unfolded in our weekly feature The Day After.
HOT:
The defense. For the second straight week West Virginia was carried by a strong performance out of a defense that faced serious questions in the off-season. The Mountaineers have allowed just 19 points in the past two games and the unit stepped up big on fourth down late in the game to effectively close things out.
Beating Texas Tech. What more needs to be said? The Red Raiders had really gotten the number of the Mountaineers since Brown took over the program and this win was big for a lot of reasons. Now at 3-1, the Mountaineers have gotten off on the right foot.
Kole Taylor. The LSU transfer tight end overcame a scary looking injury in the first half to lead the Mountaineers in receiving with 39 yards and a touchdown on three catches. The redshirt junior has become the most consistent pass catcher on the roster to date and has almost eclipsed the entire receiving production of the position from all of last season in just four games.
The drive to start the fourth quarter. After two three and outs and another drive that spanned just 5 plays and 21 yards, the Mountaineers led only 13-10 with 11:49 on the clock and no momentum for the offense. That's when West Virginia put together their best drive of the game spanning 79 yards in 7 plays to recapture the momentum. Marchiol was effective both running and throwing the football on the drive and it led to the Mountaineers giving themselves more breathing room.
Penalties. West Virginia again played smart football racking up just three penalties for 20 yards. The Mountaineers have been very effective this year in that department.
Punt/return. West Virginia has quietly put together a very strong season in this area of the game as the Mountaineers have allowed 0 yards in returns this year while putting together strong net punting numbers. And on the flip side, Preston Fox has proven very capable as a returner and flipped the field in this one with 45 yards.
NOT:
The passing game. West Virginia managed just 99 yards passing after netting 60 yards the week before against Pittsburgh. When you consider that 21 of those yards was on a trick play pass from a wide receiver, it's even more alarming. The blame falls at the feet of both Nicco Marchiol and the wide receivers, but things must improve there if West Virginia is going to win football games moving forward.
Turnovers. Had you told me that West Virginia would lose the turnover battle in this game 2-0 and still in the game I wouldn't have believed you. The Mountaineers had two giveaways in this one and one of those resulted in 3 points for Texas Tech. This team wants to run the football and play physical, it can't afford to turn the ball over although they were able to survive this one.
DEFINING MOMENTS:
2nd and 4 from the WVU 40. After a six-yard run, West Virginia went play action and Marchiol was late with a throw that led to an interception. That would prove to set up the Red Raiders at the WVU 35 and would led to their only first half points.
3rd and 9 from the TTU 16. West Virginia checked down to Jaylen Anderson for a three-yard throw but a flag for holding extended the drive.
3rd and goal from TTU 2. Three plays later, West Virginia would cash in on a touchdown with CJ Donaldson pounding into the end zone.
3rd and 7 from the TTU 42. Texas Tech quarterback Tyler Shough had his pass broken up but the Red Raiders quarterback left the game with an injury and wouldn't return.
4th and 1 from the WVU 43. West Virginia would line up and sneak the football for just enough which would extend the drive and result in an eventual field goal.
4th and 6 from the WVU 46. After an interception which bounced off the hands of Devin Carter, Texas Tech curiously made the decision to go for it on fourth down. The ball would fall incomplete and give it back to the Mountaineers.
4th and 1 from the WVU 49. The West Virginia defense would hold yet again on fourth down and give the football back to the Mountaineers to stop momentum.
4th and 9 from the TTU 44. In comeback mode, Texas Tech rolled the dice with essentially the game on the line and converted with a 15-yard pass play. That would result in the only Texas Tech touchdown just three plays later.
3rd and 5 from the TTU 26. Leading 13-10, West Virginia would get a first down aided by penalty when Preston Fox was held in the end zone. The Mountaineers would score two plays later on a toss to Kole Taylor.
1st and 10 from the WVU 26. West Virginia gave up a field goal and then decided to take a deep shot to EJ Horton with the ball just out of reach.
4th and 10 from the WVU 11. This play ended the game with the West Virginia defense getting a stand and holding Texas Tech out of the end zone.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
0 - Punt return yardage allowed by West Virginia through four games.
2 – Passes completed by West Virginia for over 15 yards and only one of those was from an actual quarterback.
2-18 - Texas Tech on third down. The Red Raiders were 5-8 on fourth down.
3 - Wins in a row by West Virginia. The first time that the Mountaineers have won three in a row since beating Baylor, Texas and TCU in 2018.
8 - Consecutive drives where West Virginia forced a punt or a turnover on downs.
9:40 - The time of possession advantage for West Virginia despite Texas Tech running 17 more plays than the Mountaineers.
11 - Yards needed for Texas Tech to score a game tying touchdown but the West Virginia defense was able to get the stop.
13 – The fewest points Texas Tech has scored against West Virginia since the Mountaineers joined the Big 12 in 2012.
19 – Points allowed by the West Virginia defense in the past two games.
45 - Punt return yardage by Preston Fox. West Virginia had 75 all of last season.
46 - Receiving yardage by the West Virginia wide receivers.
56 - Total offensive yards allowed by the West Virginia defense in the first half. The Mountaineers finished allowing 321.
146 - Receiving yards from tight end Kole Taylor in four games. The Mountaineers had only 153 total yards at the position last season.
157 - Rushing yardage by West Virginia. The Mountaineers are now 21-5 under Brown when rushing for at least 100 yards.
2005 - The last time West Virginia won two consecutive games with 99 or fewer passing yards since beating Pittsburgh and South Florida to close that season.
1,821 - Days since West Virginia last beat Texas Tech in September 2018.
GAME BALL:
The defense. The expectation coming into this game was that 17 points wouldn't be able to beat Texas Tech. Well, the defensive unit made sure that was wrong as the Mountaineers held the Red Raiders to just 13 points total. It was a dominant effort in the first half especially as West Virginia held Texas Tech to just three points which were gifted off a turnover and 56 total yards. Things weren't quite that dominant in the second half but the defense once again rose to the occasion getting a fourth down stop to close the door on any chance of a Texas Tech comeback. This is a unit that has been very physical and is playing with confidence. The offense, which I'll address below, needs to continue to improve but through four games the West Virginia defense has certainly risen to the challenge after being questioned all off-season.
BIGGEST QUESTION/CONCERN MOVING FORWARD:
Can the offense show improvement? West Virginia has won consecutive games with backup quarterback Nicco Marchiol playing all but five snaps but the offense has certainly left some things to be desired. After scoring just 17 points against Pittsburgh, the Mountaineers managed just 20 against Texas Tech and had only 256 total yards.
It remains to be seen if starter Garrett Greene is going to be healthy enough to play against TCU but regardless the Mountaineers are going to have to play better football on that side of the ball and score some points. West Virginia has played very well on the defensive side over the past two games but this offense is going to have to find a way to score some more points and that could come with more experience for Marchiol.
We said this a week ago and were dead wrong but it seems that 20 points isn't going to be enough to win on the road at TCU. We'll find out soon enough.
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