Classes have started at West Virginia Wednesday, signifying a shift in the practice schedule.

The Mountaineers must now operate under the 20-hour rule per the NCAA which limits the amount of time dedicated to required athletic activities. That includes no more than four hours per day.

Despite almost the entire team moving to an online model for classes this year in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, it still will force some changes compared to what had been occurring.

Fall camp is now technically in the rear view mirror but the practice schedule will continue in advance of the season opener Sept. 12 against Eastern Kentucky. The plan for this week was provide an off-day for the first day of classes before resuming contact work today.

Friday is then set to be a lighter practice, altering the original pans of a Friday evening scrimmage under the lights. Now, the scrimmage is set to be held Saturday morning inside the stadium.

The Mountaineers already conducted one 88-play, two-hour scrimmage inside Milan Puskar Stadium which was only the second time that West Virginia head coach Neal Brown had his entire team together since things abruptly stopped March 12.

The focus also has been on situational work. With West Virginia focused on some two-minute, end-of-the-half scenarios, red zone and fundamental stuff. The team also concentrated on tempo such as getting the units on and off the field quickly ahead of the first contest.

Work is expected to continue leading up to the opener with the focus soon shifting from making roster decisions on the depth chart and playing time, to focusing on preparation for the opener. Sill, there are important thing that must be decided and now practicing in full will help the coaching staff start to trim things down.

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