WVU defense far from perfect, but playing hard

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West Virginia was already up 35-6 with just over 14-minutes left in the fourth quarter Saturday against Kansas State when it happened.

Alex Delton, who had replaced Skylar Thompson, faced a 3rd and goal from the 20. After taking the snap, he rolled out to his right and in pursuit was the biggest player on the field in nose tackle Darius Stills.

The big man didn’t quite make the tackle but he forced Delton into his teammates and the sideline for a loss of a yard and a field goal attempt.

“Stills was moving,” coordinator Tony Gibson said. “He came over and he was breathing hard and he said coach I thought I had him. And I said me, too.”

It might have seemed like an inconsequential play at the time but it’s a microcosm of the major differences in this West Virginia defense compared to last seasons.

It would have been easy to give up on the play considering the time in the game and the distance between the two teams on the scoreboard, but it didn’t happen.

This might not be the most talented group under Gibson but you can’t question their desire or effort.

“They’re going to blow coverages, they’re going to miss assignments, they’re going to have missed tackles but one thing a West Virginia defense is not going to do is loaf and not play hard,” Gibson said.

Last season was a difficult one for the Mountaineers on the defensive side to put it lightly. West Virginia surrendered 445.5 yards and 31.5 points per game placing the unit at 106th and 90th in each respective category as the group dealt with chemistry and at times issues with effort.

There was some turnover in the off-season as the Mountaineers saw several players leave the program and several others came into it as things started to gel. Now three games into the 2018 campaign you’re seeing the shift play out on the field such as the aforementioned play with Stills.

Gibson’s group is allowing only 12.3 points and 312 yards per game. Regardless of the opponents, those are numbers that anybody likely would have taken prior to the start of the year given the concerns and question marks that were rampant on the defensive side of the ball.

The six points given up to Kansas State is the lowest total allowed since 2015 and the 93 yards rushing is the first time that the Mountaineers have held a team under 100 since Miami in 2016.

The Wildcats were 3-14 on third down and didn't even convert one until the third quarter, which also was the first time they crossed into West Virginia territory.

Changing expectations one series at a time.

“Their fast, their disruptive, probably reckless at times but we have confidence on that side we have experience, we have leadership and it’s fun to watch,” head coach Dana Holgorsen said.

Never is that effort more noticeable than with how the Mountaineers have been disruptive in the backfield already recording 31 tackles for loss by 17 different players. That’s an average of over ten per game for the West Virginia defense, something that would surprise many heading into the year.

The defensive line also has been particularly impressive rotating as many as seven different players up front to limit snap counts and keeping the unit fresh throughout the game. It’s a luxury that neither Gibson or Holgorsen have had during their tenure together in Morgantown.

“We got guys that care and play hard. We got guys up front that can penetrate, blow gaps up. I’ve been telling you guys that for eight months now. We’re different, we’re different up front,” Gibson said.

As for the rest of the defense, Gibson believes that this is the fastest group collectively since he took the post at West Virginia and that speed was on display during a critical fourth down stop in the second quarter. On the play, Kansas State checked into a pitch from a quarterback run and three players met the Wildcats ball carrier in the backfield for a loss of four.

“We just stayed sound and everybody did their job,” junior linebacker David Long said.

Will Grier, a Heisman Trophy candidate, has gone against three separate defenses but perhaps his biggest challenge to date has been trying to figuring out Gibson's unit. He's noticed many of the same things with the unit.

"They just play with heart. They play tough, they play fast. We've really harped on just trying to make each other better," Grier said.

Now this is far from a finished product and West Virginia has yet to play a team that has the ability to challenge it vertically like the next opponent Texas Tech will – but there’s a different feeling to this defense. It isn’t the same group that limped through last season.

No, there is a confidence with the group as the Mountaineers head into conference play.

“We got guys that can run and we’ve got guys up front that we can control gaps,” Gibson said.

And those things give you a chance.

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