Published: October 13, 2008 11:47 am            

WVU offense going nowhere

MORGANTOWN — Yes, folks, ESPN has to be really thrilled about what's next up at Mountaineer Field. It's appropriate they have a guy nicknamed "Mayday" in the studio.

At the start of the college football season, the Oct. 23 prime-time game was projected as the marquee Thursday matchup of the year -- No. 10 Auburn and No. 8 West Virginia.

It is now 4-3 against 4-2, two teams that when offense comes to mind, the phrase "going nowhere" is appropriate.

Auburn won one of its games 3-2. No word on who got the save. On Saturday against Syracuse, WVU was en route to its lowest score in a victory since 1996 (10-9 over East Carolina) when Noel Devine provided a needed Orange crush.

The Tigers already have fired their offensive coordinator. The Mountaineers may have to find theirs, because newcomer Jeff Mullen probably is hiding behind his couch -- they burn those in these parts -- in fear right now.

Could this be why he didn't call plays in a previous coaching life at Wake Forest? Nah.

On WVU's homecoming, the returnees didn't include the WVU offense -- either the old one or the supposed new one, the one that was going to feature more downfield passing.

Yes, that one. The one that halfway through the season, has exactly one completion of more than 25 yards, and none in the past five games against major college competition -- if you call Syracuse (1-5) major college competition.

This WVU team doesn't need a coach, but maybe a television repairman (hey, my dad was one of those). The Mountaineers have talked so much about trying something vertical, that now the running game is a horizontal mess.

WVU's offensive line does have a grasp on the vertical hold and the horizontal hold, however.

How about some history to put WVU's offense into perspective following a 17-6 win Saturday over the Orange? We'll consider the disclaimer that quarterback Pat White -- Heisman bid pretty much already in fumes -- didn't play because the senior really did have a concussion.

Coach Bill Stewart said the star QB underwent a "neuropsychological impact test." I think just saying that gave Stewart a headache. He confirmed that White's career is not in jeopardy ... as related to the concussion, not running an offense that is more than one fullback shy of a load.

Anyway ...

- In 2006 at Mountaineer Field, WVU rushed for 457 yards against the Orange, the most ground given up in a game in 118 years of SU football history.

- In 2007, West Virginia went to the Carrier Dome and won 55-17 (with 486 total yards), the most points allowed to any visiting team in Syracuse football history.

- In 2008, WVU needed the second longest rush in its own history - Noel Devine's 92-yarder - to hold off an Orange team that really isn't any better than the two before it.

That's the same Devine who got only one carry in the third quarter, with WVU leading 7-6.

Until Devine's run, West Virginia had 125 yards on the ground and 177 total against a team that ranked between 101 and 114 in rush, pass, total and scoring defense - among 119 major teams.

"Not many people think we're very good," Coach Bill Stewart said, "but we keep winning."

Right, Stew, on the first part, but who have you beaten?

Villanova, a good team from a notch below, a mediocre-at-best Marshall and two bad Big East teams in Rutgers and Syracuse. Even the teams that beat the Mountaineers (East Carolina and Colorado) have each lost three in a row.

West Virginia is winning with a defense that bends -- but then impressively makes its own breaks. And the Mountaineers were aided against Syracuse not just by timely defensive plays, but also by some silly coaching moves by the Orange's Greg Robinson, who is probably closer to embalmed than embattled.

Instead of playing field position and putting WVU deep in its own territory with that 7-6 lead in the waning minutes of the third quarter, he tries a fourth-and-3 and gives WVU a short field to drive for a field goal.

Then Robinson eschews a field goal midway through the fourth quarter from the WVU 5, rather than kicking to make it 10-9 with plenty of time to get the ball back. Gee ... Here's to you Mr. Robinson ... woe, woe, woe.

WVU's offense has gone the way of Wall Street, and someone needs to provide a bailout -- with 'Eer marks. Backup quarterback Jarrett Brown obviously isn't the guy. He completed 14 passes for 52 yards. They do that in the Chemical Valley peewees.

And would someone please tell Stewart that most in the home crowd of 58,133 Saturday weren't booing Brown but were disgusted in general with the offensive ineptness. Brown overthrew vertically to start, then underthrew horizontally later.

Stewart, in his postgame remarks, said he didn't want to "throw (Brown) under the bus." Hey, maybe that where that WVU offense is.

I'm no doctor myself, but did Stewart ever think that perhaps White's recurring headaches came from having to run that offense?

        

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