HUNTINGTON Ƶ Marshall football coach Charles Huff has preached one message to the Thundering Herd all week since returning home from a win at …
From
To
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. Ƶ SaturdayƵs history was not the type the Mountaineers wanted to make.
In ƵUƵs 24-3 loss to Oklahoma State, at Mountaineers Field, West Virginia had its lowest point total since being shut out by Maryland, 39-0, in 2013.
The MountaineersƵ rushing total of 17 net yards was their fewest since gaining just 12 against Maryland in a 54-7 loss in 1951. Only twice since then has ƵU netted 20 or fewer yards on the ground Ƶ 18 vs. Texas Tech in a 38-17 loss in 2019 and 20 vs. Pitt in a 38-17 loss in 1981.
West Virginia managed only 133 yards of total offense against the Cowboys in SaturdayƵs defeat. ThatƵs the best OK State defensive performance since 1999, and itƵs ƵUƵs lowest offensive total since Nebraska limited the 1994 Mountaineers to 89 yards in a 31-0 loss in the Kickoff Classic.
OK State is statistically the best defense in the Big 12 this year, and it certainly showed that on Saturday. That Cowboy unit is not only good, it is also very experienced, starting nine seniors and two fourth-year juniors, though maybe the performance and experience go hand-in-hand.
ƵI think they are pretty good defensively,Ƶ admitted West Virginia quarterback of the OSU D. ƵCoach (Mike) Gundy was talking to me after the game and said I had been playing better lately, but they have a really good defense. That showed tonight. They are pretty good.Ƶ
With a ground attack that was limited to 0.5 per attempt, ƵUƵs offense was hamstrung. It is 4-0 this season when rushing for more than 100 and now 0-5 when rushing for less than that number. Saturday was way less than that number.
ƵIt makes it a lot easier when the run game is working,Ƶ noted Doege. ƵEvery person on our offense has to look in the mirror and own their mistakes and move on to K-State (who ƵU plays on the road next Saturday).Ƶ
West VirginiaƵs rushing attack had shown signs of improvement lately, rushing for 229 yards against TCU and 122 against Iowa State in those two recent victories. But SaturdayƵs performance was a step backward.
ƵIƵm not sure why,Ƶ pondered Doege. ƵWeƵve got to go back and watch the film and see what happened, learn from it, learn from the mistakes and grow from what happened.Ƶ
West VirginiaƵs passing numbers were only slightly better than those on the ground. Doege completed 15 of 22 passes but for just 109 yards with an interception. Backup quarterback Garrett Greene was one of two passing the football for seven yards.
ƵEverything they did we were ready for,Ƶ said Doege. ƵThey didnƵt really do anything that surprised us. We just couldnƵt capitalize and execute the plays.Ƶ
West Virginia wanted to take some deep shots early, but Oklahoma StateƵs tight coverage and strong pass rush didnƵt allow Doege to make those throws. ƵU had just one completion longer than 16 yards, and that was a 32-yard catch-and-run by Sam James on the MountaineersƵ second play of the game, a series which ultimately produced West VirginiaƵs only points of the contest.
ƵWe had a couple on early, but we couldnƵt get them off because of their pressure,Ƶ said Doege of ƵUƵs hopes of long pass completions.
Maybe the most telling stat of all, though, was the fact that between them, Doege and Greene were sacked eight times. The Cowboy pass rush was constant, even when it didnƵt produce sacks.
ƵI just want to make a play, stated Doege. ƵThere were some plays out there that could have been made, and I want to be that spark and make that play to turn things around.
ƵThey were doing a couple different things while playing man, dropping into different coverages,Ƶ ƵU QB said of the OSU secondary. ƵWe just couldnƵt seem to get anything going. IƵll put that on myself. When things are going bad, IƵve got to find a way to get things going in the right direction.Ƶ
West VirginiaƵs offense kept looking for answers, but its struggles blocking, running and getting receivers open left no real options.
ƵI came to the sideline, and me and Coach (Sean) Reagan talked about what happened in the series and talked about what to expect in the upcoming series,Ƶ explained Doege. ƵWe knew it was going to be a grind. He told me to stay in it and take it one play at a time. It was a grind. We just could never get anything going. If we could have just scored a couple points, and got going, it could have been a different game.
ƵWe needed to get first downs (just 11). If we could have done that, we could have gotten some tempo going and taken some deep shots. But we kept going three-and-out, and that didnƵt help us.
ƵRepeatedly we kept going three-and-out, three-and-out, three-and-out, and couldnƵt get anything going,Ƶ the junior quarterback concluded, shaking his head.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (Ƶ News) Ƶ Ƶ good as West VirginiaƵs defense was last season Ƶ and statistically it ranked near the top, especially in pas…
While West VirginiaƵs litany of mistakes were far too much to overcome against a methodical Oklahoma State team on Saturday, one advantage dev…
While West VirginiaƵs litany of mistakes were far too much to overcome against a methodical Oklahoma State team on Saturday, one advantage dev…
HUNTINGTON Ƶ West Virginia teams deal with a colorful situation, Ohio programs hit the second half of the season and Kentucky schools, other t…
EDITORƵS NOTE: Following is an original sidebar from MarshallƵs 21-3 victory over BYU in the 1999 Motor City Bowl: