My Fiver on WVU's loss to the Red Raiders on Saturday....
1. Neal Brown called plays yesterday designed to keep the ball away from Texas Tech's offense...because he was scared. He didn't even try to hide it during the week, praising Texas Tech and Joey McGuire as if they were the 2001 Miami Hurricanes. He was scared, and he instilled that fear into the team. Look at the way we played defense - we let them have whatever they wanted between the 20s, and just tried to hold them to "3" in the red zone...because we were scared of Texas Tech. It's pathetic.
2. The degree to which Texas Tech's defensive front manhandled our OL is shocking and embarrassing. Keep in mind that Abilene Christian put up 45 on Texas Tech. Cincinnati put up 41 on these clowns. That pathetic Oklahoma State team put up 48. We had 3 at the half when the game was essentially over. It's probably the worst performance from a Neal Brown coached team over 6 years, and that is saying something.
3. Garrett Greene's final season was a profound disappointment. He had a very good junior campaign last year. But the tape was out on him, teams adjusted, and his running lanes this year were clogged. His best play was when the pass play broke down and he could improvise. But, that's not a winning formula. At 5'10", he really struggled with his vision down the field and he got the turnover bug. I thank the kid for his efforts, as Neal Brown just about got him killed this year running the ball. Greene is a warrior and he seems like a great, great kid. I'm ready for Nicco, or whomever we give the ball to vs. Robert Morris next season.
4. 6-6, 5-4 overall. Look, this new Big 12 is a very mediocre football conference. The fact that Arizona State is now pegged to go to the Playoff just doesn't sit well with me. We're looking up at football programs like Iowa State, Kansas State, Texas Tech, Baylor....these football programs don't have near the history that West Virginia University has enjoyed. But, that history right now ain't paying the bills. It's time to win, but first we are going to need to rebuild.
5. Neal Brown. Like I said quite a few times yesterday, the pathetic, embarrassing results of this game are not going to sway Wren Baker's decision either way. That is because the decision has already been made...and it is a financial one. Obviously, WVU needs a new football coach, unless we want to go between 5-7 and 7-5 each year with a boring, broken offense and bad defense. That is the easy call. Time to fire and hire. However, the Buyout is the roadblock, and despite many on here downplaying its effects, it is a monstrosity of financial hit for our program to take. So, that is the decision and Wren has already made it. There will be an announcement today, and if Wren decided that the juice is worth the squeeze to fire Neal, then my guess is that a replacement has already been contacted, vetted and negotiations are ongoing.
