In light of ESPN's first bowl game predictions, and their unanimous christening of TCU as a national championship game staple...it harkens me back to a dark, dark time in 2014>>> the fourth quarter of that TCU game in Morgantown.
We seized that game and TCU's season by the throat twice in that second half>>> once after Terrell Chestnut scored on that strip, scoop and sprint down the sideline to give WVU the lead - we hit Alford for a 46-yard pass and had first-and-ten from TCU's 12 yard line. But, we ran Buie three straight times and then were held to a field goal instead of going up by two TDs. Next, TCU turns the ball over on downs with 3:46 to go and we take over at our 43 with the lead, 30-28. Three straight runs by Buie go nowhere, and we're forced to punt. The rest is painful history.
Baylor fell to just one team in 2014, that being WVU in a game that we dominated fairly well. TCU was probably a top 5 team last season, and is being projected to be a top two team in 2015. Yet, we had them beat...and let them go.
Admittedly, Alabama and Oklahoma were just too much in the trenches. I would say we could match them at the skill positions, but they had too much up front. But, still...WVU had the chops to stand with top ten competition, toe-to-toe in 2014. We return much in 2015, especially defensively. Skyler Howard's mobility gives our offense an extra dimension it lacked last season. Our DL looks to be solid, OL...well, there's a question mark. But, if we cut out turnovers, and force a few more on defense (which is a distinct possibility)...is there a chance that WVU could be what TCU was in 2014?
Ultimately, I wonder if Dana rethinks that fourth quarter often. I feel that he went into a shell, almost a deer-in-headlights, just waiting, dying, for the clock to run out. That fourth quarter hangover carried over with the team for the next couple of weeks. If you have the chance to do something special vs. top competition, you gotta seize that opportunity and go in for the kill.
We seized that game and TCU's season by the throat twice in that second half>>> once after Terrell Chestnut scored on that strip, scoop and sprint down the sideline to give WVU the lead - we hit Alford for a 46-yard pass and had first-and-ten from TCU's 12 yard line. But, we ran Buie three straight times and then were held to a field goal instead of going up by two TDs. Next, TCU turns the ball over on downs with 3:46 to go and we take over at our 43 with the lead, 30-28. Three straight runs by Buie go nowhere, and we're forced to punt. The rest is painful history.
Baylor fell to just one team in 2014, that being WVU in a game that we dominated fairly well. TCU was probably a top 5 team last season, and is being projected to be a top two team in 2015. Yet, we had them beat...and let them go.
Admittedly, Alabama and Oklahoma were just too much in the trenches. I would say we could match them at the skill positions, but they had too much up front. But, still...WVU had the chops to stand with top ten competition, toe-to-toe in 2014. We return much in 2015, especially defensively. Skyler Howard's mobility gives our offense an extra dimension it lacked last season. Our DL looks to be solid, OL...well, there's a question mark. But, if we cut out turnovers, and force a few more on defense (which is a distinct possibility)...is there a chance that WVU could be what TCU was in 2014?
Ultimately, I wonder if Dana rethinks that fourth quarter often. I feel that he went into a shell, almost a deer-in-headlights, just waiting, dying, for the clock to run out. That fourth quarter hangover carried over with the team for the next couple of weeks. If you have the chance to do something special vs. top competition, you gotta seize that opportunity and go in for the kill.
