This review is largely based on the first half.
OFFENSE:
Formation count: 3 WR, 1 FB, 1 RB (19), Twin stacked WRs, 1 RB (1), Trips WR, 1 WR, 1 RB (3), 4 WR 1 RB (18), 3 WR 2 RB (1), Diamond formation (1)
--West Virginia used redshirt senior Elijah Wellman in a much more traditional role in this game, opening up with him flexed and on the first carry senior Justin Crawford just followed his lead for a nice run.
--The Mountaineers used a very fast tempo on the first drive, snapping the ball within ten seconds outside when Crawford lost his shoe that was the only thing that slowed them down.
--Really like what West Virginia did with the trips to one side, one wide receiver to the other and showed screen but junior David Sills took off on a slant and Grier hit him in stride at the sticks. The variation of the screen was huge in this game and there is so much they can do with that moving forward.
--On the first touchdown run by Crawford, West Virginia lines up in a four wide receiver set and a single back and Crawford just follows the block of redshirt senior Kyle Bosch into the end zone almost untouched from five yards out.
--West Virginia faced its first third down of the game near the end of the first quarter and the Mountaineers lined up with four wide receivers and Grier had plenty of time to scan and go through his progressions and Ka’Raun White was able to get open and sit in a spot for the third and 9 conversion.
--The 38-yard catch by junior Gary Jennings was a thing of beauty. It was a go-route on the inside, which Ka’Raun White was open for miles as well on the short pattern, and he was able to track the ball, split the defenders and make a leaping catch on a nice placed ball by Grier.
--West Virginia goes to the diamond formation for the first time in the game during their second trip into the end zone. At second and goal from the five, Grier sees single coverage on the outside with Ka’Raun White and delivers a beautifully executed fade that brings back memories of Kevin catching it. Six easy points there as White gets separation and Grier drops it in perfectly.
--West Virginia again uses the wide receiver screen action to get junior wide receiver David Sills wide open down the sideline. Grier underthrows the ball, but it’s still a big play and something the Mountaineers will come back to later in the second quarter.
--On the third touchdown of the game, it was so well-blocked that Wellman didn’t even have anybody to hit when the hole first opened. The Mountaineers use the three wide receivers and fullback flexed formation and hand the ball off to McKoy there is a gaping hole and Wellman seals it to create enough space for the sophomore to get into the end zone after a dive.
--Grier is of course talented, but he’s smart too. On a third and 2 on the next drive, East Carolina has seven players in the box and he just quickly swings it out to Gary Jennings who was left uncovered for a first down and to move the sticks.
--On the very next play is the first time that West Virginia uses two back in the game with Ka’Raun White lined up on the boundary and a pair of wide receivers on the field side including Marcus Simms. At the snap, Crawford motions out to the side to bring a defender with him and Jennings runs an underneath route across the middle of the field. Simms simply runs a deep post and out runs the cornerback in man coverage with no safety help and Grier drops the ball in for an easy touchdown.
--On the second fade touchdown, West Virginia again lines up in run formation on second and five from the 9 with Sills alone at the top against press coverage. Grier recognizes this and Sills does an excellent job selling it inside before moving to the outside with separation and the ball falls into his hands. This was executed perfectly and just a really good looking play overall.
--I still can’t get over the almost touchdown in this game. Grier drops the snap which throws off the timing from the start at the East Carolina 27-yard line and pressure comes right up the middle into his face. He’s able to shake that off and spin around before delivering an incredibly accurate ball given the circumstances falling away to Simms which is narrowly a missed touchdown. Had he pulled off that play it might have gone down in the West Virginia hall of fame.
--West Virginia didn’t face a fourth down in this game until 6:18 left in the first half, the result was a missed field goal the only time that the Mountaineers didn’t score a touchdown.
--West Virginia decided it was going to run the football on its next drive with a bunch of three wide receivers, tight end looks and pounding the ball with Justin Crawford. On his 41-yard touchdown run, Wellman doesn’t even have anybody to block until the second level and it’s just a gaping hole that Crawford squirts through and is then off to the races.
--West Virginia didn’t waste a lot of time going for another touchdown. This time out of a running formation, the Mountaineers go back to the screen action and both ECU defenders bite up to go at Jennings, while Sills runs untouched down the sideline. The pass has just enough for the long and rangy Sills who is able to corral it in and race 75-yards for a touchdown with nobody in sight. Just simply a coverage bust for the Pirates and the same one that resulted in a huge gain earlier in the game.
--The Mountaineers had 479 total yards, averaged 10.9 per play in the first half.
--Second half it looked like the first team had just packed it up but it’s hard to blame them a holding penalty killed the first drive, leading to a three and out. I will say the throw that Grier executed on the third touchdown to Sills was very impressive, that’s the last score of the game.
DEFENSE:
--I counted six missed tackles in the first half, which was actually better than I thought on initial watch.
--On the almost interception by redshirt junior Toyous Avery, he baited as if he was going to come on the blitz but West Virginia actually only rushed three, however pressure up the middle from sophomore Reese Donahue forced a quick pass to the flats where Avery had dropped. The ball was basically thrown right to him but he wasn’t able to corral it.
--West Virginia brought five on the ensuing 3rd and 15, but Sirk was able to get the ball out and even though senior Elijah Battle was in good coverage he wasn’t able to locate the ball and it dropped right in for 27-yard catch down the sidelines.
--Mountaineers brought six on the next play, but East Carolina again was able to get the football out quickly for a nice chunk of yards on the outside. The cornerbacks were all playing six to seven yards off and they ran a nice rub play to get the quick guy open. East Carolina would go back to a variation of this to convert on fourth down and three, once again going to the inside player after a rub on the outside.
--Thought it was bad watching it live, but don’t agree with that pass interference call that set up the Pirates with a fourth and goal. West Virginia brought zero pressure and it was one-on-one on an underthrown ball and while Avery did grab him, it wasn’t anything malicious.
--West Virginia got really lucky on the next play as nobody took the inside wide receiver and he was standing all alone with his hand up in the end zone. Dravon Askew-Henry noticed this and closed on it, but had Sirk been more aware that was an easy touchdown and bust for the defense. However, luckily the Mountaineers got away with that bust as the ball was thrown out of the back of the end zone.
--Redshirt sophomore Adam Shuler is just flat out disruptive. He hasn’t gotten to the quarterback yet but he is going to and is forcing a lot of holds (some called, some not).
--I thought redshirt freshman Dylan Tonkery played very well a week ago and he did his job this week too. Tonkery fills his gaps and plays very fast and physical for a player with limited experience.
--Senior safety Kyzir White was practically everywhere in all facets of the defense and while he recorded two interceptions almost had another when he broke on the sideline on a pass that Sirk floated early in the second quarter. He is lining up everywhere and is just playing at a different level right now. On his first interception, White recognizes the play from the jump and races over to the flats jumping in front of the roll out attempt and under cutting the ball for the pick. Great recognition there. On the second interception, West Virginia brings six and Sirk throws off his back foot which basically allows White to get under it like it was intended for him.
--Three and out for the Pirates on their second possession in large part because of a bad snap.
--Freshman Lamonte McDougle continued to work with the second team defensive line along with redshirt senior Jon Lewis and junior Ezekiel Rose. They worked almost exclusively with the defense during the Pirates third offensive possession.
--Junior nose guard Jalen Harvey made his debut on the next series, and a big hit by Toyous Avery, who really settled in nicely, forced the Pirates into another three and out trailing 35-3.
--Syracuse graduate transfer Corey Winfield into the game at the 6-minute mark of the second half and was beat deep although he did have good position just couldn’t make a play on the ball. He would be beat for a 95-yard touchdown in the second half.
--A lot of dropping guys into zone instead of the pressure you’re used to seeing there in the second quarter. They didn’t completely abandon pressure, but they were trying to make the Pirates throw the ball into windows and sustain drives.
--Second half a lot of new faces, liked what I saw out of freshman cornerback Kenny Robinson. Played safety all in camp but handled himself well out there in the second half including a pass breakup.
SPECIAL TEAMS:
--West Virginia opened the game with a new formation on kickoff return with only one deep man in sophomore Marcus Simms. Redshirt senior Elijah Wellman was in front of him looking to pave the way for him. It goes without saying that Simms simply brings a different speed dimension on returns. On Simms 23-yard punt return he had some good blocking, but made people miss and flashed his speed.
--Good news, three touchbacks. Bad news? A kickoff out of bounds. I do think placement was much better which allowed coverage to be better as well, but the kickoffs out of bounds are problematic.
OFFENSE:
Formation count: 3 WR, 1 FB, 1 RB (19), Twin stacked WRs, 1 RB (1), Trips WR, 1 WR, 1 RB (3), 4 WR 1 RB (18), 3 WR 2 RB (1), Diamond formation (1)
--West Virginia used redshirt senior Elijah Wellman in a much more traditional role in this game, opening up with him flexed and on the first carry senior Justin Crawford just followed his lead for a nice run.
--The Mountaineers used a very fast tempo on the first drive, snapping the ball within ten seconds outside when Crawford lost his shoe that was the only thing that slowed them down.
--Really like what West Virginia did with the trips to one side, one wide receiver to the other and showed screen but junior David Sills took off on a slant and Grier hit him in stride at the sticks. The variation of the screen was huge in this game and there is so much they can do with that moving forward.
--On the first touchdown run by Crawford, West Virginia lines up in a four wide receiver set and a single back and Crawford just follows the block of redshirt senior Kyle Bosch into the end zone almost untouched from five yards out.
--West Virginia faced its first third down of the game near the end of the first quarter and the Mountaineers lined up with four wide receivers and Grier had plenty of time to scan and go through his progressions and Ka’Raun White was able to get open and sit in a spot for the third and 9 conversion.
--The 38-yard catch by junior Gary Jennings was a thing of beauty. It was a go-route on the inside, which Ka’Raun White was open for miles as well on the short pattern, and he was able to track the ball, split the defenders and make a leaping catch on a nice placed ball by Grier.
--West Virginia goes to the diamond formation for the first time in the game during their second trip into the end zone. At second and goal from the five, Grier sees single coverage on the outside with Ka’Raun White and delivers a beautifully executed fade that brings back memories of Kevin catching it. Six easy points there as White gets separation and Grier drops it in perfectly.
--West Virginia again uses the wide receiver screen action to get junior wide receiver David Sills wide open down the sideline. Grier underthrows the ball, but it’s still a big play and something the Mountaineers will come back to later in the second quarter.
--On the third touchdown of the game, it was so well-blocked that Wellman didn’t even have anybody to hit when the hole first opened. The Mountaineers use the three wide receivers and fullback flexed formation and hand the ball off to McKoy there is a gaping hole and Wellman seals it to create enough space for the sophomore to get into the end zone after a dive.
--Grier is of course talented, but he’s smart too. On a third and 2 on the next drive, East Carolina has seven players in the box and he just quickly swings it out to Gary Jennings who was left uncovered for a first down and to move the sticks.
--On the very next play is the first time that West Virginia uses two back in the game with Ka’Raun White lined up on the boundary and a pair of wide receivers on the field side including Marcus Simms. At the snap, Crawford motions out to the side to bring a defender with him and Jennings runs an underneath route across the middle of the field. Simms simply runs a deep post and out runs the cornerback in man coverage with no safety help and Grier drops the ball in for an easy touchdown.
--On the second fade touchdown, West Virginia again lines up in run formation on second and five from the 9 with Sills alone at the top against press coverage. Grier recognizes this and Sills does an excellent job selling it inside before moving to the outside with separation and the ball falls into his hands. This was executed perfectly and just a really good looking play overall.
--I still can’t get over the almost touchdown in this game. Grier drops the snap which throws off the timing from the start at the East Carolina 27-yard line and pressure comes right up the middle into his face. He’s able to shake that off and spin around before delivering an incredibly accurate ball given the circumstances falling away to Simms which is narrowly a missed touchdown. Had he pulled off that play it might have gone down in the West Virginia hall of fame.
--West Virginia didn’t face a fourth down in this game until 6:18 left in the first half, the result was a missed field goal the only time that the Mountaineers didn’t score a touchdown.
--West Virginia decided it was going to run the football on its next drive with a bunch of three wide receivers, tight end looks and pounding the ball with Justin Crawford. On his 41-yard touchdown run, Wellman doesn’t even have anybody to block until the second level and it’s just a gaping hole that Crawford squirts through and is then off to the races.
--West Virginia didn’t waste a lot of time going for another touchdown. This time out of a running formation, the Mountaineers go back to the screen action and both ECU defenders bite up to go at Jennings, while Sills runs untouched down the sideline. The pass has just enough for the long and rangy Sills who is able to corral it in and race 75-yards for a touchdown with nobody in sight. Just simply a coverage bust for the Pirates and the same one that resulted in a huge gain earlier in the game.
--The Mountaineers had 479 total yards, averaged 10.9 per play in the first half.
--Second half it looked like the first team had just packed it up but it’s hard to blame them a holding penalty killed the first drive, leading to a three and out. I will say the throw that Grier executed on the third touchdown to Sills was very impressive, that’s the last score of the game.
DEFENSE:
--I counted six missed tackles in the first half, which was actually better than I thought on initial watch.
--On the almost interception by redshirt junior Toyous Avery, he baited as if he was going to come on the blitz but West Virginia actually only rushed three, however pressure up the middle from sophomore Reese Donahue forced a quick pass to the flats where Avery had dropped. The ball was basically thrown right to him but he wasn’t able to corral it.
--West Virginia brought five on the ensuing 3rd and 15, but Sirk was able to get the ball out and even though senior Elijah Battle was in good coverage he wasn’t able to locate the ball and it dropped right in for 27-yard catch down the sidelines.
--Mountaineers brought six on the next play, but East Carolina again was able to get the football out quickly for a nice chunk of yards on the outside. The cornerbacks were all playing six to seven yards off and they ran a nice rub play to get the quick guy open. East Carolina would go back to a variation of this to convert on fourth down and three, once again going to the inside player after a rub on the outside.
--Thought it was bad watching it live, but don’t agree with that pass interference call that set up the Pirates with a fourth and goal. West Virginia brought zero pressure and it was one-on-one on an underthrown ball and while Avery did grab him, it wasn’t anything malicious.
--West Virginia got really lucky on the next play as nobody took the inside wide receiver and he was standing all alone with his hand up in the end zone. Dravon Askew-Henry noticed this and closed on it, but had Sirk been more aware that was an easy touchdown and bust for the defense. However, luckily the Mountaineers got away with that bust as the ball was thrown out of the back of the end zone.
--Redshirt sophomore Adam Shuler is just flat out disruptive. He hasn’t gotten to the quarterback yet but he is going to and is forcing a lot of holds (some called, some not).
--I thought redshirt freshman Dylan Tonkery played very well a week ago and he did his job this week too. Tonkery fills his gaps and plays very fast and physical for a player with limited experience.
--Senior safety Kyzir White was practically everywhere in all facets of the defense and while he recorded two interceptions almost had another when he broke on the sideline on a pass that Sirk floated early in the second quarter. He is lining up everywhere and is just playing at a different level right now. On his first interception, White recognizes the play from the jump and races over to the flats jumping in front of the roll out attempt and under cutting the ball for the pick. Great recognition there. On the second interception, West Virginia brings six and Sirk throws off his back foot which basically allows White to get under it like it was intended for him.
--Three and out for the Pirates on their second possession in large part because of a bad snap.
--Freshman Lamonte McDougle continued to work with the second team defensive line along with redshirt senior Jon Lewis and junior Ezekiel Rose. They worked almost exclusively with the defense during the Pirates third offensive possession.
--Junior nose guard Jalen Harvey made his debut on the next series, and a big hit by Toyous Avery, who really settled in nicely, forced the Pirates into another three and out trailing 35-3.
--Syracuse graduate transfer Corey Winfield into the game at the 6-minute mark of the second half and was beat deep although he did have good position just couldn’t make a play on the ball. He would be beat for a 95-yard touchdown in the second half.
--A lot of dropping guys into zone instead of the pressure you’re used to seeing there in the second quarter. They didn’t completely abandon pressure, but they were trying to make the Pirates throw the ball into windows and sustain drives.
--Second half a lot of new faces, liked what I saw out of freshman cornerback Kenny Robinson. Played safety all in camp but handled himself well out there in the second half including a pass breakup.
SPECIAL TEAMS:
--West Virginia opened the game with a new formation on kickoff return with only one deep man in sophomore Marcus Simms. Redshirt senior Elijah Wellman was in front of him looking to pave the way for him. It goes without saying that Simms simply brings a different speed dimension on returns. On Simms 23-yard punt return he had some good blocking, but made people miss and flashed his speed.
--Good news, three touchbacks. Bad news? A kickoff out of bounds. I do think placement was much better which allowed coverage to be better as well, but the kickoffs out of bounds are problematic.
