Post by elp525 on Sept 16, 2011 4:44:17 GMT -5
September 15, 2011
By Dave Hickman
The Charleston Gazette
MORGANTOWN -- The chances of both West Virginia and Maryland going through another game with no more mistakes than they've made to date seems unlikely.
Through two games, the Mountaineers have no turnovers. They were penalized just twice for 15 yards against Marshall and, although that number increased against Norfolk State, this is still a team that ranks 23rd in the nation in fewest penalties.
Maryland, meanwhile, turned the ball over just once in an opening-game, 32-24 win over Miami (Fla.), and had just four penalties.
That's a concern for West Virginia Coach Dana Holgorsen because he's seen it before from Randy Edsall-coached teams. They don't make a lot of mistakes and coaches love to play teams that make mistakes and gift-wrap opportunities.
"We went and looked back at what (Connecticut) was all about last year,'' Holgorsen said, referring to the team Edsall coached to a BCS bowl game before taking over at Maryland the next day. "They average four penalties a game and have a positive turnover ratio.
"Last week was a prime example of it. They weren't nearly as penalized as what Miami was (10 for 65 yards). They had one turnover; Miami had four. One was a defensive touchdown that won the game. Like I've said in the past, those are the things that get you beat.''
Again, they are the things coaches love to see from an opponent, too. A week ago, for instance, outmanned Norfolk State not only stayed with West Virginia for a half and led 12-10, the Spartans did so despite making all kinds of mistakes. Had they not, the Mountaineers might have had an even greater deficit to overcome.
Norfolk State was penalized an astounding 19 times for 177 yards. No WVU opponent had ever been penalized so many times for so many yards.
What worries Holgorsen is that big number posted by the Spartans tended to overshadow the mistakes his own team made. Yes, this is a team that hasn't turned the ball over and been penalized an average of just 4.5 times per game, but there were signs of trouble against Norfolk State.
"Last week from a penalty standpoint, I think it was skewed because our opponent had 200 yards,'' Holgorsen said. "We only had about 80 (actually 85), which was terrible.
"Four of those were holding calls and two were from backup linemen with technique issues. But two of them were starting offensive guys that also had technique issues. We've got to address that. We had two late hits, which puts our defense in a bad situation. There are a couple of things that we've got to clean up. ''
If the penalty issue is a concern, so too is the turnover factor. That's a little bit of good news-bad news for the Mountaineers.
Yes, they are one of just five teams in the country that hasn't turned the ball over yet. But they are also one of just four that haven't forced a turnover yet. West Virginia is the only team in the country that has zeroes on both sides of the ledger.
That's bound to change eventually, though, and this week seems a likely possibility.
Maryland intercepted two Miami passes and recovered two fumbles and scored on one of each -- once in the closing seconds of the first half and then again in the final seconds of the game -- and that's the reason the Terps won. They didn't score an offensive touchdown after the first four minutes of the game.
Oh, and remember that when Edsall's UConn team beat West Virginia in overtime last season, the Huskies forced seven fumbles and recovered four of them, including the game-changer in overtime.
"It's something I've emphasized since I've been here. We'll work hard on it this week,'' Holgorsen said of protecting the ball. "Just because we haven't turned the ball over in two weeks doesn't mean we can relax.
"It's part of our everyday coaching efforts. Our style and how we practice is to make sure that we focus on those things.''
By Dave Hickman
The Charleston Gazette
MORGANTOWN -- The chances of both West Virginia and Maryland going through another game with no more mistakes than they've made to date seems unlikely.
Through two games, the Mountaineers have no turnovers. They were penalized just twice for 15 yards against Marshall and, although that number increased against Norfolk State, this is still a team that ranks 23rd in the nation in fewest penalties.
Maryland, meanwhile, turned the ball over just once in an opening-game, 32-24 win over Miami (Fla.), and had just four penalties.
That's a concern for West Virginia Coach Dana Holgorsen because he's seen it before from Randy Edsall-coached teams. They don't make a lot of mistakes and coaches love to play teams that make mistakes and gift-wrap opportunities.
"We went and looked back at what (Connecticut) was all about last year,'' Holgorsen said, referring to the team Edsall coached to a BCS bowl game before taking over at Maryland the next day. "They average four penalties a game and have a positive turnover ratio.
"Last week was a prime example of it. They weren't nearly as penalized as what Miami was (10 for 65 yards). They had one turnover; Miami had four. One was a defensive touchdown that won the game. Like I've said in the past, those are the things that get you beat.''
Again, they are the things coaches love to see from an opponent, too. A week ago, for instance, outmanned Norfolk State not only stayed with West Virginia for a half and led 12-10, the Spartans did so despite making all kinds of mistakes. Had they not, the Mountaineers might have had an even greater deficit to overcome.
Norfolk State was penalized an astounding 19 times for 177 yards. No WVU opponent had ever been penalized so many times for so many yards.
What worries Holgorsen is that big number posted by the Spartans tended to overshadow the mistakes his own team made. Yes, this is a team that hasn't turned the ball over and been penalized an average of just 4.5 times per game, but there were signs of trouble against Norfolk State.
"Last week from a penalty standpoint, I think it was skewed because our opponent had 200 yards,'' Holgorsen said. "We only had about 80 (actually 85), which was terrible.
"Four of those were holding calls and two were from backup linemen with technique issues. But two of them were starting offensive guys that also had technique issues. We've got to address that. We had two late hits, which puts our defense in a bad situation. There are a couple of things that we've got to clean up. ''
If the penalty issue is a concern, so too is the turnover factor. That's a little bit of good news-bad news for the Mountaineers.
Yes, they are one of just five teams in the country that hasn't turned the ball over yet. But they are also one of just four that haven't forced a turnover yet. West Virginia is the only team in the country that has zeroes on both sides of the ledger.
That's bound to change eventually, though, and this week seems a likely possibility.
Maryland intercepted two Miami passes and recovered two fumbles and scored on one of each -- once in the closing seconds of the first half and then again in the final seconds of the game -- and that's the reason the Terps won. They didn't score an offensive touchdown after the first four minutes of the game.
Oh, and remember that when Edsall's UConn team beat West Virginia in overtime last season, the Huskies forced seven fumbles and recovered four of them, including the game-changer in overtime.
"It's something I've emphasized since I've been here. We'll work hard on it this week,'' Holgorsen said of protecting the ball. "Just because we haven't turned the ball over in two weeks doesn't mean we can relax.
"It's part of our everyday coaching efforts. Our style and how we practice is to make sure that we focus on those things.''
