Post by elp525 on Oct 12, 2011 3:51:43 GMT -5
10/11/2011
Garrett Cullen
MetroNews Sports
Mountaineer head coach Dana Holgorsen held his regularly scheduled press conference on Tuesday afternoon in Morgantown. A week ago, Holgorsen had expressed his disappointment in the crowd turnout against Bowling Green – this week, however, he said he was very pleased with the atmosphere against Connecticut.
“It was a great environment,” he said. “It’s what we’re after. The kids hit the field and there was lots of excitement. It looked like everyone was out there having a heck of a time out there tailgating and enjoying the weather and enjoying the good product on the field in an exciting atmosphere and exciting environment. I know the 12 recruits we had in town had a heck of a time – it all ties in.”
And as for recruiting, the Mountaineers have a bye this week, which gives Coach Holgorsen and his staff an opportunity to get back on the recruiting trail.
“Everybody just goes and hits their area,” Holgorsen said. “I will go do a couple of things here and there, but everybody has an area and everybody will be out kind of focusing on their area.”
With all of the conference alignment issues ongoing, Holgorsen said that there have been questions asked by recruits on the topic. However, he said he doesn’t see it holding West Virginia back.
“I think the product that we put out there is something that’s very appealing to a whole lot of people,” he said. “People want to come to West Virginia because of what you see.
“The atmosphere, the excitement, what you’re putting out there on the field, what the athletic department brings to the table, a perennial top 20 team in football and men’s and women’s basketball – why wouldn’t you want to be a part of it? Why wouldn’t West Virginia be a major player in anything that you’re looking at from a conference realignment standpoint to a recruiting standpoint? And I firmly believe that,” he said.
And with the news earlier in the week that TCU is officially headed to the Big 12, Holgorsen was asked if that would impact the league’s ability and potential to recruit out the state of Texas. He said he never bought into the idea in the first place.
“I know who recruits Texas and I know where guys from Texas go to school,” he said. “They go to school for reasons other than ‘I get to play TCU.’ Here at West Virginia, there’s something to be said for ‘I get to go play for West Virginia,’ as opposed to ‘Oh, golly, I get to play against TCU.’ So, I never bought into that and we’re going to continue to recruit the same people and sell what we have as opposed to who we play. To me, it’s more about the place where you’re at and what you have to offer.”
Meanwhile, with the bye week this week, there will not be a Dana Holgorsen Statewide Sportsline on Thursday. The next show will be on Wednesday, October 19th prior to the Friday night game at Syracuse.
Garrett Cullen
MetroNews Sports
Mountaineer head coach Dana Holgorsen held his regularly scheduled press conference on Tuesday afternoon in Morgantown. A week ago, Holgorsen had expressed his disappointment in the crowd turnout against Bowling Green – this week, however, he said he was very pleased with the atmosphere against Connecticut.
“It was a great environment,” he said. “It’s what we’re after. The kids hit the field and there was lots of excitement. It looked like everyone was out there having a heck of a time out there tailgating and enjoying the weather and enjoying the good product on the field in an exciting atmosphere and exciting environment. I know the 12 recruits we had in town had a heck of a time – it all ties in.”
And as for recruiting, the Mountaineers have a bye this week, which gives Coach Holgorsen and his staff an opportunity to get back on the recruiting trail.
“Everybody just goes and hits their area,” Holgorsen said. “I will go do a couple of things here and there, but everybody has an area and everybody will be out kind of focusing on their area.”
With all of the conference alignment issues ongoing, Holgorsen said that there have been questions asked by recruits on the topic. However, he said he doesn’t see it holding West Virginia back.
“I think the product that we put out there is something that’s very appealing to a whole lot of people,” he said. “People want to come to West Virginia because of what you see.
“The atmosphere, the excitement, what you’re putting out there on the field, what the athletic department brings to the table, a perennial top 20 team in football and men’s and women’s basketball – why wouldn’t you want to be a part of it? Why wouldn’t West Virginia be a major player in anything that you’re looking at from a conference realignment standpoint to a recruiting standpoint? And I firmly believe that,” he said.
And with the news earlier in the week that TCU is officially headed to the Big 12, Holgorsen was asked if that would impact the league’s ability and potential to recruit out the state of Texas. He said he never bought into the idea in the first place.
“I know who recruits Texas and I know where guys from Texas go to school,” he said. “They go to school for reasons other than ‘I get to play TCU.’ Here at West Virginia, there’s something to be said for ‘I get to go play for West Virginia,’ as opposed to ‘Oh, golly, I get to play against TCU.’ So, I never bought into that and we’re going to continue to recruit the same people and sell what we have as opposed to who we play. To me, it’s more about the place where you’re at and what you have to offer.”
Meanwhile, with the bye week this week, there will not be a Dana Holgorsen Statewide Sportsline on Thursday. The next show will be on Wednesday, October 19th prior to the Friday night game at Syracuse.
