Post by rainman on Sept 29, 2007 7:58:04 GMT -5
Déjà Vu
By John Antonik for MSNsportsNET.com
September 29, 2007
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Do you get the feeling you’ve seen something like this before but you can’t quite remember when? Well, it happened 18 years ago in State College, Pa., when West Virginia was able to move the football effectively between the 20s but shot itself in the foot by committing critical turnovers in a 19-9 loss at Penn State.
The similarities between that game and West Virginia’s 21-13 self-destruction Friday night at South Florida are eerie.
On Friday night, West Virginia out-gained South Florida, 437-274, had a 21-13 edge in first downs, had an 86-58 advantage in total plays and held onto the ball nearly nine minutes longer than the Bulls. The difference: six turnovers.
Against Penn State in 1989, West Virginia had a 21-13 edge in first downs, a 369-262 advantage in total yards, a 71-66 edge in total plays and once again held the advantage in time of possession. The difference: six turnovers.
Penn State relied on an athletic and physical defense that put a beating on West Virginia quarterback Major Harris, forcing WVU’s Heisman Trophy candidate to fumble five times. It was almost as if Penn State dared Harris to run knowing that they were going to get some free shots on him in the open field.
Friday night, quarterbacks Patrick White and Jarrett Brown endured similar treatment. White saw South Florida’s pass rush but he didn’t see Bulls linebacker Ben Moffitt, who stepped in front of his pass out in the flat to fullback Owen Schmitt and raced 26 yards for the game’s first touchdown.
Later, White made a gutsy 18-yard run on a fourth down play to give West Virginia a first down at the South Florida 17 yard line. But while making his scramble he took a helmet to his thigh and spent the rest of the game watching from the sidelines.
White’s backup Jarrett Brown was under similar duress, constantly evading waves of South Florida tacklers on both passes and runs. Brown finished as the game’s top rusher carrying 15 times for 61 yards and also completing 11 of 20 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown. But his two second-half turnovers proved costly.
“I thought Jarrett competed,” said West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez. “He made a few mistakes and he scrambled around and made a few plays. I was proud with the way he competed.”
Despite trailing 21-6, West Virginia had successfully weathered the storm midway through the third quarter and was driving deep into South Florida territory after freshman Noel Devine’s 37-yard run carried the football to the Bulls seven.
But two plays later on second and goal from the nine, Brown tried to make a play in the face of a heavy pass rush and heaved a soft pass into the middle of the end zone that Nate Allen easily intercepted.
At that point South Florida coach Jim Leavitt decided to put the game on his defense, not letting quarterback Matt Grothe try any more risky plays. The gun-slinging Grothe had already been intercepted twice and Leavitt wasn’t about to let him throw any more passes up for grabs. Joe Paterno did the same thing against West Virginia back in 1989, putting a muzzle on Tony Sacca’s erratic arm by permitting him to try only 14 passes for the game.
South Florida’s defense is good enough to play with anybody. The Bulls proved that on Sept. 8 when they went into Jordan Hare Stadium and forced Auburn into making five turnovers in a 26-23 overtime victory.
USF proved it once again Friday night by taking it to West Virginia, tackling the Mountaineers’ playmakers in the open field, controlling the line of scrimmage and pressuring West Virginia into committing six turnovers.
“You have to give them credit, they did a good job and forced us into a lack of execution,” Rodriguez said.
Does South Florida have enough offense to run the table? Can it go up north and play in the cold weather on Nov. 24 at Pitt at the end of the season? Can it win on the road at Rutgers on Oct. 18? Those are questions West Virginia fans will have to wait to get answered because South Florida is now the front runner in the Big East.
“It’s a long season and certainly the conference race is not over yet,” Rodriguez said. “This put us behind a little bit but we’ll get back to work on Sunday.”
No, the race for the Big East title is not over by any means. Louisville is forgotten now that it has lost at home to Syracuse but the Cardinals remain a dangerous team as long as Brian Brohm is under center. West Virginia slips off the radar after its 21-13 loss to South Florida but the Mountaineers have too many weapons to be overlooked.
Those two were the preseason Big East favorites.
“It hurts when you have six turnovers and you don’t execute some plays. I really thought we were ready: we had a good week of practice and the guys seemed focused,” Rodriguez said. “We’re not going to point any fingers. We’re just going to go back to work and try to start playing at a high level again.”
Cincinnati and Rutgers are undefeated and nationally ranked as is South Florida. The Bearcats have a non-conference tune-up at San Diego State before traveling to Rutgers on Oct. 6. Rutgers has a home game against Maryland coming up later today.
But after Friday night’s performance all eyes are on South Florida. In a year full of firsts for USF, the Bulls now get another first. They get to wear the bull’s-eye for the first time.
By John Antonik for MSNsportsNET.com
September 29, 2007
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Do you get the feeling you’ve seen something like this before but you can’t quite remember when? Well, it happened 18 years ago in State College, Pa., when West Virginia was able to move the football effectively between the 20s but shot itself in the foot by committing critical turnovers in a 19-9 loss at Penn State.
The similarities between that game and West Virginia’s 21-13 self-destruction Friday night at South Florida are eerie.
On Friday night, West Virginia out-gained South Florida, 437-274, had a 21-13 edge in first downs, had an 86-58 advantage in total plays and held onto the ball nearly nine minutes longer than the Bulls. The difference: six turnovers.
Against Penn State in 1989, West Virginia had a 21-13 edge in first downs, a 369-262 advantage in total yards, a 71-66 edge in total plays and once again held the advantage in time of possession. The difference: six turnovers.
Penn State relied on an athletic and physical defense that put a beating on West Virginia quarterback Major Harris, forcing WVU’s Heisman Trophy candidate to fumble five times. It was almost as if Penn State dared Harris to run knowing that they were going to get some free shots on him in the open field.
Friday night, quarterbacks Patrick White and Jarrett Brown endured similar treatment. White saw South Florida’s pass rush but he didn’t see Bulls linebacker Ben Moffitt, who stepped in front of his pass out in the flat to fullback Owen Schmitt and raced 26 yards for the game’s first touchdown.
Later, White made a gutsy 18-yard run on a fourth down play to give West Virginia a first down at the South Florida 17 yard line. But while making his scramble he took a helmet to his thigh and spent the rest of the game watching from the sidelines.
White’s backup Jarrett Brown was under similar duress, constantly evading waves of South Florida tacklers on both passes and runs. Brown finished as the game’s top rusher carrying 15 times for 61 yards and also completing 11 of 20 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown. But his two second-half turnovers proved costly.
“I thought Jarrett competed,” said West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez. “He made a few mistakes and he scrambled around and made a few plays. I was proud with the way he competed.”
Despite trailing 21-6, West Virginia had successfully weathered the storm midway through the third quarter and was driving deep into South Florida territory after freshman Noel Devine’s 37-yard run carried the football to the Bulls seven.
But two plays later on second and goal from the nine, Brown tried to make a play in the face of a heavy pass rush and heaved a soft pass into the middle of the end zone that Nate Allen easily intercepted.
At that point South Florida coach Jim Leavitt decided to put the game on his defense, not letting quarterback Matt Grothe try any more risky plays. The gun-slinging Grothe had already been intercepted twice and Leavitt wasn’t about to let him throw any more passes up for grabs. Joe Paterno did the same thing against West Virginia back in 1989, putting a muzzle on Tony Sacca’s erratic arm by permitting him to try only 14 passes for the game.
South Florida’s defense is good enough to play with anybody. The Bulls proved that on Sept. 8 when they went into Jordan Hare Stadium and forced Auburn into making five turnovers in a 26-23 overtime victory.
USF proved it once again Friday night by taking it to West Virginia, tackling the Mountaineers’ playmakers in the open field, controlling the line of scrimmage and pressuring West Virginia into committing six turnovers.
“You have to give them credit, they did a good job and forced us into a lack of execution,” Rodriguez said.
Does South Florida have enough offense to run the table? Can it go up north and play in the cold weather on Nov. 24 at Pitt at the end of the season? Can it win on the road at Rutgers on Oct. 18? Those are questions West Virginia fans will have to wait to get answered because South Florida is now the front runner in the Big East.
“It’s a long season and certainly the conference race is not over yet,” Rodriguez said. “This put us behind a little bit but we’ll get back to work on Sunday.”
No, the race for the Big East title is not over by any means. Louisville is forgotten now that it has lost at home to Syracuse but the Cardinals remain a dangerous team as long as Brian Brohm is under center. West Virginia slips off the radar after its 21-13 loss to South Florida but the Mountaineers have too many weapons to be overlooked.
Those two were the preseason Big East favorites.
“It hurts when you have six turnovers and you don’t execute some plays. I really thought we were ready: we had a good week of practice and the guys seemed focused,” Rodriguez said. “We’re not going to point any fingers. We’re just going to go back to work and try to start playing at a high level again.”
Cincinnati and Rutgers are undefeated and nationally ranked as is South Florida. The Bearcats have a non-conference tune-up at San Diego State before traveling to Rutgers on Oct. 6. Rutgers has a home game against Maryland coming up later today.
But after Friday night’s performance all eyes are on South Florida. In a year full of firsts for USF, the Bulls now get another first. They get to wear the bull’s-eye for the first time.
