Post by rainman on Sept 7, 2007 5:54:49 GMT -5
Sowers: WVU-MU hype is for fans
By Mickey Furfari
For the Times West Virginian
MORGANTOWN— Does the football game at Marshall on Saturday mean more to Mountain State natives than Mountaineer players from out of state?
“I think it means a lot to everybody on this team,” said Martinsburg’s Nate Sowers, whose three older brothers are graduates of MU. “I think everybody understands the hype is for the fans and that our focus has to be on the game itself.”
None of his brothers played football down there, but they did participate in track and field. They’re now WVU fans and will be attending the game on Nate’s tickets.
“I think all of our players can sense how important this game is, regardless of where they are from,” said Sowers, who came to WVU as a quarterback but now is playing receiver. “We all know it’s going to be an exciting game.”
The sophomore admittedly has become well-adjusted at his new position, and he doesn’t think noise in the hostile environment will be much of a factor.
o An overflow crowd of at least 40,000 fans will jam 38,019-seat Joan C. Edwards Stadium for the 11:10 a.m. kickoff. The Friends of Coal Bowl game will be televised nationally by ESPN2.
Announcers will be Pam Ward (play-by-play), Ray Bentley (analyst), and Bob Simmelkjaer (sideline reporter).
Saturday’s weather forecast in Huntington is for partly cloudy, a stray thunderstorm, and a high temperature in the low-90s.
o Pat McAfee, who does both the place-kicking and punting for WVU, was unfairly hard on himself after booting a six-yard punt which rolled off his foot, sending a kickoff out of bounds short of the end zone, and missing an extra point in the season’s opener.
“I’m disappointed in myself,” he said this week. “My leg wasn’t tired. I just didn’t do well.”
But coach Rich Rodriguez still regards him as one of the best kickers in NCAA Division I-A. For 25 games his first two years here, he made 28 of 40 field goals and 110 of 111 extra points.
As a punter last season, he averaged 43.2 yards for 18 attempts. And his kickoffs from the new-rule 30-yard line carry far.
o Tale of the Tape (one game):
WVU had 62.0 points and 542.0 yards against Western Michigan, Marshall 3.0 points and 234.0 yards against Miami.
Defensively, the Mountaineers allowed 24.0 points and 277.0 yards, while the Thundering Herd gave up 31.0 and 341.0 yards.
o Adam Bednarik, the hard-luck senior quarterback-turned-receiver, hopes to get more playing time as the season moves along.
“I was only in for about eight plays or so,” he said of the season-opening romp. “On that last scoring drive we had, I was one of the wide receivers.”
While he’s still available as the No. 3 quarterback, he has adjusted well to WR.
“I played that position my junior year in high school,” Bednarik said. “So I just kind of reverted back.
“Knowing the offense so well from having played quarterback, I find that it helps me even more. It is a little different. But when we’re talking about coverages, I think my experience helps on that, too.”
o This will be only the seventh football meeting between the state’s only NCAA Division I-A institutions, with WVU winning the previous six games by a whopping 294-62 margin in points.
Those totals average out to 49.3 for the Mountaineers and 10.3 for the Thundering Herd. The scores were 17-15 in 1911, 20-0 in 1914, 92-6 in 1915, 81-0 in 1923, 42-31 in 1997, and 42-10 in 2006.
This will be only WVU’s second trip to Huntington. The other was that awful 86-point blowout in 1915.
o Greg Isdaner, who has 14 starts at left guard, is expecting improvement from the offensive line on Saturday.
“It’s going to take a couple of games for us to reach our peak,” he reasoned. “But when we hit that, we should be pretty good.”
Mike Dent, the new starting center, feels much the same as Isdaner.
“I think we’re still cranked up and ready to come out and make a statement,” he said. “Not just us (linemen), but the whole offense.”
o Joe Bragg, 6-4, 170-pound junior, is the only player from Morgantown on the Marshall roster.
He’s listed as a backup defensive tackle. He lettered last year, appearing in seven games on special teams and as a reserve tight end.
Bragg was a three-year starter and two-time Class AAA all-state standout at Morgantown High School.
By Mickey Furfari
For the Times West Virginian
MORGANTOWN— Does the football game at Marshall on Saturday mean more to Mountain State natives than Mountaineer players from out of state?
“I think it means a lot to everybody on this team,” said Martinsburg’s Nate Sowers, whose three older brothers are graduates of MU. “I think everybody understands the hype is for the fans and that our focus has to be on the game itself.”
None of his brothers played football down there, but they did participate in track and field. They’re now WVU fans and will be attending the game on Nate’s tickets.
“I think all of our players can sense how important this game is, regardless of where they are from,” said Sowers, who came to WVU as a quarterback but now is playing receiver. “We all know it’s going to be an exciting game.”
The sophomore admittedly has become well-adjusted at his new position, and he doesn’t think noise in the hostile environment will be much of a factor.
o An overflow crowd of at least 40,000 fans will jam 38,019-seat Joan C. Edwards Stadium for the 11:10 a.m. kickoff. The Friends of Coal Bowl game will be televised nationally by ESPN2.
Announcers will be Pam Ward (play-by-play), Ray Bentley (analyst), and Bob Simmelkjaer (sideline reporter).
Saturday’s weather forecast in Huntington is for partly cloudy, a stray thunderstorm, and a high temperature in the low-90s.
o Pat McAfee, who does both the place-kicking and punting for WVU, was unfairly hard on himself after booting a six-yard punt which rolled off his foot, sending a kickoff out of bounds short of the end zone, and missing an extra point in the season’s opener.
“I’m disappointed in myself,” he said this week. “My leg wasn’t tired. I just didn’t do well.”
But coach Rich Rodriguez still regards him as one of the best kickers in NCAA Division I-A. For 25 games his first two years here, he made 28 of 40 field goals and 110 of 111 extra points.
As a punter last season, he averaged 43.2 yards for 18 attempts. And his kickoffs from the new-rule 30-yard line carry far.
o Tale of the Tape (one game):
WVU had 62.0 points and 542.0 yards against Western Michigan, Marshall 3.0 points and 234.0 yards against Miami.
Defensively, the Mountaineers allowed 24.0 points and 277.0 yards, while the Thundering Herd gave up 31.0 and 341.0 yards.
o Adam Bednarik, the hard-luck senior quarterback-turned-receiver, hopes to get more playing time as the season moves along.
“I was only in for about eight plays or so,” he said of the season-opening romp. “On that last scoring drive we had, I was one of the wide receivers.”
While he’s still available as the No. 3 quarterback, he has adjusted well to WR.
“I played that position my junior year in high school,” Bednarik said. “So I just kind of reverted back.
“Knowing the offense so well from having played quarterback, I find that it helps me even more. It is a little different. But when we’re talking about coverages, I think my experience helps on that, too.”
o This will be only the seventh football meeting between the state’s only NCAA Division I-A institutions, with WVU winning the previous six games by a whopping 294-62 margin in points.
Those totals average out to 49.3 for the Mountaineers and 10.3 for the Thundering Herd. The scores were 17-15 in 1911, 20-0 in 1914, 92-6 in 1915, 81-0 in 1923, 42-31 in 1997, and 42-10 in 2006.
This will be only WVU’s second trip to Huntington. The other was that awful 86-point blowout in 1915.
o Greg Isdaner, who has 14 starts at left guard, is expecting improvement from the offensive line on Saturday.
“It’s going to take a couple of games for us to reach our peak,” he reasoned. “But when we hit that, we should be pretty good.”
Mike Dent, the new starting center, feels much the same as Isdaner.
“I think we’re still cranked up and ready to come out and make a statement,” he said. “Not just us (linemen), but the whole offense.”
o Joe Bragg, 6-4, 170-pound junior, is the only player from Morgantown on the Marshall roster.
He’s listed as a backup defensive tackle. He lettered last year, appearing in seven games on special teams and as a reserve tight end.
Bragg was a three-year starter and two-time Class AAA all-state standout at Morgantown High School.
