Camp Rodriguez
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Things just keep buzzing along at West Virginia University where seventh-year coach Rich Rodriguez has done quite well filling the Big East vacuum created by the departures of Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College.
Since 2005, Rodriguez has gone 12-2 in conference play and owns a 22-5 record versus the current teams in the Big East. His back-to-back Top 10 finishes in 2005 and 2006 were a first in school history, and West Virginia joins USC as the only two programs to have gone to four straight New Year’s Day bowl games.
Twenty six straight weeks in the Top 25, a 30-6 record the last three years, and two Heisman Trophy candidates have Mountaineer fans talking about a run to the BCS championship game in 2007. Getting to the big game is always at the top of Rodriguez’s to-do list, but he knows that the road to New Orleans will be full of pot holes and hazards. Rodriguez must find key replacements at center, right guard and at wide receiver on offense, and recalibrate a defense that ranked 62nd in the country last year giving up an average of 336.6 yards per game.
Work begins this Saturday on achieving those and other important objectives.
QUARTERBACK
New quarterbacks coach Rod Smith couldn’t have stepped into a better situation when he chose to reunite with Rodriguez after coordinating South Florida’s offense the last two seasons. Smith remarked after one spring practice that he couldn’t think of another team in the country that had three quarterbacks with starting experience on its roster, let alone one as good as junior Patrick White.
“My job is not to screw these guys up,” Smith joked.
All White did last year as a sophomore was account for 2,874 total yards and 30 touchdowns while directing the nation’s fifth-rated offense. The Big East player of the year ran for a career-high 247 yards and scored four touchdowns against Syracuse, and he was one of just eight players in NCAA history to both run and pass for more than 200 yards in the same game against Pitt (220 rushing and 204 passing).
White is already the Big East career rushing leader among quarterbacks (2,171 yards) and is one of four Big East players that could wind up in New York for the Heisman Trophy presentation this year.
“He obviously knows what we’re doing and I think the key now is him understanding how teams are going to defend us,” Rodriguez said of his quarterback. “Some games he’s going to have to make certain throws more often than other games. The challenge for him is to become even more accurate and to make great decisions.”
Last year against Rutgers, West Virginia’s outstanding quarterback depth was on display against the No. 13-rated Scarlet Knights when Jarrett Brown was a late fill in for White, who was suffering from a sprained ankle. Brown passed for 244 yards and a touchdown, and also ran for a 40-yard score to help the Mountaineers to a 41-39 triple-overtime victory. The sophomore has all of the tools necessary to be a top-flight college quarterback.
West Virginia’s third quarterback, Adam Bednarik, was actually the team’s co-starter in 2005 before injuries eventually got the best of him. In nine games that season Bednarik completed 55 of 75 passes for 532 yards and four touchdowns while also rushing for 170 yards and a score.
Rodriguez made it known last spring that he will search for ways to get all three quarterbacks on the field in 2007.
RUNNING BACK
It is hard to come up with a better backfield tandem than junior Steve Slaton and senior Owen Schmitt -- the two teaming with Patrick White to give the Mountaineers the nation’s No. 2-ranked rushing offense last year averaging 303 yards per game. No team came close to West Virginia’s astonishing 6.7 yards-per-carry rushing average in 2006 - the Mountaineers having averaged at least five yards per tote in each of the last three seasons.
Steve Slaton is perhaps the country’s top big-play runner and heads into this season with 37 career touchdowns in just 23 games – the most of any back in the country. Steve Slaton had seven touchdown runs of 40 yards or longer in 2006, averaging a brain-numbing 7 yards per carry. His 2,104 all-purpose and 1,733 rushing yards were school standards he hopes to eclipse in 2007.
Unlike Big East rushing rival Ray Rice who carried the football 335 times in 13 games last season, Steve Slaton had a more economical 248 carries in an effort to reduce some of the pounding that comes with a lengthened season.
And when a deep thigh bruise forced Steve Slaton to the sidelines against Georgia Tech in last year’s Gator Bowl, fullback Owen Schmitt stepped up and rumbled for a career-high 109 yards and scored two touchdowns. Schmitt has only carried the football 113 times for his career, but his 6.5 yards-per-carry average is actually slightly better than Steve Slaton’s 6.3 career yards-per-carry average. Schmitt’s power between the tackles provides a perfect compliment to Steve Slaton’s speed on the flank.
Speaking of speed West Virginia will have another burner at running back this fall in Noel Devine , who ran for 6,842 yards and scored 92 career touchdowns at North Ft. Myers (Fla.) High School. If Devine can quickly learn the system he could add yet another weapon to a backfield that is looking more and more like Oklahoma, circa 1978.
Ed Collington, Eddie Davis and Jetavious Best are by no means out of the running either.
Sophomore Maxwell Anderson lettered last year as Schmitt’s backup at fullback and should see action when Rodriguez uses Schmitt at tight end in certain formations.
OFFENSIVE LINE
The good news is that three-fifths of West Virginia’s starting offensive line is returning for 2007. The bad news is that the two missing pieces were Rimington Award winner Dan Mozes and all-conference offensive guard Jeremy Sheffey.
“Those were two big losses no only because they were returning starters and all-league players but also because they were multiple-year starters,” Rodriguez noted.
Converted defensive end Mike Dent spelled Mozes some at center last year and is the leading candidate to take over there this fall. Promising redshirt freshmen Eric Rodemoyer and Derek Hayes are the top two contenders at right guard.
Both tackles return in Ryan Stanchek and Jake Figner. Rodriguez believes Stanchek was one of the better offensive linemen in the Big East last year and he really likes Stanchek’s versatility. Figner is also a productive performer whose work ethic and intelligence enabled him to make a smooth transition into the starting lineup last year as a sophomore.
Left guard Greg Isdaner is yet another intelligent road-grader who came up big last year, earning freshman All-America accolades from Sporting News, Rivals and Scout. Isdaner missed last spring recovery from off-season shoulder surgery but is fully healed and ready to go this fall. Stanchek, Figner and Isdaner give new offensive line coach Greg Frey three proven performers to build around.
“Ryan Stanchek has got to be a guy that takes some leadership responsibility along the O-line and make those guys calm and comfortable and making the right calls each and every play,” Rodriguez said.
Frey is hoping to develop quality depth from a group that includes John Bradshaw, Jon Walko, Frank Carduff, Selvish Capers, Jake Miller and Eric Jobe. All six have ability and size.
Tight end Mike Villagrana returns giving WVU another important piece up front. Sam Morrone and Mookie Tate have also seen action at tight end.
WIDE RECEIVERS
The wide receiver corps will once again come under scrutiny this fall if for no other reason than because West Virginia’s rushing attack has been so dominant the last five years.
But when required to last year, Mountaineer receivers were able to catch the football averaging 13.8 yards per catch and accounting for 15 touchdowns. Another overlooked aspect has been the group’s effectiveness as blockers. Most if not all of West Virginia’s 21 runs of 40 yards or longer last year wouldn’t have happened without good downfield blocking.
The loss of Brandon Myles will be a big hole to fill. The split end caught 36 passes for 522 yards and a team-best eight touchdowns and was always a top option on third and long. Darius Reynaud has big-play capabilities, catching a team-best 39 passes for 520 yards and two touchdowns last year and he was also a weapon on reverses carrying 14 times for 221 yards. An expanded role could be forthcoming for the Luling, La., resident this fall.
Junior Tito Gonzales had a game-changing 57-yard touchdown catch against Georgia Tech in last year’s Gator Bowl and is one of the team’s best perimeter blockers. Dorrell Jalloh has big-game experience the last two seasons, as does Jeremy Bruce.
Six-foot-seven inch, 230-pound Wes Lyons has the size and the credentials to be a playmaker outside. Converted quarterback Nate Sowers is one of the fastest players on the team and could provide an athletic presence in the slot. Carmen Connolly and Darren Brownlee saw action last year and could get new coach Tony Dews’ attention for playing time.
“I’m anxious to see if we can get a couple more guys out on the perimeter outside of Darius Reynaud that can be a guy one-on-one who can win some match ups,” Rodriguez said. “That’s going to be one of our keys offensively.”
Assistance could also come from a group of newcomers that include junior college transfer Alric Arnett, as well as possibly freshmen Brandon Hogan, Will Johnson, Charles Matthews or Jock Sanders. Hogan was the Virginia Class 6A state player of the year as a quarterback and is considered an outstanding all-around athlete.
KICKERS
Pat McAfee has been overshadowed somewhat in a conference with two top-level kickers in Louisville’s Art Carmody and Rutgers’ Jeremy Ito, but McAfee’s 17-of-22 kicking accuracy last year was actually better than Ito’s 22 of 29.
McAfee successfully booted a 51-yarder against Pitt that was the longest in Heinz Field history, and it was his 30-yard field goal in the clutch that sent the Rutgers game into overtime. He was a perfect 62 of 62 in PATs in 2006.
One area McAfee could improve upon is his accuracy outside of 40 yards going 2 of 7 last season.
After the Louisville game, McAfee also took on punting full time and finished the season averaging 43.2 yards per punt. He replaced Scott Kozlowski, who averaged 39.5 yards for his 17 punts including a long of 51 yards. Rodriguez is looking for another kicker and punter to emerge during fall camp.
DEFENSIVE LINE
A big, physical bruiser at the nose who can create some push up front is the perfect recipe for West Virginia’s 3-3-5 stack defensive alignment. It remains to be seen who that person will be. In the past the Mountaineers have had success with quick and agile linemen like Ben Lynch and Ernest Hunter who usually beat their man to the punch.
That could be the route veteran coach Bill Kirelawich chooses this year with lighter, quicker athletes like Johnny Dingle, Thor Merrow and James Ingram.
Or he could utilize a bigger group of players that includes Doug Slavonic, Scooter Berry and Chris Neild. The 6-foot-8-inch Slavonic is the only one of the three with game experience, appearing in seven contests last year.
Promising redshirt freshman Marcus Broxie could also get into the mix at defensive tackle.
Six-foot-5-inch, 300-pound senior Keilen Dykes is the critical piece to the entire puzzle. Dykes is a three-year starter who has accumulated 98 tackles, 19 ½ tackles for losses and 10 sacks in 37 career games. A big year from Dykes will go a long way in determining what kind of defense West Virginia fields in 2007.
LINEBACKERS
Linebacker was the position hit hardest by graduation with departing stalwarts Jay Henry and Boo McLee starting every game last year. Sam linebacker Bobby Hathaway returns after producing 45 tackles and 6 ½ tackles for losses in 2006 as a junior. Playmaker Reed Williams showed a nose for the football and wound up fourth on the team in tackles with 57 to go with 5 ½ tackles for losses and five sacks.
Athletic redshirt freshman J.T. Thomas has the coaching staff excited about his playmaking possibilities at will linebacker. Thomas is a second generation WVU linebacker who would have seen more action in 2006 if not for a nagging ankle injury that forced him to take a medical redshirt.
Marc Magro has completely recovered from off-season knee surgery and returns as one of the team’s top run-stoppers. John Holmes is back at his more natural position of outside linebacker after seeing time at safety last year and he gives the defense additional size and athleticism, as does Ovid Goulbourne.
Mortty Ivy, Anthony Leonard and Zac Cooper are three more candidates for playing time. The coaching staff hit the recruiting trail hard for linebackers and may have come up with a couple of good ones in Pat Lazear of Wheaton High School in Bethesda, Md., and junior college transfer Archie Sims of Laurel, Miss.
SECONDARY
Ten different players started at least one game in the secondary last year and nine of them are returning for 2007.
The secondary took its lumps, especially down the stretch giving up more than 300 passing yards in four of its remaining six games, but experience and an improved pass rush should help.
“We’ve got to get better against the pass,” Rodriguez said. “We did not play as well defensively in the latter half of the year as we did in the first half. Obviously scheme wise we’re going to try and do so some things to help our secondary to get more of a pass rush ... and our guys also have to get better individually.”
Senior Eric Wicks started all 13 games last year at strong safety and finished with 73 tackles, 11 tackles for losses and a team-best seven sacks. The Pittsburgh native also picked off three passes and broke up seven more. He earned first team all-Big East and all-ECAC honors in 2006.
Quinton Andrews started all 13 games last year as a redshirt freshman and wound up leading the team with 80 tackles and five interceptions. Ridwan Malik appeared in eight games last season and produced 13 tackles. Boogie Allen also got into seven games as a true freshman and wound up with 14 stops.
Charles Pugh started two games in 2006 and played in all 13, making 28 tackles, 2 ½ tackles for losses and a pair of sacks.
Other capable safety candidates include Greg Davis, Sidney Glover and Trippe Hale.
Seniors Vaughn Rivers and Antonio Lewis are returning starters at corner. The two combined to break up 10 passes last year and take part in 93 tackles. Senior Larry Williams also started seven games at corner and broke up four passes, while sophomore Guesly Dervil got his first career start against Cincinnati and responded with a couple of pass breakups and a pick.
Kent Richardson and junior college transfer Ellis Lankster will push for playing time at corner as well.
The coaching staff recruited a large class of freshmen DBs and came up with what they expect will be an outstanding group down the road. Junior college transfer Tony Wood could get a close look this fall.
“We’re going against some great offensive teams and some great offensive skill players and they’re going to get challenged early,” Rodriguez said.
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