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For West Virginia, a win is a win

It is always easy for players and fans to look at what appears to be a subpar opponent on the schedule and assume that the outcome of the game is a forgone conclusion.

But as we see in many examples in college football throughout the country each week, if a team does not show up focused and ready to play its opposition will not just roll over and be accommodating. And that is how upsets happen.

Such was the case for the West Virginia Mountaineers during much of the first half on Saturday, as they found themselves trailing a Youngstown State squad 14-7 late in the second quarter. WVU appeared uninspired and out of rhythm, and the heavy underdog Penguins smelled an opportunity for an upset. But fortunately the Mountaineers were able to tally a tying touchdown before the half, and took control of the game with a 17-point third quarter.

Youngstown State for the most part played its defenders close to the line of scrimmage in an effort to stop the West Virginia running game, but this often left their secondary with little help against the Mountaineer wide receivers. While the Penguins strategy was somewhat successful in limiting the WVU running game, they paid the price as quarterback Skylar Howard completed scoring passes of 54 and 57 yards to Shelton Gibson and a 53 yarder to Ka’Raun White. Howard added two other TD passes to Dakiel Shorts and Kennedy McCoy.

Perhaps scoring from long distance was the solution to the vexing problem the Mountaineers have finding the end zone when having possessions inside their opponent 10 yard line. Only one such opportunity occurred on Saturday, which again resulted in only a field goal after a holding penalty negated a touchdown run by Rushel Shell.

WVU had a whopping 327 yards in the first half yet scored only 14 points. Part of the reason was the Mountaineers were working on a long field virtually the entire afternoon. Ten of the first twelve West Virginia possessions started at or inside its own 25 yard line, and the average WVU field position for the game was at its own 21.

It seemed the game never had any rhythm the entire afternoon, as multiple player injuries in the heat and a number of replay reviews interrupted the flow of play. The Big 12 officiating and replay crew were sometimes needlessly deliberate. There came a point as a fan that one was just looking to get this game finished in the win column and move on the next opponent on the schedule.

Overall it was not a particularly impressive performance, but sometimes we can make the mistake of drawing too many conclusions in a game such as this. So we enjoy the victory, hope for improvement, and look forward to a very challenging game against BYU in Landover, Maryland on September 24th.

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