(Graphic Illustration - Monday Morning Quarterback - WVU Football - Image rendered through the use of ChatGPT)

The dramatic win over rival Pittsburgh the previous Saturday gave Mountaineer fans an upbeat feeling over the succeeding several days, but a quick reality check has tempered enthusiasm.

West Virginia was blasted at Kansas 41-10 Saturday where it was not competitive and outplayed in every phase of the game. There were no positives to be found. None.

The defense was gashed for 262 rushing yards and gave up scoring plays of 41, 39 and 62 yards. But the Mountaineer defenders at least had the consolation of not being as bad as the WVU offense and special teams, which were even worse.

A first look at the stat sheet would indicate that West Virginia had some success moving the football, but the numbers were misleading. Of the 182 rushing yards, 115 were from backup running quarterbacks Jaylon Henderson and Khalil Wilkins after the Jayhawks had built a 34-3 lead and were beginning to focus on which tavern they were going to celebrate after the game. The Mountaineer running backs actually gained only 71 yards on 23 carries.

West Virginia couldn’t pass the ball either, gaining a mediocre 4.6 yards per pass attempt (the national average is approximately 7.5). Two turnovers didn’t help.

Solid special teams play can sometimes overcome deficiencies elsewhere but the Mountaineers failed on that front as well. Kansas had 167 kick return yards, including a 30-yard punt return to set up good field position on their first possession, and a 94 yard kickoff return for a touchdown to start the second half. WVU had zero kick return yardage.

As poorly as West Virginia had played, with just over two minutes remaining in the first half they were still in the game trailing only 10-3. But in those final minutes they gave up 10 points and then the second half kickoff return. That was 17 points in a span of 2:23 clock time.

Admittedly the Mountaineers were in a difficult situation, playing a road game after an emotional rivalry game against a team that had a week off. But a 31-point blowout? Does this team have the fight and resiliency it showed in the win over Pittsburgh, or was the result at Kansas Saturday more reflective of where we are? With eight conference games remaining we shall see, but as of today West Virginia would be favored in perhaps only one of those games, at home vs Colorado.

THIS SATURDAY: Utah makes the long trip to Morgantown also a bit shaken, as they collapsed in the fourth quarter Saturday in a 34-10 home loss to Texas Tech. But they are led by Kyle Whittingham, who is the second longest tenured coach in America who knows how to prepare his team. They have shown they can take care of business on the road against weak opponents, winning 43-10 at UCLA and 31-6 at Wyoming.

UTAH 24 WEST VIRGINIA 10.