Welcome, By-Godders, to the Shotgun/Throwdown, brought to you today by the King of Beers (their words, not mine), Budweiser.  That makes eight.

Good Morning Neverland!!!   It's Game Day and as usual, there's an extra spring in my step because of it (doesn't hurt that VPI lost their third game last night as well).  Like the coaches with the team, I feel it's my duty to get you into Game Day Focus and I've gathered lots to hopefully accomplish that.  Have a safe and Happy Halloween weekend.  Enjoy the game, and, as always, your tips and requests are greatly appreciated.  So without further adieu...

What You May Have Missed:

Scouting Report: South Florida - WVMETRONEWS.COM

Top Ten For WVU - MSNsportsNET.Com
But you already knew that.

Bits and Bytes: WVU - USF - BlueGoldNews.com

Big East picks, Week 9 - ESPN
Let's hope his streak stays alive as well.

Video: West Virginia-South Florida preview - ESPN
BE football blogger Brian Bennett has a video preview for us. I can't embed it (plus there's already enough videos below).

USF's Head Coach Jim Leavitt - WVIllustrated.com
Video interview

Friday Q&A: West Virginia quarterback Jarrett Brown - ESPN

Halloween in the Big East - ESPN

Football: Williams Named Campbell Finalist - MSNsportsNET.Com

Butler, Ebanks Make Watch List - MSNsportsNET.Com

College GameDay Kickoff: Week 9 preview - ESPN

News of Note:

Bulls try to escape their own horror film - ESPN

A Complete Runner - MSNsportsNET.Com

Dangerous Road Trip - WVMETRONEWS.COM

WVU visits South Florida tonight - Times West Virginian

WVU facing South Florida - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Brown should feel right at home - Charleston Gazette

WVU right at home in Florida - Times West Virginian
Hertzel Column. Same title, different article than the one from Parkersburg yesterday.

Mounties' Sunshine Staters Look Forward to Homecoming - EerSports.com

WV’s Devine eyes homecoming against South Florida - Martinsburg Journal (AP)

Devine a concern for South Florida - Bluefield Daily Telegraph

Second half has been good to Mountaineers - Charleston Daily Mail

WVU will attack Bulls defense - Charleston Daily Mail

Has West Virginia’s Offense Caught up to USF’s Defense? - Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register

WVU wins on paper against USF - Charleston Daily Mail

Mountaineers Adjusting On the Fly - Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register

Stewart has faith in Kozlowski’s punting - Inter-Mountain

Penalties have put Bulls in a quandary - Tampa Tribune

WVU's White gone, but Brown is a challenge for Bulls - Tampa Tribune

It’s USF Week: Let’s Meet the WVU Line - Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register

Capers learning to shine as WVU's right tackle - Charleston Daily Mail

West Virginia enjoys weeknight games - PPG

News not all good for WVU's Huggins - Charleston Gazette
Vingle's notebook

Recruiting:

Rogers already puts offenses in chaos - Charleston Daily Mail

Robert Johnson - WVIllustrated.com

NCAA approves rules changes on basketball recruiting - ESPN

What's On Tap:

West Virginia Mountaineers vs. South Florida Bulls, October 30 2009 - ESPN
8 pm tonight on ESPN2.  Current line has us by 3.

Men's Basketball: Open Scrimmage on Saturday - MSNsportsNET.Com
WVU Coliseum on Saturday, Oct. 31 at 1 p.m.  Admission is free.

Men's Soccer: WVU to Conclude Regular Season - MSNsportsNET.Com
Saturday, Oct. 31, at Seton Hall. Kickoff at Owen T. Carroll Field is set for 7 p.m.

Around the League (and Beyond):

Four positions later, Rutgers sophomore Eric LeGrand may have found a home at tackle - Star Ledger

SU must play keep-away with Bearcats - syracuse.com

Two of the best square off - Cincinnati Enquirer
"When the University of Cincinnati’s offense is not on the field Saturday, you can expect to find Mardy Gilyard watching Syracuse wide receiver Mike Williams when he has the chance."  In other news, Pike ruled out for this week.

Will Stein could be U of L’s starting QB - Courier-Journal

Pitt's line key to successful offense - PPG

Stull Stories: Redemption and Booing - Pitt Blather

Cheerleader of the Week: Cincinnati's Kayli - SI.com
I'm not one to usually hype a conference rival school....but she's cute (full gallery linked from the questionnaire).

Oklahoma State's Dez Bryant banned for rest of season - SI.com (AP)

Tailgate Recipe of the Week:

Whenever I get the chance to spend some time in Florida, I try to at least get some kind of alligator dish.  So....

Okefenokee Fried Alligator

Ingredients

• 1 (1 lb) package alligator meat
• meat tenderizer
• garlic powder
• black pepper
• 1 dash cayenne pepper
• cooking oil
• flour
• salt

Directions

1. After thawing sprinkle with meat tenderizer.

2. Let stand for 20 minutes.

3. Season to taste with garlic powder and black pepper.

4. Coat well with flour.

5. Heat cooking to 350 degrees.

6. Cook until golden brown.

7. Do not over cook.

8. It should be tender, moist and have the color consistency of golden fried chicken when properly cooked.

9. Serve with your favorite sauce.

Courtesy of RecipeZaar

Video(s) of Interest:

Since it's USF tonight in Tampa, here's Pat White's highlights from the USF game his freshman year:

And 15 more of his more impressive touchdown runs:

Video of (Dis)Interest:

This week at BCS Headquarters:

Halloween Gallery of the Week:

With Halloween tomorrow, where better to celebrate than at Hef's place?  A big thanks to Coed Magazine for making this section easy this week.

Miss Throwdown:

Today's Miss Throwdown is one of the most gorgeous women in the world today.  Damn you, Justin Timberlake.  Join me as we pay homage to Miss Jessica Biel.  BONUS LINK:  The only minute or so ever worth watching of Ellen.

Budweiser images via prhchamberonline.com and hoboken411.com