WVU vs. LSU Grades: A Unit-By-Unit Look At The Mountaineers Loss To The Tigers

by WVUIE97 on Sep 27, 2011 2:30 PM EDT in Mountaineer Football

Turnovers were the downfall of our Mountaineers...this was just one of four on the night

Most people were of the opinion that WVU had to play as close to a perfect game as possible to defeat the Tigers. They didn't and yet, was able to climb back into the game and pull within 6 before the special teams monster reared its ugly head and the flood gates opened. Assuming the team can learn from this experience and correct the mistakes, this young team still has a very high ceiling potential for the season. On to the grades...

Offense: B+
533 yards against arguably the best defense in the nation (that had only given up just over 600 total in their 3 previous games), but 4 turnovers and virtually no return game forced the defense to defend a short field too many times.

Running Game: C
Still not setting the world on fire, yet was able to run when they needed to and keep the defense honest a bit. Shawne Alston is a welcome return to this young unit still trying to adapt to the speed of the game. Two fumbles don't help the grade.

Quarterbacks: B+
Geno again sets school records with yards, attempts and completions. The two interceptions bring the grade down a bit (one wasn't his fault).

Receivers: A
Two 100 yard receivers again this week and Tavon lit up LSU for 187 yards. 4 receivers averaged at least 10 yards per catch.

Defense: C+
They were forced to defend a short field virtually all night because of turnovers and the inability of the special teams to create much of a workable field position. Again, due to the situations and the speed at which the offense works, this defense again looked tired late in the game. Not much of a pass rush is starting to be more of a concern.

Special Teams: F
No punt returns allowed for LSU to down the ball inside the 20, usually inside the 10, EVERY TIME. And just when the stadium was rocking as the Mountaineers pulled within 6, the ensuing kickoff was returned for a touchdown, magnified by the fact that the returner was pinned several times and was never brought down.

Discipline: C-
Braun's early penalty killed one drive on a night when field position was horrendous

Crowd: A+
I admittedly wasn't at the '03 Tech game, but that's as rocking as the stadium has been that I've been a part of since the reconfiguration with Touchdown Terrace. I've read several accounts credited to LSU fans about how loud the place was. One said it sounded as loud as the 90,000 seat capacity SEC stadiums (official attendance was 62,056). Reported post-game antics are not figured into this grade.

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only beef...

i think the receivers’ grade should be dropped a bit. sure, tavon had a ton of yardage (as well as others), but he also caused an interception and dropped at least one sure wide-open first down reception on 3rd down. he’s electric, don’t get me wrong. but i think the entire receivers’ grade should be bumped to an A- at best, but a B+ would be more in the ballpark.

by WVUDDS08 on Sep 27, 2011 3:41 PM EDT reply actions

Agreed. The running backs’ grade was docked because of fumbles. But they didn’t fumble the ball. Brad Starks and Geno fumbled. The recievers are very good, but the drops by Tavon cost us first downs and turnovers. McCartney dropped one as well. B or B+

by The 25314 on Sep 27, 2011 4:12 PM EDT up reply actions

my apologies

by WVUIE97 on Sep 27, 2011 4:56 PM EDT up reply actions

but to be fair

It’s a Running GAME grade, not just the RB’s and one of the fumbles was on the Geno to Tavon tip as he crosses during the snap

by WVUIE97 on Sep 27, 2011 8:43 PM EDT up reply actions

Really?

I didn’t realize that was the play we were running on the fumble. That tip pass is designed to be an incomplete forward pass. It actually looked to me that Geno just didn’t watch the snap into his hands.

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by Country Roads on Sep 27, 2011 8:56 PM EDT up reply actions

I could very well be wrong

The Red Corn was still in my system well into the game

by WVUIE97 on Sep 27, 2011 9:41 PM EDT up reply actions

I couldn't decide about Geno's fumble at first....

And even after repeated replays I still can’t decide if he looked away at the last second or if Madsen hiked it early.

Dana Perrino interviewed a Navy SEAL. After discussing all the countries he had been sent to, she asked if they had to learn several languages.
His reply: "Oh, no, ma'am. We don't go there to talk."

by MtnEer_in_SC on Sep 28, 2011 2:03 PM EDT up reply actions

and...

Tavon pisses me off not EVER catching a punt. he’s lightning quick, how much hang time does he really need to get under one???

PS – i know this falls under special teams, but jeesh

by WVUDDS08 on Sep 27, 2011 3:43 PM EDT reply actions

Agreed. Tavon cost us 100 yards of field position by not catching those punts. He said he was misjudging the distance due to the height of the punt.

by The 25314 on Sep 27, 2011 4:10 PM EDT up reply actions

Running Backs

One of my positive takeaways from the LSU game was the running game improvement. As you say, Alston was a breath of fresh air. But I really believe that Dustin Garrison made a statement, averaging 5.0 yards a carry. I’m anxious to see if he carries that confidence into the Bowling Green game.

by Mountaineer Chuck on Sep 27, 2011 5:16 PM EDT reply actions

I think there were certainly positives and agree mostly w/ these rankings. Our QB is an absolute stud and I think our WRs played OK (no spectacular catches really)…I’d give Geno an A- and the WRs a C.

College football is ALL about the QB (when it comes to the offense)

by WVUColumbus on Sep 27, 2011 5:20 PM EDT reply actions