The Shotgun/Throwdown: Friday (1/6/12) Edition

By WVUIE97@WVUIE97 Jan 6, 2012, 10:00am EST

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Welcome, By-Godders, to the Shotgun/Throwdown, WVU's nationally recognized best place for sports links, information, sophomoric humor and daily distractions. We're being brought to you today by Tecate's Oscar De La Hoya Beer, in preparation for tomorrow's opponent (see what I did there?).

We still have some leftovers from the Orange Bowl and with the afterglow of the Orange Bowl yet to wear off, it's already time to start looking toward next year. First, it's looking more and more like WVU will have to replace it's defensive coordinator. It also appears as if the road trip to Tallahassee, that I was so looking forward to, may be a casualty of conference realignment. There's also the little matter of Georgetown coming to town tomorrow (more on that later today).

Let's GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What You May Have Missed:

Gold And Blue Now: Friday - WVMETRONEWS.COM
defensive coordinator Jeff Casteel may have a decision to make, Daron Roberts talks about his first season as a college coach and the basketball team gets ready to take on Georgetown.

Kilicli making strides for WVU - Charleston Daily Mail
"Deniz hasn't reached near his ceiling in terms of getting better."

Links: Jeff Casteel looks to be headed to the Arizona Wildcats, reports say - Arizona Desert Swarm
More signs leaning that way

Report: West Virginia Looking To Back Out Of 2012 Game At Florida State - Tomahawk Nation
Big 12 move is the perpetrator

Dana Holgorsen’s West Virginia “Airraid” offense - Smart Football
Dana Holgorsen came to West Virginia to install his own brand of the Airraid offense, which was invented and developed by Hal Mumme and Mike Leach.

Will it be Big East or Big 12 for West Va? - College Football News/AP
The question now for the 23rd-ranked Mountaineers will be what conference they'll be showcased in - a decision that may well be made in court.

West Virginia potentially leaves Big East with a bang - Times West Virginian
The Big East, you see, was a conference shrinking in prestige by the day, its very spot in the BCS process in jeopardy and its conference the laughing stock of America from San Diego to Providence, R.I.

News of Note:

Holgorsen: 'Better things are ahead' for WVU - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
"This is a springboard toward next season," Smith said. "But you know, we can't take it lightly. We've got to go back and get back to work and try and work twice as hard as we did this season if we want to be back here next year.

Questionable future looks good for West Virginia - PPG
To put West Virginia's 70-33 Orange Bowl spectacle into perspective, remember just how bleak this season seemed six weeks ago.

Video: West Virginia's future - Big East Blog - ESPN
Andrea Adelson talks about the future of West Virginia as lawsuits are still pending.

Mountaineers have high hopes for next season - Charleston Gazette
As late Wednesday night turned into early Thursday morning, West Virginia's football players just couldn't wipe the ear-to-ear grins off their faces.

HERTZEL COLUMN: Geno-coach relationship evolved - Times West Virginian
“You know, it’s special to be here in a place where I basically grew up at, and to do it in front of my family and friends and to be with my teammates,” he said. “But I'm not a selfish guy. It’s not about me. It’s about getting a victory for these seniors, and making sure we put our program where we need to be and making sure we represented our state and our university.”

Record-setting night for West Virginia - Big East Blog - ESPN
So many records were set for West Virginia in its 70-33 victory over Clemson the Discover Orange Bowl, I needed an entire post to get to them.

Records galore for WVU in Orange Bowl win - Fox Sports Florida
West Virginia's show in the 2012 Orange Bowl broke records -- almost as many as points they scored.

WVU defense didn't break records, it broke game open - Charleston Daily Mail
"He was probably the only one in the stadium who knew the ball came out," defensive end Bruce Irvin said.

WVU Turns Doubters to Believers... Again - WVillustrated
"There was like linemen out there talking about, ‘Good job, man, stop going so hard. Y'all got it.' I was like, all right," says senior cornerback Keith Tandy. "I never heard anything like that and they just made us want to go harder and keep making plays."

Sports Nation Poll: Wrong Again - MSNsportsNET.Com
What is it about these ESPN Sports Nation polls that seem to stir up the competitive juices in the West Virginia Mountaineers?

Mountaineers enjoyed proving doubters wrong - Charleston Gazette
Hickman's Notebook

Darwin Cook Turns Over Clemson, Turns Around Game - WVillustrated
"I grabbed the ball and I tried to sneak out of there so people wouldn't see I had the ball at first and then I took off," says Cook. "That was just the best moment of my life. I couldn't believe it. It felt like high school."

’Eers Cook-ed up an Orange Bowl win - Bluefield Daily Telegraph
“Obie doubted us too, so I had to tackle him,” Cook said.

WVU's big Rigg made a big play - Charleston Daily Mail
Rigg is the one who jarred it loose for Cook

Video: Darwin Cook and Obie - BGN
After running over Obie the ORange Bowl mascot at the end of his strip and score touchdown in WVU's 70-33 demolition of Clemson, Darwin Cook finds out a secret about the person inside the costume

For WVU players, an unforgettable experience - Charleston Gazette
"It's the best feeling in the world, especially since people doubted us," Irvin said, chip still firmly planted on his shoulder. "We got it done. We kept playing and fighting and the defense stepped up big."

A GAME TO REMEMBER - Register-Herald
Orange Bowl: WVU’s Level living a dream

Don Barclay Postgame Reaction - Mountaineer TV
Offensive tackle Don Barclay following West Virginia’s win over Clemson in the Discover Orange Bowl.

Swinney Praises WVU - WVMETRONEWS.COM
When Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney stepped up to the podium after his Tigers lost to the Mountaineers by 37 points he had a look of shock and disbelief.

Designated Read: Scurvy prevention edition – Campus Union
Photo slideshow from the Orange Bowl festivities. Anybody we know in these tailgate pics?

Photo Gallery II: WVU vs Clemson - BGN