Mountaineer Morning Links: Oakland Golden Grizzlies Gameday (12/19/12) Edition

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 Grizzly Beer, in preparation of tonight's opponent.

What You May Have Missed:

Tavon Austin a finalist for 'Jet' Award - Big 12 Blog - ESPN
West Virginia's Tavon Austin is one of three finalists for the Jet Award, given annually to college football's best return man.

MAC Announces Coliseum Reseating Project - WVU Athletics
prior to the start of the 2013-14 men’s basketball season

Huggs Impressed With Boeheim's Consistency - WVU Athletics
Huggins has matched wits against Syracuse great as a player and as a coach.

Pro Football Update - WVU Athletics
Fourteen former West Virginia University football players are currently on NFL rosters.

WVUPros NFL Week 15 Recap: Keith Tandy and Bruce Irvin - WVU Pros
Our NFL Week 15 recap highlights Bruce Irvin and Keith Tandy with some eye-opening stats from Don Barclay.

WVUPros In Basketball Report: Tyrone Salley, D'or Fischer, Truck Bryant and More - WVU Pros
We give you updates on Devin Ebanks, Kevin Jones and Alex Ruoff. We also tell you about Casey Mitchell's injury and introduce Tyrone Salley and D'or Fischer to WVUPros.

News of Note:

Hoops

’Tis the season to get some wins - Charleston Gazette
WVU hosts Oakland tonight

Tired Of The... - BGN
On our way through Chinatown en route to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., we saw a sign that Bob Huggins would certainly have appreciated, given his mood following West Virginia's 81-66 loss to Michigan.

WVU Begins Four-Game Homestand Wednesday - WVU Athletics
Mountaineers battle Oakland at the Coliseum Wednesday night.

Huggins evaluating lineup - Charleston Daily Mail
Opponents have outscored the Mountaineers by 18 points in the 204 minutes Kilicli has played this season. In the 156 minutes with Kilicli on the bench, WVU has outscored teams by 34 points.

Slump turns players into early birds - WV MetroNews
Coach Bob Huggins has questioned some of his players’ commitment during this period of discontentment.

WVU hopes work pays off vs. Oakland - Times West Virginian
Huggins has spoken so highly of Kilicli, the person, talked about how he is one of his favorite players ever, but says he doesn’t like him enough to lose with him.

WVU Players Appear To Be Listening To Huggins - WVillustrated
Two days after hearing Head Coach Bob Huggins call them out for not arriving early to practice or staying late, nearly the entire team was on the court more than 30 minutes prior to the start of practice.

Watch: WVU-Oakland hoops preview - WV MetroNews
Hear Bob Huggins’ thoughts on the Mountaineers’ struggles this season and Deniz Kilicli’s plan for becoming an offensive contributor.

WVU Men’s Basketball: Oakland Preview - WVillustrated
The Mountaineers look to get back on track Wednesday at the Coliseum.

Oakland coach recalls last trip to WVU: ‘They made everything’ - WV MetroNews
West Virginia and Oakland have met on the basketball court just one time, during the 2010-2011 season opener in Morgantown.

Preview: WVU vs Oakland - BGN
West Virginia faces its second consecutive opponent from the state of Michigan when it hosts Oakland at the WVU Coliseum on Wednesday night.

WVU, Oakland meet in Morgantown - Register-Herald
Looking at it on paper, the next week should finally provide the struggling West Virginia University basketball team with a break.

West Virginia hosts Oakland University tonight - Inter-Mountain
The Mountaineers (4-5) are currently on a two-game losing streak, coming off an 81-66 loss to No. 2 Michigan last Saturday.

Video: Basketball Interviews 12/18 - BGN
Huggs & Turk

Football

WVU Coaching Staff Set For Pinstripe Bowl - WVillustrated
Roberts is gone. Magee will coach Cornerbacks in the bowl game. Patterson moves to Defensive Coordinator.

HERTZEL COLUMN: Tragedy helps fuel Austin’s drive - Times West Virginian
“I had lost three friends in a matter of four weeks,” he said.

Watch: Tavon Austin on Pinstripe Bowl - WV MetroNews
West Virginia receiver/running back/special-teams threat Tavon Austin sizes up the Pinstripe Bowl, while wearing a lid that shows he’s ready to go to New York.

Wyant: Smith should have run more - Register-Herald
Fred Wyant, of Morgantown, WVU’s starting quarterback from 1952 through 1955, thinks Geno might well could have won college football’s top award if he had shown more versatility and run more with the ball.

Bailey Part of a Growing List of Early Entrants - WVU Athletics
Stedman Bailey is joining a growing list of Mountaineer football players leaving school early to try their luck in the NFL.

Recruiting:

Expect WVU to sign JC players today - Charleston Gazette
today begins the NCAA football signing period of midyear junior college transfers.

Few stars, but big pomp for WR commit - WV MetroNews
College coach Mark Duda summarizes Kevin White by saying WVU is “getting one of the best athletes we’ve ever coached here,” you need the context to gauge such a statement.

Around the League (and Beyond):

Large crowd can help Baylor for future bowls - Waco Tribune

ISU QB Richardson adjusts to being starter - WCF Courier

K-State adjusting to new offense - Topeka Capital Journal

Cotton Bowl is a no-win situation for Sooners - Oklahoman

Will Mike Gundy need two coordinators? - Oklahoman

Report: Manny Diaz withdraws name from consideration by FIU - Burnt Orange Nation

First-year coach's impact on Horned Frogs basketball more than cosmetic - Dallas-Fort Worth Star Telegram

Stats That Matter: Minnesota Golden Gophers vs. Texas Tech Red Raiders - Viva The Matadors

What's On Tap:

Oakland Golden Grizzlies vs. West Virginia Mountaineers - ESPN
9 pm tonight from the Oliver Garden on ESPNU

Texas-Arlington Mavericks vs. (24) Oklahoma State Cowboys - Preview - ESPN
8 pm tonight from Gallagher-Iba Arena on RSN alternate

(23) North Carolina Tar Heels vs. Texas Longhorns - Preview - ESPN
9 pm tonight from the Erwin Special Events Center on ESPN2/WatchESPN

Video of Interest:

Bob Huggins offers his opinion on where the Mountaineers are now as they prepare to take on Oakland on December 19 at the WVU Coliseum.

Video of (Dis)Interest:

SB Nation's Dan Rubenstein counts down the ten biggest national fails of the 2012 college football calendar year.

Hump Day Video of the Week:

Miss Throwdown:

Today's Miss Throwdown is a Latvian model. CLICK HERE for today's gallery of Sabine Jemeljanova.