THE SHOTGUN THROWDOWN: Gold-Blue Debut set for Friday

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GOLD-BLUE DEBUT

Mountaineer fans will have their first chance to see the West Virginia men’s basketball team on Friday at the Gold-Blue Debut. Admission to the game is free and tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET.

Head coach Bob Huggins is heading into his 15th year at WVU with seven newcomers on the roster of 15. With lots of new Mountaineers on the court this season, Huggins will be relying on leadership from his experienced returners, such as fifth-year senior guard Taz Sherman. Sherman averaged 13.4 points per game last season and was selected as an honorable mention for the Preseason All-Big 12 Team this week.

SOCCER UPDATE

The West Virginia men’s and women’s soccer teams remain in the top 25, despite losses last week. Both teams are ranked 21st in the national polls. The women’s team hosts #11 TCU tonight, and a win could help the Mountaineers move back up in the rankings. The men’s team returns to action on Saturday at Western Michigan.

WEST VIRGINIA ROUNDUP

• During the bye week, West Virginia football coach Neal Brown discussed the strengths and weaknesses of quarterbacks Jarret Doege and Garrett Greene. Brown also commented on how freshman quarterback Will “Goose” Crowder has been impacting the team.

• 11 former Mountaineers competed in the NFL last week. Quarterback Geno Smith headlined the action when he came in for an injured Russell Wilson and almost led the Seattle Seahawks to a comeback win against the Los Angeles Rams. Smith finished with 131 passing yards, 23 rushing yards, and a passing touchdown in just 25 plays.

AROUND THE BIG 12

• The Big 12 Conference has released its men’s basketball preseason honors. Kansas guard, and Arizona State transfer, headlines the awards list as the Preseason Player of the Year.
• The biggest football game for the Big 12 this week will be #12 Oklahoma State traveling to #25 Texas. The Cowboys are undefeated, but the Longhorns are favored in this game that is FOX’s “Big Noon Saturday” game of the week.
• Another important game for the Big 12 is Baylor’s matchup with #19 BYU. The Bears are favored by less than a touchdown at home against this future conference member.

AROUND THE NCAA

• There is one other ranked matchup this week in college football: #11 Kentucky at #1 Georgia. Both teams are coming into this SEC game with 6-0 records, but the Bulldogs are favored by over three touchdowns. The game will kickoff at 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS.

ODDS AND ENDS

• The biggest story in the NFL this week is the resignation of Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden following reports of the coach writing racist, misogynistic, and anti-gay emails. There are other emerging emails from Gruden that include criticisms of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell for pressuring teams to draft certain players.

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