COLUMN: WVU defense has to get better in order to have a chance against Virginia
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MORGANTOWN - We could throw some smoke and mirrors at you today, enough to make you believe this West Virginia defense is prepared to shut down No. 25 Virginia next week in Charlotte.
We could throw the old bend-but-don't-break line out there. In a nutshell, that's exactly what WVU defenders put on film Saturday during WVU's 52-7 victory against U.T. Martin inside Milan Puskar Stadium.
They bent like silly puddy, no doubt about it. They also didn't break or panic or let the situation become frustrating.
We'll get to all of the reasons why in a second, but first we have to say this: If WVU goes into Charlotte with what it showed defensively in the second half against Coastal Carolina and what it showed in the first half against U.T. Martin, then the Cavaliers are going to roll right through WVU.
"I didn't think we were particularly sharp defensively," was the way WVU head coach Rich Rodriguez put it. "I don't know if we got any three-and-outs. We allowed them to convert some third-down stuff. It seemed like we were a little bit off at times defensively."
It's not that Virginia is some big offensive powerhouse with future NFL talent stocked at key positions. You're going to hear a lot about Virginia quarterback Beau Pribula heading into next week. There may even be some comparisons between what Pribula does with what Ohio University quarterback Parker Navarro did against WVU last season in a 17-10 upset of the Mountaineers.
But, what the Cavaliers do with great success is they just hit you consistently with fundamental play over and over again. If you get beat up front, the Cavs will take advantage. If you have a mix-up in coverage, the Cavs will take advantage.
And so we look at what overmatched U.T. Martin was able to accomplish on Saturday over the first 30 minutes of the game. Yes, the Skyhawks didn't score, but they also ran 46 plays and gained 246 yards. That's an average of 5.3 yards per play.
And let's not forget the 54-yard touchdown that U.T. Martin had called back in the opening possession of the second quarter. Makhia Sherrard broke that play along the sideline in a moment that was either a blown coverage or much worse.
The play was called back due to an illegal block, but you can't simply forget that U.T. Martin was one illegal block from throwing up 300 yards on WVU in just one half.
The Skyhawks also held onto the ball for 22 minutes of the 30-minute half. There are two stories to that stat, in that WVU's offense scored early and often. The Mountaineers' longest drive of the first half lasted all of five plays.
There's also the story of WVU (2-0) not being able to get the Skyhawks off the field consistently. U.T. Martin is an FCS school that didn't match up against WVU in talent. That won't be the same story next week against Virginia.
"There were too many of the ugly moments," Rodriguez said. "Our staff on defense will get together and get that fixed. If we give up those kinds of chunks (plays) next weekend, it won't be pretty."
Now, here's something else we will say: There were a lot of little things to like about what WVU did defensively. Kind of hard to totally blast the defense when it pitched a shutout (WVU's offense gave up U.T. Martin's touchdown on a fumble with just 3:25 remaining in the game).
Little things matter the most, at least that's how the saying goes. How about the play defensive lineman K.J. Henson made early in the game? U.T. Martin went for it on fourth-and-two and the ball was handed off to Chris Franklin on the left side. Henson began the play on the right side, but got off his block and slid over and absolutely blew up the play in the backfield.
We see you K.J.
Andrew Powdrell blocked a punt. Yeah, that's special teams, but it still was a nice defensive moment that mattered.
We now move to midway through the first quarter, just after U.T. Martin had moved 70 yards in four plays and was set to score. Franklin was pushing for the end zone, but Geimere Latimer came from behind and punched the ball loose and Ben Cutter pounced on the fumble.
Ezekiel Durham-Campbell came up with a key quarterback sack that forced U.T. Martin to throw a Hail Mary at the end of the half. WVU defended that Hail Mary, which apparently is a touchy subject in the state of Michigan these days.
Ashton Woods made a nice read from his linebacker spot and stepped in front of Tate Surber's pass for an interception in the second half.
These were all solid reasons to think WVU's defense had a good day at the office, but there were just too many moments that went in the other direction. If WVU doesn't get that cleaned up by next week, it's going to be a long day in Charlotte.