MORGANTOWN — There were literally dozens of storylines that came out of West Virginia’s 31-24 overtime victory Saturday against the hated Panthers of Pitt.
Only one statement, though: This WVU running game ain’t dead yet.
It would have been easy for me, you, your neighbor and your barber to believe that. We all saw running back Jahiem White being carted off the field last week in Ohio. We all likely thought sitting right there next to White on that same cart was the hope of the Mountaineers’ offense, as well as the entirety of the WVU running game.
Two days later, when it was announced White would need surgery and was out for the rest of the season, well, there goes the neighborhood.
“When he went down, he’s my brother, and I told him, ‘I got you, man,’ ” WVU running back Tye Edwards said. “He’s No. 1, I’m No. 2 in jersey numbers. We’re like that 1-2 punch. I told him to keep his head up.”
Edwards may have taken care of the rest for the Mountaineers (2-1), well, it was him and what also turned out to be a great story with what WVU head coach Rich Rodriguez calls his “heavy package.”
More on that in a moment.
Edwards’ story is interesting in that he transfers over from Northern Iowa, but can’t get on the field right away, because he was part of that group along with defensive end Jimmori Robinson who needed a waiver from the NCAA in order to be eligible this season.
He was eventually awarded that clearance, but only after the NCAA was basically ordered to grant it by a federal court last month, which meant Edwards had missed out on spring ball and the majority of fall camp.
“Even going through that process of becoming eligible, I always kept my faith high,” said Edwards, who is not your average-sized running back at 6-foot-2 and 225 pounds. “I had good spirits throughout the whole experience. I took to not playing and was just waiting on guys calling me. When my name was called, I was going to be ready.”
That time came against the Panthers (2-1), sometime in the late stages of the first quarter or early in the second quarter.
To that point, there were a few sparks in the WVU running game, a moment here or there, but there wasn’t anything close to the show Edwards put on.
By the end of the night, his stat sheet read 25 carries, 141 yards and three touchdowns. His third touchdown – a 1-yard power plunge – was the go-ahead score in overtime.
“He got in a lot more work the last two weeks since he became eligible,” Rodriguez said. “He was in pretty good shape. We told him, ‘You’re a big, strong back, so use your power.’ He did today. He ran with a purpose.”
Two of Edwards’ scores came on that heavy package, what can otherwise be known as a big, old garbage truck filled to the rim looking to plow through carnage.
The formation, and this is no joke, consists of nine offensive lineman. Some line up in their regular spots, some as tight ends and others as an H-back and fullback.
“The genesis of O-line and D-line play is big guys moving other big guys against their will,” Rodriguez said. “The bigger the guys are moving the other guys, the better off you are. Donovan Haslem is a cheeseburger shy of 350. Then we put Kimo (Makane’ole) in there and he’s two hamburgers from 340. We’ve got almost half a ton of meat in there to move the pile.”
And then throw Edwards’ 225 pounds behind all of that going full tilt and, well, it’s tough to stop at the goal line.
“When they first installed that, I told myself I’ve got to be in there. It was the only thing I wanted,” Edwards said. “I said, ‘coach, don’t do me like that. I have to be in there.’ That was the first time we actually did it and it was fun.”
Now, we get back to that statement, because if WVU can find its running game again, all bets are off on WVU struggling mightily in what will be a wide open Big 12. Taking the running game away from Rodriguez’s offense is like taking away Superman’s cape or Stepen Curry’s jumper.
Give Rodriguez back the ability to move the ball on the ground, now things get a bit more interesting.
That was what WVU accomplished with the overtime win, it suddenly made things interesting again.
“Yeah, even the media, they can say stuff about the run game,” Edwards said. “To me, I believe in (God) and the ball. As long as you keep (God) first, no matter what defense you face, you can make a positive statement.”
The bigger question now, of course, is Edwards destined to suddenly come out of nowhere and become that big time featured back? That would be one heck of a story, but Rodriguez isn’t quite ready to anoint Edwards as a superstar just yet.
“I’m not really ready to anoint anyone just yet,” Rodriguez said. “We miss Jahiem. The guys who got an opportunity to play, they made the most of it.”
