A year ago, West Virginia played like a team trying to drag the game into the mud. That version of the Mountaineers is gone.
The numbers told the story. WVU finished 355th in the country in field goal attempts per game at 55.5, and 337th in possessions per game at 66.8.
Jasper Floyd was a major reason for that, and center Harlan Obioha was part of it too. When your bigs can’t fly up and down the floor, there’s only so much tempo you can force.
That won’t be the same team this season. The Mountaineers are not about to become Alabama, with its 76-plus possessions per game and 91 points a night, but the offense is expected to move at a much quicker clip.
“I think, naturally, the pace of play will pick up more this year just because of who’s at your point guard position. It’s kind of like your quarterback.
Typically, if that position doesn’t want to play fast, then you typically are not going to play fast. So naturally, I think it will pick up with Miles’ speed and Finley’s speed.
Also, the length and athleticism in your frontcourt with Mo (Sylla), Amadou (Seini), and Aliou (Dioum), and Joson (Sanon) and Seydou (Traore) are both really good athletes. The pace of play will pick up without even having to say anything.
"And I think for me personally, as a coach, I think you’re always just trying to generate the best shot that you can on each possession, and sometimes that may only take one pass, and sometimes that could maybe take more of the shot clock. It’s really just trying to figure out what are good shots for you as a group, and that’s part of the learning curve with a newer group is getting everybody to understand shot selection is not an equal opportunity. What is a good shot for me may not be a good shot for you, and vice versa.”
That change in approach starts at the point. Sadler is the opposite of Floyd: one wants to push, the other wanted to slow things down, set the group, and work through the halfcourt. Both styles can win, but this one should be easier on the eyes.
And it should bring more juice to the offense, too. Sadler gives West Virginia a scoring threat at point guard, something the Mountaineers didn’t really have last season. His ability to score and create for others could unlock another level for this group.
In Other News...
WVUs Quarterback Future Suddenly Includes A True Freshman To Watch
West Virginias quarterback room already has some moving parts, and the picture only gets more interesting when you add the youngest names in the group. Transfer Mike Hawkins Jr. and sophomore Scotty Fox Jr. sit atop the current discussion, but the staff is also working with three true freshmen in Jyron Hughley, Wyatt Walker Brown and John Johnson III, which gives the position a longer runway than it might have seemed to have a few weeks ago.
Among that trio, Hughley has created the most quiet optimism inside the building because of how he is progressing in the read and RPO game. The staff believes there is a real chance he can spend this season pushing for backup duties, which matters in a room where the depth chart could keep shifting depending on how each quarterback develops and how the transfer market looks down the road. [Read more 🡒]
WVU Enters Fall Camp With Key Offensive Jobs Still Up For Grabs
Fall camp opens Wednesday for West Virginia, and the offense still has a few of the most important jobs to settle before the season starts to feel real. The projected depth chart coming out of spring gives a decent outline of where things stand, but it also shows how much of this group is still being sorted out by performance, experience and how quickly players can make a case in August.
Mike Hawkins is the name to watch at quarterback, while Josh Sapp gives the Mountaineers a familiar piece to build around at tight end. Even so, several spots remain in play across the unit, and the coming practices will go a long way toward showing which spring impressions stick and which ones get reshuffled once the pads come on. [Read more 🡒]
WVU Fall Camp Centers On One Position Battle Fans Need To Watch
Fall camp opens Wednesday for West Virginia, and with Rich Rodriguez entering his second year back in charge, there is already a familiar summer storyline hanging over the program: how the staff sorts out the tight end room. Ryan Ward, Josh Sapp and Cam Ball are all in the mix for playing time, and the group has enough intrigue to make it one of the early camp battles worth tracking as the Mountaineers begin the next phase of prep.
There is also some roster uncertainty beyond the position chart itself, with the possibility of a few members of the 2022 class returning to the program still in the conversation. Nothing official has been announced, and this remains more about projection than confirmation, but it adds another layer to a camp that already figures to be watched closely as West Virginia tries to settle key roles early. [Read more 🡒]