West Virginia’s Big 12 opener against Oklahoma State left plenty of ugly on the tape, and the Pro Football Focus grades back that up. The Mountaineers got enough on the ground to hang around early, but once the passing game was reduced to a trickle, the offense became easy to read. On the other side, the defense spent most of the night getting pushed around.
The clearest storyline from the loss is the one that kept showing up in the grades: Rich Rodriguez refused to throw the football, and the Cowboys eventually adjusted. West Virginia carried a 14-13 lead into halftime, but even that advantage came with a warning label attached. The defense had already shown how fragile things were, and the second half only made the problem louder.
Up front, the grades were a mixed bag with some numbers that don’t tell the full story. Wes King posted the highest mark among the linemen at 70.4, while Carsten Casady checked in at 64.8 and Nick Krahe at 62.3. Amare Grayson finished at 62.0, Lamarcus Dillard at 60.0, Kevin Brown at 59.1 and Josh Aisosa at 52.7.
Casady’s grade looks solid at first glance, but the pass protection story was rougher. He allowed seven pressures, which stands out even more because he had given up just one pressure across the first three games. Brown also took a hard lesson in his Big 12 debut, surrendering four pressures and two sacks.
At receiver, Armoni Weaver-Bomar led the group with a 70.0, followed by John Neider at 65.0. Prince Strachan finished at 58.0, TaRon Francis at 57.8, DJ Epps at 56.9, Jaden Bray at 56.5 and Cyrus Traugh at 54.9. At tight end and fullback, Ryan Ward earned a 67.6, Kayden Luke a 57.9, Cam Ball a 57.0 and Josh Sapp a 56.8.
The defensive grades were where the numbers really turned harsh. Corey McIntyre Jr. led the line with a 67.7, followed by Zeke Durham-Campbell at 67.1 and Will LeBlanc at 63.8.
Nate Gabriel came in at 59.4, K.J. Henson at 59.1, Emerson Joy at 58.5 and Yendor Mack at 33.7.
At linebacker, Isaiah Patterson was the best of the group at 70.7. Cam Torbor scored 61.5, Ben Cutter 52.5 and Ashton Woods 37.7.
In the secondary, Chams Diagne posted a 63.4, Jaire Rawlison a 60.0, Keyshawn Robinson a 57.1 and Nick Taylor a 54.8. At safety, Kamari Wilson earned a 60.1 and Tim Roberson a 59.5, while Da’Mare Williams came in at 50.2, Andrew Powdrell at 42.9, Kameron Reddic at 42.7 and Matt Sieg at 40.4.
Harper Holloman was the top edge rusher at 55.7, while David Afogho finished at 46.4. The overall picture on defense was bleak enough that it’s hard to point to a clean performance anywhere. Of the 24 players who saw the field on that side, not one really had a night that could be called solid.
Two names in particular had a brutal time against the pass. Nick Taylor allowed four catches on four targets for 69 yards, and Andrew Powdrell gave up three catches on three targets for 116 yards.
In Other News...
West Virginia Faces A Bigger Defensive Concern Than One Bad Loss
West Virginias loss to Oklahoma State was not the kind you can pin on one bad quarter or one lopsided stat sheet. The Mountaineers actually had some encouraging numbers on defense and put up a strong rushing total, but the film still told a more troubling story. The new defensive scheme was supposed to help unsettle an opponent that likes to push the ball, yet Oklahoma State found too many ways to hit big plays and keep the pressure on.
What made the defeat sting was how often West Virginia let those chances slip through its hands. Missed tackles piled up, explosive plays came too easily, and the staff admitted the game plan simply did not work as intended. For a team trying to build momentum, the bigger concern is not just the result itself, but whether the defensive issues exposed in this one are tied to a deeper problem than a single rough afternoon. [Read more 🡒]
WVU Fans Get A Coal Rush Twist They Werent Expecting
West Virginias October 10 matchup with Arizona now has a start time and a national TV home, and it comes with an early kickoff that should give Mountaineer fans plenty of time to settle in. The Big 12 announced the game will kick at 12 p.m. ET in Morgantown and air on TNT, TruTV and HBO Max, adding another layer of visibility to a nonconference meeting that already carries some curiosity.
Arizona arrives with a little momentum after improving to 3-1 with a win over Washington State, while West Virginia will be trying to build on the familiarity of a series that has been played only once before. The Mountaineers won that 2021 meeting 31-26, and this years game lands in the middle of a busy stretch for the Wildcats, who will turn around and face Cincinnati in a late kickoff the following week. [Read more 🡒]
Rich Rod's Offense Is Giving West Virginia Fans A Real Concern
Rich Rodriguezs latest West Virginia offense is already drawing attention because it looks different from the ones fans remember from his earlier coaching stops. Through four games, the Mountaineers are throwing on just 22% of their offensive snaps, a notably lower rate than Rodriguez has typically used over the course of his career. For a coach long associated with pace and spread principles, that tilt toward the run has become one of the early-season talking points around the program.
The reasons are not hard to see, at least in broad terms. Pass protection has been an issue, and the receiver play has also factored into the equation, making it easier to understand why the offense has leaned so heavily on the ground game. Still, the bigger question hovering over West Virginia is whether a more balanced approach would make the attack harder to defend and more effective overall, even if the current numbers suggest Rodriguez is still searching for the right mix. [Read more 🡒]