West Virginia’s Big 12 opener got away from the Mountaineers fast, and the final 41-24 loss to Oklahoma State left plenty to sort through.
The first thing that stood out was the run game, because it kept flashing all night. There’s always been a question about whether a back who led the nation in rushing at a Group of Six school could bring that same production to the Power Four stage, but he answered it again here.
The workload was heavy, and he still never looked worn down. More than once, he powered through contact like the defender was the one in trouble, turning routine snaps into grown-man carries.
But the defense couldn’t match that energy. West Virginia had problems across the board, and while the secondary took its share of the heat, the issues went deeper than coverage.
The Mountaineers rarely got to Mestemaker or made the pocket feel cramped, and there were stretches where it looked like he had all day to pick apart the defense. No back end can hold up for that long.
Zac Alley had already pointed to this problem over the last two weeks, and it showed up again: defenders were still sorting out assignments as the ball was being snapped. That kind of confusion opened the door for explosive plays and touchdowns.
It’s understandable to see that from a defense with 11 new starters and a wave of newcomers, but a month into the season, it should not still be happening at this level. Against an offense this dangerous, it turned into a rough night.
Offensively, Mike Hawkins Jr. showed again that he can throw the football. The bigger issue was how often West Virginia leaned so heavily on the run that the passing game never got a chance to settle in. Rich Rod had a ground game that was working, and there’s no reason to abandon what’s moving the chains, but there’s also value in letting the quarterback make a few plays on first and second down and find a rhythm.
Once the Mountaineers were stuck in 3rd-and-long, the margin for error shrank fast. Protection had to hold, a receiver had to get open, the quarterback had to deliver, and the catch still had to be made.
That’s a lot to ask every time. By the second half, Oklahoma State had figured out what was coming, and West Virginia’s offense had become too predictable.
The teams the Mountaineers had faced before - UConn, Syracuse, and USF - weren’t built quite like this one.
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 🡒]