The Mountaineers lost their Big 12 opener to Kansas, 41-10, which moves them to 2-2 on the season and 0-1 in conference. They have another tough conference game this week, but this time at home. They are double-digit underdogs against Utah, which is 3-1 overall and 0-1 in the Big 12. They dropped their conference opener to Texas Tech last week, 34-10. WVU has a tough assignment this week for a chance to get back on track and keep its head above water. Read more: Five Keys for WVU To Upset Utah in Morgantown.
Five Keys for WVU To Upset Utah in Morgantown
The offense struggled mightily against Kansas last week. They mustered 324 total yards, with 179 coming in the fourth quarter when the game was already well out of reach. Head coach Rich Rodriguez acknowledges that the blame falls on him for the team’s lack of preparedness and execution.
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“And when you’re not dominant, I don’t want to say everything has to be perfect, but everything has to be aligned right,” Rodriguez said during the Rich Rodriguez Show on Monday. “Now, there’s going to come a point in time where we don’t have to have everything aligned right, and then you’re still going to be okay. We’re not there. We’re not going to be there all year, so we might as well face it – we have to be better executing than we did on Saturday.”
The focus has shifted to Utah, and they have to move past the brutal loss last week. They cannot dwell on the past or the poor performance of one game when they have shown flashes of being a winning football team. The coaches must focus and find the best players to execute their game plan this week.
Contain Devon Dampier
Utah’s offense flows through quarterback Devon Dampier. He is their leading rusher, with 225 yards and one touchdown on 44 carries this season. He is also completing passes at a high rate. Dampier has 790 passing yards, with seven touchdowns and two interceptions, completing 70.9% of passes. WVU’s defense must contain him in the pocket and not allow him running lanes, which he will take.
Utah ranks sixth in the nation, converting 58.7% of third downs. A lot of that falls on Dampier, who keeps them ahead of the chains with his legs, to keep it manageable. The Mountaineers must force them into third-and-long situations to force punts and keep their offense off the field.
Protect the Quarterback
Jaylen Henderson made a case late in the game to steal the starting quarterback job from Nicco Marchiol, but it may not matter much if the offensive line does not protect the quarterback. Utah has 10 sacks on the season, which averages out to 2.5 per game. They pressure the quarterback at a high rate, so the offensive line and running backs must know their assignments. Utah is tied for third in the nation with six interceptions, so they will make WVU pay for poor decisions and poorly thrown balls.
Limit Interceptions
This key to the game goes hand in hand with the former. Utah has only forced and recovered one fumble this season, but the Utes force a lot of interceptions. They have five turnovers as a team, while they have forced seven, resulting in a plus-two turnover margin. Regardless of who is at quarterback, Marchiol or Henderson, they must make sound decisions and accurate passes.
Execute on Third Down
West Virginia has played horribly on third downs this season. They have a third-down conversion rate of 22.22%, which ranks in the bottom five in the nation. A large part of this is their efficiency on first and second down. They constantly are behind the eight-ball on third downs, which makes it more challenging to convert third-and-longs. WVU must get ahead of the chains and control the ball for long periods of time to eat away at the clock and keep Utah’s offense off the field.
Special Teams Matter
WVU allowed a kick return at the start of the second half last week, which killed any hopes of them making a comeback. The momentum quickly shifted in favor of Kansas, giving them a 27-3 lead. The Mountaineers must play soundly in all facets of the game and limit the explosive plays. Changing the field position on punts is another factor that could sway the outcome of this game. WVU needs all the help it can get, especially if the offense is not efficient.
