WVU game was very similar to Cincy game

October 31, 2009

It's such a game of inches and momentum shifts. We got the plays we needed last night to win, both on offense and defense. In the Cincy game the breaks never came for us, and then we had all the penalties to kill everything.

Pitt was just a meltdown. I had never seen us play so bad --well, maybe the SunBowl.

Anyway, my point here is that we aren't that bad and we aren't that good. We are top 25 material for sure, but if we phone it in all bets are off.

Oh, here's the answer to why we haven't done better in the Big East: Talent and personnel.

We have always had speed and raw strength. But when it comes to pure footfall talent, we have not had the same talent throughout the positions (try recruiting against UF, FSU and Miami). Intensity can make up for the lack of talent when everyone is one the same page and fired up. However, when they make mental mistakes or don't play 100%, the lack of talent bites the team in the behind.

---Why do we get penalized more than most schools? The staff realizes the talent differential and motivates the players play with extreme intensity and sometimes the players go too far and can't control their emotions = mental mistakes.

At Pitt, there was no emotion whatsoever and we looked really bad.

Just my opinion, of course! I don't make a living as a football coach.