Rob Christy-USA TODAY Sports
In what is being called a showdown between the Big 12’s best defense (WVU’s) and the Big 12’s best offense (Baylor’s), the two teams meet up in Waco on Saturday night in what is sure to be a thriller. The Mountaineers, coming off the big win over OK. State last week, head to Baylor to take on Bryce Petty and his high flying triumvirate of an offensive juggernaut, including himself at quarterback, Lache Seastruck at running back, and Tevin Reese at wide receiver. We here at Hail WV are going to give you the full spill of this game and it’s ‘properties’.
In a not-surprising turn of events, Clint Trickett will be given his second start of the year, as it seems he has mostly recovered from his arm injury he suffered in the Mountaineers shocking win over the #11 Oklahoma State Cowboys. Trickett has become a fan favorite to many WVU fans over the past week, and ‘Trickett Time’ seems to be sweeping the Big 12. The Mountaineers will be counting on him to be at his best against the Bears.
WVU’s defense had an unprecedented performance last week against J.W. Walsh and Co, and easily looked like the best defense in the Big 12. Safety Darwin Cook continued his hot streak, and he will need to be on fire against the Baylor offense.
West Virginia will also be counting on their special teams to make a drastic turnaround from last game’s debacle. Special Teams Coordinator Joe Deforest is ‘public enemy number one’ in West Virginia, after multiple games in a row of tremendous mistakes by his corp. Dropped punts returns, poor judgment by the punt returners, and poor blocking for the field goal kicker all were abundant in the last game. In order to beat Baylor, WVU will have to find the answers on that side of the ball, quickly.
Baylor, on the other hand, is on one of the school’s best runs ever as a powerhouse in the Big 12. After last year’s defense gave up 70 points to the Mountaineers, the team from Waco has significantly improved. If you would like to have a better look at the team, read our last article detailing the team’s strengths and weaknesses here: https://hailwv.com/2013/10/03/knowing-enemy-west-virginia-mountaineers-planning-bear-hunt-saturday-night/
Even with Baylor’s obvious home advantage, I, Ben Anderson, predict that the defense will be able to stop Baylor’s offensive attack just enough for Clint Trickett to work some magic. Here are some more predictions from the rest of our crew.
Stephanie Deskins: Our defense does the dirty work again, and we get by in a squeaker, 27-20.
Matt McClure: The defense plays well, but turnovers and the offense’s inability to do much leads to a Bears win. 35-17 Baylor.
Ben Anderson: Even with Baylor’s obvious home advantage, I predict that the defense will be able to stop Baylor’s offensive attack just enough for Clint Trickett to work some magic. Final score of 34-27 WVU over Baylor.
That’s all folks. Stay tuned all tomorrow evening for a live chat of the game, and more in-depth analysis. Signing off for the evening, this has been Ben Anderson.