WVU football soared to what seemed like new heights in Week 3 after beating rival Pitt in front of a raucous home crowd. But Kansas brought them tumbling back to the ground with a brutal 41-10 beatdown in Week 4. Here are some takeaways from a tough loss for the West Virginia Mountaineers.
It's Going To Be A Long Year
Buckle up, ladies and gentleman. The win against Pitt in The Backyard Brawl probably got some people's hopes a bit too high. There are eight more games to be played, and a good number of them are against teams just as talented, if not better, than Kansas. We're also just deep enough into the season to have a pretty solid understanding of what this team is, and what this team isn't. Maybe it's worth expounding upon that thought later.
But for now, just understand what you have seen through the first four games is a pretty good indicator of what you're getting this year, and while it might not be a worst-case scenario, it certainly doesn't look good.
Something Has To Change Offensively
Look, the starters might be the starters because they're genuinely the best talent available at each position right now. But it absolutely cannot hurt to try something different while the game is still within reach if the end result is still going to be a 41-10 loss.
Quarterback Nicco Marchiol didn't leave the game until after about three full quarters of play. At no point did he look like he was going to win the game – in fact, Jaylen Henderson scored the team's only touchdown in relief. Certainly, it would have been nice to have that spark in the second quarter.
The offensive line is an even more glaringly obvious look at this school of thought. WVU's starting five have not had an average PFF grade higher than 62.08. Against Pitt, it was 52.18. Yet all five starters played until starting center Landen Livingston went down with an injury, and the other four were in the game pretty much all night.
That includes guard Kimo Maka'neole, who averaged an atrocious pass block grade against Pitt of 29.5 from the team at PFF and missed at least two assignments that saw defenders get into the backfield untouched as Marchiol dropped back for passes. The commitment is understandable, and the backups might not get any better, but it's hard to get worse than what you saw on Saturday night.
Temper Expectations On Defense
Is WVU's defense bad? Far from it. Is it much improved from the 2024 season? You bet. But is it going to save this team, or even hold up against some of the better offenses on the schedule? Probably not.
Kansas outgained WVU 388-324 in offensive yards, which isn't the worst stat you'll see today, but isn't optimisitic either. Unfortunately, that included 242 rushing yards alone – which is pretty unacceptable and is not a recipe conducive to winning football. And speaking of things not conducive to winning football, giving up 34 points in a game might not always cost you, but it certainly puts a lot of pressure on your offense. And that's pressure WVU's offense can't handle.