3 Takeaways from the WVU comeback win over Kansas

West Virginia opened up Big 12 conference play with a win over a struggling Kansas team. This game featured two programs desperate for a win, and West Virginia (trailing by 11 with 5:30 to go) came out on top. While this has not been the start to the season the Mountaineers were hoping for, a comeback victory in the conference opener lends toward a different feeling surrounding the program heading into the bye week.

3 Takeaways from the WVU comeback win over Kansas

1. This WVU team has no quit 

West Virginia’s coaching staff and players caught a lot of heat heading into Saturday’s matchup with Kansas. The heartbreaking loss in the Backyard Brawl led to speculation regarding Neal Brown’s job security among other things. Fast forward to Saturday and a WVU team trailing by double digits with 5 minutes to play, this was a team staring at a potential 1-3 start, the program’s worst since 2003. It would’ve been easy to roll over and concede, but this team did not. The word in McAfee’s tweet is “this”. This team did not quit, many other teams in the history of the WVU program would’ve quit, and many teams around the nation would’ve quit, but this WVU team did not. The offense stepped up as Garrett Greene engineered two touchdown drives. The defense forced a crucial three-and-out to get the offense the ball back for the game-winning drive. With their backs against the wall, the offense and defense stepped up, leading to a WVU victory.

2. Hudson Clement has the makings of a WR1

Some are jokingly referring to him as “Waffle House” because he’s always open. As the in-game broadcasters on ESPN2 stated late in the 4th quarter, Hudson Clement is the “unsung hero” of the game for the Mountaineers. Against Kansas, Clement hauled in 7 receptions (of Greene’s 15 total completions) for 150 yards. Against a talented Kansas secondary, Clement had his best performance of the season. The former walk-on has showcased great potential dating back to last season. His scholarship-earning performance against Duquesne last season saw him rack up 177 yards and 3 touchdowns. He caught a 50-yard touchdown from Garrett Greene against Houston last season, one that would’ve been the game-winner if not for a successful Hail Mary attempt by Houston on the following drive. Clement ended the 2023 campaign with consecutive 80+ yard performances against Baylor and North Carolina.

Now in his sophomore season, Clement has been a main target of Garrett Greene through 4 games. After his performance against Kansas, he now leads the team in receptions and yards. Perhaps now the biggest needed addition to Clement’s game is consistency. While West Virginia has a talented wide receiver room, they need someone to put up numbers week in and week out. Hudson Clement has both the upside and potential to do just that. 

3. Rodney Gallagher III needs to be used more within the offense

Rodney Gallagher’s first career touchdown came at a great time. Greene found Gallagher for a 15-yard go-ahead touchdown pass with 26 seconds remaining. The highly recruited Gallagher has seen time on both offense and defense this season. Gallagher now has 8 receptions for 121 yards this season. The reality is, that Gallagher needs to be on the field more, and should focus on his offensive game. The WVU secondary undoubtedly needs help, but Gallagher is more valuable to the offense at this time. Due to a banged-up wide receiver room, Gallagher did not practice on defense the week of the Kansas game, it is no coincidence that he scored his first touchdown against Kansas.