Three Major Miscues for West Virginia football in the loss to Iowa State

In a highly anticipated matchup on Saturday with the 11th-ranked Iowa State Cyclones, West Virginia suffered their first loss in Big 12 play. 

After a 14-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that took 7:42 off the clock to open up the game, it was downhill from that point for the Mountaineers. Though they only trailed 14-10 at the halftime break, West Virginia failed to take advantage of second-half opportunities on the offensive end.  Here are three miscues on WVU's part against Iowa State that helped lead to the loss.

Three Magnified Miscues for West Virginia in the loss to Iowa State

1. Issues Snapping to the Quarterback 

WVU center Brandon Yates struggled to snap the football to quarterback Garrett Greene on numerous occasions throughout the game.

While it did not lead to turnovers, these poor snaps by Yates aided in halting a couple West Virginia offensive drives.

"Yates has a little bit of a hand issue, but [snap issues] were a factor," WVU Head Coach Neal Brown said. "Three of them resulted in negative plays, but there were probably 8-10 in the game."

Brown said "we did" consider changing centers after the issues became apparent, but the decision was never made.

"Whether we should have or shouldn't have is probably up for discussion," Brown said. [Yates] is our starting center, and he's going to be our starting center this year. Landon [Livingston] has got a bright future, but [Yates] is clearly our best option right there, and because we're right here right in the middle of the season i didn't think that was the right move from a confidence standpoint. That's why we decided to stick with him."

West Virginia’s offensive line units have been among the best in the country for the second-consecutive season, but Zach Frazier (currently starting at center for the Pittsburgh Steelers) is the piece on the O-line that WVU is missing the most. 

2. Blown Coverage leading to a big touchdown 

Iowa State’s second possession of the game resulted in Rocco Becht connecting with Jaylin Noel for a 60-yard touchdown on the third play of the drive. Noel was wide open on the play and it wasn’t because he ran an amazing route, it was because one or several players on the WVU defense were out of place.

While Rocco Becht is deserving of some credit for the throws that he made in this game, West Virginia’s defense afforded Cyclone receivers too much cushion in pivotal moments when the defense was trying to get off of the field.

3. Garrett Greene’s miscues 

Greene picked up two more interceptions against the Cyclones, bringing his season total to 6, after throwing just 4 total in the 2023 season. One of our keys to victory was to win the turnover battle, and Greene’s interceptions proved to be costly as they were the only two turnovers of the game.

"I was trying to do much. It's my fault -- they're a drop eight team so they want quarterbacks to do that and i fell right into it," Greene said.

On more than one occasion Greene attempted passes into a tight window on plays where he appeared to have an opportunity to scramble and pick up easy yardage. Although he eclipsed the 200-yard mark, he completed just 18 of 32 pass attempts.

As much as West Virginia fans might not want to admit it, the second-year starter has not made many strides (if any) from last season to this one. He came to WVU with a knack for making plays happen with his legs, and that was his best trait in the matchup with Iowa State. Greene was WVU’s leading rusher with 87 yards. But the passing game is still lacking. When asked postgame about evaluating his decision making, Greene wasn't able to give a definitive answer.

"I can't really tell. I'll watch the tape and I'll get back to you," Greene said.