There is little doubt that this will be one of the most fired up crowds found in college football this entire season. Even could be the first time a pro stadium runs out of beer. A national television audience, fired up crowd and two pretty good football teams - perfect. As always Hokie defense will be tough. And the Mountaineer offense will be solid - running and passing. Key? Just who wants it more. I don't believe our defense will be a little better than Mountaineer Fans expect. And Gibby will have them ready to play. Results?
28-14 Mountaineers
You make some good points and you may be right. However, here's where I see the strengths and weaknesses of each team:
Quarterback- clear advantage to WVU. If we are to win, we need to pressure Grier. Our DEs have talent but not the best we've had in the past years. If we give Grier time to throw, we could be in trouble.
Running backs- advantage WVU. This may be one area where we all get surprised. We have more talent than we are given credit for and a former fullback has developed into someone that will create problems for a lot of defenses. I believe the WVU running game may struggle a little until your new O linemen get comfortable as a unit. Make no mistake, your running backs are more talented than the Hokies.
Offensive line- advantage Hokies. We don't usually say this but this could be our best Oline in a long time. This should help our running game and more importantly protect our QB. If Josh Jackson has a little time, he CAN play.
Defense- advantage Hokies. This, in my opinion, is the deciding factor in the game. Most every publication has the Hokies as a top 20 defense. The secondary is ranked as high as the 3rd best in the country (which could cause problems for Grier) and the linebacker group are ranked as high as 4th in the country (which could be a problem for the Mountaineer running game). Bud Foster needs no introduction.
Coaching- tough call. Strong arguments for both side so I'll stay away from that!
After all this, you can throw it all out the window when two rivals like the Mountaineers and Hokies get together. I think it will be a very close game.
Go Hokies!
