Fake Plastic Rivalry

I have one question for everyone in regards to the "Friends of Coal Bowl": Who Cares?

I'm so sick of all of the hype this game is getting. OK, so both teams are from the state of West Virginia. So what? That alone does not a good rivalry make.

The media and the politicians have been telling us what a big game this is since last spring when they forced the schools to play each other. But its really not such a big game. At least not for WestVirginia. Why would we want to play Marshall? We have nothing to gain. If we win, who cares? We're supposed to win. If we lose, then Marshall gets to experience the glory. This is fundamentally inconsistent with how a true rivalry works. If it were a true rivalry, then there is no such thing as a meaningless win. For example, if Pitt were 0-10 and we beat the living crap out of them the last game of the year, I would still enjoy the victory because it is Pitt. With Marshall I just don't care.

Another common trait of a true rivalry is a lengthy tradition of competition between the two teams. In my lifetime, and I think in the history of our football programs, this will be the second time we've played Marshall. Boy, talk about the memories! Is it possible that this game could turn into a rivalry? Maybe. But it takes years to build that tension; that love/hate/love-to-hate relationship that is necessary for a healthy rivalry.

And back to the schedule filler theory: this is not the season to lighten the load. In fact, from this point forward, we should try to improve the level of competition in our non-conference scheduling. I cringe at the prospect of going undefeated this season and finishing like 6th in the BCS rankings. If we're going to get respect as a powerhouse football team, then we have to play the big boys. Obviously our conference schedule isn't enough to warrant that kind of respect. At least not as it stands right now. After leaving West Virginia forFlorida State, Bobby Bowden took over a weak program and turned them into a powerhouse. How did he do it? He said his team would play anyone, anytime. And they did. And now, they're a pretty OK football program. No offense to Marshall, who has a very respectable tradition, but we need to fill that week with some better opponents. Same goes for teams like East Carolina and Eastern (for the love ofGod) Washington.

The fact is, this game serves no good purpose for either school. Unless of course Marshall wins. If WVU wins…so what? The only people whose interest it does serve are the politicians who made this game happen. And oh by the way, its wonderful to know that I live in a state that has no other problems that my governor and part-time legislation have nothing better to do than intercede in intercollegiate athletics. God Bless 'em.

I can't be the only one who feels this way about this. But, there's nothing I nor anyone else can do about it. So for the next seven years (thanks again to our wonderful governor) I will be forced to watch my Mountaineers play in an artificial rivalry with all the same nauseating fare that I've had to endure for the last month. What a joke. Still I say, Let's Go Mountaineers!! Let's get this one over with and move on. Is that good enough for ya, Joe?

Linchpin Games

I'm a "one game at a time" kind of guy. While I'm intrigued by the prospects of going undefeated and reaching a second straight BCS game, I realize that the most important game is the next one on the schedule. Nevertheless, there is a lot of talk about the WVU v. Louisville game on November 2 as being the most important game in this upcoming season. That was until I read the article found below:

FOX Sports - BCS - Ten games that will determine the title:
Sept. 14/Oct. 7

Maryland @ No. 7 West Virginia OR No. 7 West Virginia @ Mississippi St.

Let me explain. West Virginia enters the season ranked seventh in the AP poll, and is also everyone's sexy pick when it comes to guessing which team is most likely to finish with an undefeated regular season.

Well, if that's the case, head coach Rich Rodriguez can help himself out a ton by his Mountaineers pounding the crap out of non-conference foes Maryland and Mississippi State. If West Virginia can beat Maryland 45-17, and Mississippi State 56-10, that should help in the computer rankings portion of the BCS formula, as well as in the minds of voters who think a conference has to have a Dr. Pepper-sponsored championship game, boast double-digit member schools, or NOT play in a Miami-less Big East to truly compete for a national championship.

The BCS has made changes to its formula over the years, but they still haven't figured out a way to do a three-way jamboree for the national championship. Remember, if West Virginia, Ohio State, and say, Auburn all go undefeated, we all know who wouldn't be playing for the big glass football in Glendale, AZ on Jan. 8, 2007. And that school's name would rhyme with 'Frest Werginia.'

The best way that an undefeated West Virginia team can help themselves in the minds of voters and computers, and keep everyone from going all "Barry Switzer discussing 1984 BYU" on 'em is to absolutely rout their ACC and SEC counterparts in these two non-conference matchups.

I couldn't agree more!

Kickoff 2006

This week marks the beginning of yet another fantastical journey known as the football season. From the blazing sun of August to the stark blustery freeze of January folks from all walks of life will congregate in stadiums and in living rooms across the nation and cheer on the home team, their alum, or the under dog. For some, its just a leisure event, a relaxing Saturday afternoon. For others, its a passion marked by dates that have been circled in calenders for months. For everyone its a distraction from the daily toils and tasks that routinely demand our attention. Its an excuse to stand up and cheer, or curse aloud. Its an excuse to recall the glory days of seasons passed, to remember that one time, that one play, that one miserably perfect moment when all in the world was right, or wrong. Its the one time when, despite preseason polls and predictions, all teams are equal. Its the time when everyone, whether they say it out loud or not, truly believes that this could be the year! This could be the year, we go all the way, break .500, or beat that one elusive team. Its a time when the hopes and dreams of strangers ride on the backs of a young men whom they will never ever meet. It's a time when fathers look to sons say "some day that could be you." It's a time when friends, neighbors, and coworkers debate the outcomes of events they have no control over. Oh, this is a special time and it draws nearer. So whether your strapping on the pads, throwing back a cold one at the tailgate, or just sitting back in your favorite chair, close your eyes, and enjoy the wondrous event known to all as kickoff, and thank God for this thing called football.

WVU projected to go to the Texas Bowl?

2006-2007 Bowl Projections:
Texas Bowl
Houston, TX
Reliant Stadium
December 28, 2006, NFL Network
Big 12 vs. Big East
Bowl Projection: Missouri vs. West Virginia
Formerly called the Houston Bowl, the Texas Bowl would jump at the chance to take Texas Tech or Texas A&M, but they might already be gone. Don't be shocked if the West Virginia/Louisville loser ends up here if Notre Dame ends up playing in the Gator Bowl.

Keep The Feet Planted Firmly

It’s almost time folks. We are only weeks away from the start of perhaps the most anticipated season in WVU history. Both as a team and for a few individuals, I don’t remember us ever receiving this much attention. But just as we’re getting lots of hype, equally we’re getting lots of nay-saying. Of course, that doesn’t bother me one bit. Analysts and sports writers don’t decide the outcome in college footb….er, never mind. That’s for a later discussion.

What I have seen a lot of in reading about this team and this season is the comparison between this WVU team and the team from a few years ago. The article on CollegeFootballNews.com in the previous post alluded to the 2004, 8-4 season as though it were a disappointment. And they aren’t the first to do so.

My response….

What? Disappointing?

Before this season gets underway, what every Mountaineer fan needs to do, for their own health and for the health of this program, is take a step back and think about what it means to be a WVU fan and think real hard about how we define a successful season and a ‘disappointing’ season.

If you had come to me a few years ago and said that we were going to have a “disappointing” 8-4 season, I wouldn’t even understand the syntax of that sentence. How do you have an 8-4 season and a New Years Day Bowl birth and call it a bad year?

I’ve watched college football for years and every year my stomach would turn when I saw analysts talking about how programs were in ‘rebuilding years’ or having ‘down’ periods when they only won 8, 9, or even 10 games in a season. All I could think was how I would love to win like that every year. What else can you call that but success?

Apparently the fans of those programs thought differently, though. Coaches at powerhouse schools were chased out of town because they lost 1 or 2 games a year. In some cases, if they lost to their conference rival (i.e. Big Ten rivalries) it didn’t matter how many games they won they were on the hot seat. How could these fans not appreciate what their programs had accomplished? They won and they won consistently. They couldn’t win a national championship every year, but every year they were contenders. They were on the map. Hell, up until a few years ago, they were the map.

These fans, critics and analysts didn’t appreciate the experience of winning with these teams, but more importantly, they didn’t appreciate the experience of losing. Granted, it might be because they didn’t have as much practice as others. But without the losses, the wins just didn’t mean as much.

And that’s not what I want to see happen to us.

After all, isn’t that what being a WVU fan is all about? Isn’t that why we have that flying WV tattooed on our hearts like a badge of honor? Not because a few guys at ESPN have jumped on the bandwagon, trying to be the first ones to say they called it when the improbable underdog makes a run at the prize. But that’s not why we are so proud.

We are proud because we remember where we came from. We are proud because we went 3-8 just 5 years ago. We are proud because we went 16 years between bowl wins. (And, by the way, how sweet was that win when we finally got it?) There is a brotherhood (and sisterhood, ladies) of Mountaineer fans; a common love that binds us together like family because we’ve been through the good and the bad. Its the bad times that make the good seem even better, and the good times make the bad seem almost nostalgic.

I hear a lot of analysts say that we aren’t going to sneak up on anybody like we have the last couple of years. And they’re right. We are moving up the echelon of the college football ranks. But I still remember a time when it was a big deal if we even got the opportunity to play on national television. It was an event, and usually a massacre. But it was us and we were on TV. Everyone in the country got to watch us play. Even though we got blown out by Ohio State or Miami or Penn State, the exposure made me proud. On that day, people everywhere knew we were here.

And now here we are again. The scene has changed so dramatically, and I recognize that and I appreciate our current level of respect. Make no mistake, I don’t want to sell this team short. They’ve got the talent to play for the whole shebang. Nor am I trying to cushion the blow for myself and everyone else if they lose a game or two. But I have made a conscious effort not to buy into the hype. I will cheer every game, one game at a time and most importantly, I will remember that an 8-4 season is a winning season. Period. For the sake of this football program, as true Mountaineer fans, don’t allow yourselves to forget that either.

Sobering Dose of Reality

CollegeFootballNews.com gives a realistic and conservative outlook on the Mountaineers' upcoming season.

Prediction: 10-2
Losses: @ Lousiville and @ Pittsburgh

This article points out what all true Gold and Blue fans know...

WVU and hype is like oil and water.

Let's hope to turn that around... Let's Go 'Eers!

2006 West Virginia Preview

"Friends of Coal Bowl" Sellout: Naming of a Football Game

This is a great read with a very interesting perspective regarding the upcoming 7 game series between WVU and Marshall:
Daily Kos: "Friends of Coal Bowl" Sellout: Naming of a Football Game