MORGANTOWN — In the aftermath of a stirring victory at Texas that paired Will Grier’s talent with Dana Holgorsen’s nerve, West Virginia rose to No. 9 in the College Football Playoff rankings.
The Mountaineers (7-1, 5-1) also remained tied atop the Big 12 standings, a position they typically haven’t occupied this late in the season. Staying in the hunt for the conference championship game requires getting back to work Saturday against underperforming TCU (4-5, 2-4).
For Holgorsen, that means getting past the euphoria of last week’s two-point conversion against the Longhorns, and ignoring the playoff implications that would arise if his team wins its next four games.
“We don’t talk about playoff stuff,” he said. “The only way you remain in that conversation is if you play well the next week. The only thing we talk about in here is TCU, that’s it. We don’t talk about scenarios, we don’t talk about who would be in that (Big 12 championship) game, we certainly don’t talk about what happens after that game. It’s 100 percent TCU.”
The final tickets were sold Friday, guaranteeing the season’s first sellout.
TCU managed only 275 yards last week yet snapped a three-game skid by edging Kansas State 14-13. The difference was a missed extra point in the fourth quarter.
“It wasn’t the best win, but we’ll take it,” said quarterback Michael Collins. “That was a tough month.”
A month in which Collins, a former walk-on, ascended to the starting role because Shawn Robinson suffered a season-ending shoulder injury. A month in which coach Gary Patterson booted dynamic receiver/returner KaVontae Turpin off the team for assault charges. A month during which TCU suffered the ignominy of losing to Kansas only days before the Jayhawks fired their coach.
This represents a rare backslide for Patterson’s program, which posted double-digit wins 11 times during his previous 17 years. After opening this season in the AP Top 25, the Frogs are riddled with injuries and merely seeking to become bowl-eligible.
Patterson recounted 20 injuries of season-ending severity and another 20 players who have been sidelined for at least four-week stints. The shortage of bodies forced TCU to modify its practices this week.
“We won’t go inside drill which we usually do on Tuesday, we won’t go pass-rush on each other, we won’t go 1-on-1s,” Patterson said. “We’ll try to get everybody to Saturday.”
That’s where Grier awaits. The nation’s third-rated quarterback has thrown 28 touchdowns, six of them in the last two weeks without an interception as West Virginia’s offense rebounded from its loss at Iowa State.
After catching two touchdowns at Texas, David Sills has 11 — second-most in the FBS. Gary Jennings, who hauled in the crucial 33-yard score in Austin with 16 seconds left, ranks No. 8 nationally with nine TD grabs.
“Obviously we’ve been playing some people that throw the football,” Patterson said. “I don’t know if we’ve played anybody to this point that throws like they do. They have a lot of weapons.”
Add to that a running game that has generated five touchdowns the past two weeks. Martell Pettaway ran for 121 yards on nine carries at Texas. The team’s 232-yard rushing output came despite the first-quarter ejection of left tackle Yodny Cajuste.
“The line just had a little different nature to them,” Holgorsen said. “They did a better job with their pad level, they did a good job of ID’ing things. They did a good job with their pad level, blocking people, finishing people, getting up to the second level and getting on people, as well. Texas hadn’t given up 200 yards rushing in like 20-some games, and we were able to do that, which is why we were able to win.”
Twitter @GAllanTaylor
