BLACKSBURG, Va. — The offensive production through the first three weeks of the season gave WVU a sense of positivity despite a 1-2 record.
On Thursday night against Virginia Tech, the Mountaineers seemed in control offensively in the first half, but settling for field goals, especially on the road, is a recipe for disaster.
“Offensively, in the first half, I knew we were close,” head coach Neal Brown said. “If you think about it, we were really close on a couple touchdowns and had to settle for field goals.”
On two separate drives, WVU found itself in the red zone but couldn’t score, finishing with chip shots for kicker Casey Legg.
Running back Tony Mathis fumbled on another possession where the Mountaineers were moving the ball well into VT territory.
It wasn’t until the final drive just before halftime when the pieces fell in place. In 50 seconds, WVU drove down the field and scored, using six plays to go 70 yards, ending in quarterback JT Daniels finding Sam James on a seam route.
In the second half, the Mountaineers didn’t punt, kicking two field goals and scoring a touchdown on their three possessions in the 33-10 win over the Hokies.
The drive before the half sparked what ended up being a blowout in favor of WVU.
“I thought that drive was big,” Brown said. “That’s two-minute stuff we rep a lot. Credit to the o-line because [Virginia Tech] can rush the passer. They gave us time, then JT and Sam made a great play there at the end. It felt big. I felt like we were in control of the game, but the scoreboard didn’t show that.
“I thought from that drive on, though, we were in control.”
WVU (2-2, 0-1 Big 12) outgained the Hokies 237-140 in the first half, and it was almost as lopsided in the second with the Mountaineers holding a 184-88 edge.
Going back to the start of the Towson win in Week 3, WVU has gotten points on 16 of its last 19 offensive possessions.
All three scoreless possessions came in the first half against VT — two punts and Mathis’ fumble.
“We were really clicking the whole time,” Daniels said. “On the first drive, we went three-and-out, but after that, we went 98 yards and got stopped in the red zone. Then we were driving again and just fumbled. Drove again, got a field goal. Drove again, got a touchdown.
“In general, I think the only thing we needed that we didn’t have was execution in the red zone. I think we need to clean that up — turn four red zone field goals into touchdowns.”
