LUBBOCK, Texas — It was as if someone walked along the West Virginia’s sideline with a giant Shop-Vac that sucked away all of the Mountaineers’ energy.
After jumping to a 35-10 halftime lead at Texas Tech, WVU sat back with an attitude bordering on disinterest as the final 30 minutes slowly melted away.
“We kind of settled in after halftime thinking it was going to be an easy second half,” right tackle Colton McKivitz said. “I don’t think guys were focused 100 percent. You’re not doing your job to the fullest, and it started showing.”
It almost showed in the most embarrassing way possible. Texas Tech was driving with a chance to tie the game with under two minutes left until WVU cornerback Keith Washington saved the day with a 51-yard interception return for a touchdown in what ended up as a 42-34 Mountaineers win.
There was an uncomfortable sense of déjà vu for WVU offensive coordinator Jake Spavital, who drew parallels to last year’s 38-36 escape against Baylor. The Bears outscored WVU 23-0 in the fourth quarter of that one.
“It reminded of the Baylor game last year. This entire setup where we came out and played well, jumped out to a big lead and just couldn’t finish the game,” Spavital said. “It’s something we’ve emphasized over the course of spring ball and fall camp. Obviously we kind of went back to our old ways in the second half. We have to fix it.”
In order to fix something, one must first find the culprit.
“We’ve got to evaluate it and see what went wrong,” West Virginia head coach Dana Holgorsen said.
It wasn’t his halftime speech.
“At halftime, Coach Holgorsen said ‘It’s 0-0 now, get back out there and do it again,’ ” recalled defensive end Reese Donahue. “We didn’t do it again. We had a problem.”
The atmosphere at Jones AT&T Stadium certainly wasn’t conducive to energy. The game kicked off at 11 a.m., and nearly half the crowd was gone after watching two Texas Tech marching band alums get married at a halftime ceremony on the 50-yard line.
“We want it loud. That’s how we like it,” Donahue said. “We play best when we’re under pressure.”
This was not just a defensive issue. In fact, more of the problems were evident on offense. The Mountaineers were bedeviled by drops, penalties, overthrows and lapses in protection throughout the second half.
“Holding and false starts is just not focusing,” McKivitz said. “At that point, you’re trying to keep the defense off the field and give them a breather. We didn’t do that.”
The sloppiest sequence came early in the fourth quarter. Wide receiver David Sills was hit with a third-down holding penalty, and then a delay of game pushed the Mountaineers back into a third-and-21 situation.
Spavital said the coaching staff tried a variety of tactics to reverse the momentum shift, but nothing seemed to take.
“We rotated from getting on the kids to encouraging them to ignoring them,” Spavital said. “We need some senior leadership to step up. We did everything. With the momentum swinging, we didn’t have anybody step up to make that play to get that momentum back on our side.”
That problem will be addressed in practice this week as the Mountaineers prepare for Kansas.
“It’s more about focus and more about leadership,” Spavital said. “(That) is where I see these conversations happening this week.”
O-Line breakdown
Will Grier hasn’t spent much time on his backside this season, but that changed as the Red Raiders started to wreak some havoc in the backfield in the second half.
Texas Tech had two sacks, two tackles for loss and a quarterback hurry after the break.
“I thought they just played with more energy,” Spavital said. “They just wanted it more.”
McKivitz didn’t disagree.
“I don’t think it was pressure. I think it was lack of focus,” McKivitz said. “I think that was some missed ID points and guys not focusing. That was something that hurt us. I think if we had clear ID points, we would have kept Will clean.”
McKivitz said helping the quarterback off the ground is the lowest low there is for an offensive lineman.
“It’s a terrible feeling,” he said. “Our job is to keep him clean. If he’s clean, he’s making plays for us. That’s something we get angry about, to help a guy off the ground. There’s no reason he should be on the ground.”
Mr. Tackle
Don’t count WVU linebacker David Long among those who lost a step in the second half. Long finished the game with 15 tackles, including 10 solos. It was the second-most productive day of the junior’s career behind his 18-tackle effort against Oklahoma State last year.
National stat rankings update
West Virginia’s stint as the nation’s top scoring defense is over after allowing 34 points to the Red Raiders, but the Mountaineers are still among the better teams. WVU now ranks 20th with 17.8 points allowed per game.
The Mountaineers rank third in tackles for loss, averaging 10 per game. Only Miami and East Carolina are doing better.
WVU’s offense is fourth in the country in third-down conversion rate at 58.7 percent. Central Florida, N.C. State and Alabama are the only three teams ahead of the Mountaineers. Unsurprisingly, all four of those teams remain unbeaten.
Grier near the top
WVU quarterback Will Grier is near the nation’s lead in several categories. Grier is second in passing yards per game with an average of 371.8 yards per game. He ranks third in quarterback rating (200.75) and touchdown passes (17).
