MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen didn’t think he warranted an unsportsmanlike conduct flag and didn’t agree “with a lot of what happened” regarding the penalty phase of Sunday night’s loss to Virginia Tech.
Calling the disparity in flags “the biggest deal in the game,” he stewed over the Mountaineers being penalized nine times for 81 yards with four others declined. The Hokies drew five flags worth 34 yards.
The matchup at FedEx Field in Landover featured a neutral-conference officiating crew from the Big Ten.
Holgorsen incurred a significant 15-yarder himself, which pushed his offense out of field goal range in the third quarter.
“I thought you had to argue (to get flagged), but evidently not,” he said. “I wasn’t even arguing the call, but I stepped out of the box. Three officials looked at me and didn’t do anything, and one guy that was all the way down there came running in and threw it at me.
“I don’t know what his problem is, but evidently I did something to piss him off. He can throw it if he wants.”
Side judge John Hayes flagged Holgorsen, doing so a few minutes after the two interacted over another major penalty — freshman Kenny Robinson’s out-of-bounds hit on Hokies kick returner James Clark.
Holgorsen thought the lack of a whistle invited Robinson to pursue as Clark tip-toed down the WVU sideline.
“Coaches encourage communication. Officials encourage communication. So I was communicating on why I didn’t think Kenny should be called for that personal foul,” Holgorsen said. “What am I supposed to tell the safety, ‘Just let him go score?'”
What led to big return?
Special-teams coach Mark Scott said WVU was utilizing some backups on Clark’s 44-yard runback.
“The one that popped on us, we had a few guys that were (second-string) that went in and either didn’t get off blocks or didn’t do their assignment,” he said.
Combined with Robinson’s late hit, the Hokies started the drive at WVU’s 32-yard line and scored on the next play.
Lingafelter’s knee OK
Right guard Grant Lingafelter, who left Sunday’s game in the second quarter with a knee injury, reportedly won’t miss much time.
“He’s going to be fine,” Holgorsen said. “He’s day-to-day.”
Lingafelter remained listed as the starter on Tuesday’s new depth chart.
Freshman lineman shows potential
Forced into extended action by Lingafelter’s absence, redshirt freshman guard Josh Sills earned some believers.
“You’re going to make freshman mistakes and he did, but he’s not afraid to get in somebody’s face,” said senior guard Kyle Bosch.
“He’s physical, he’s aggressive, and he’s got gorilla arms that hang to his ankles, so he’s good in pass protection. He’s going to be a hell of a player for us in the future. He’s going to be an all-conference player in my opinion.”
Simms’ suspension over
Sophomore receiver Marcus Simms, suspended for the opener after two DUI arrests in the past four months, is “ready to roll,” Holgorsen said.
The first set of charges facing Simms — from a May arrest in Maryland — were dismissed last week. He’s still awaiting a mid-October court date on charges from another stop in Monongalia County that occurred during preseason camp.
Punter cramps puzzling
An array of starters for both teams suffered leg cramps, understandable in the season’s first game with some guys playing 70-plus snaps.
Then there’s the case of West Virginia punter Billy Kinney, clutching at his calves after his second kick of the night.
“I can’t explain it,” Holgorsen said. “I get how Gary Jennings falls out, because he ran over 10 miles. They had (Terrell Edmunds) who’s a really good safety, and I get how he was in full-body cramps. I can’t explain how Billy Kinney is having full-body cramps, but he did, and it affected his punting.”
With hang time and distance impacted, Kinney averaged 36 yards on nine punts. That left WVU about minus-90 in hidden yards compared to Virginia Tech punter Oscar Bradburn averaging 46 yards on eight tries.
Kinney endured cramps last season in Week 2 against Youngstown State.
“That starts Sunday, that starts Monday, preparing your body and taking care of your body all week to insure that doesn’t happen,” Scott said.
Spinning East Carolina’s loss to JMU
Holgorsen doesn’t want to hear how hard it will be to get West Virginia up for its Week 2 opponent, even though East Carolina yielded 614 yards while getting thumped 34-14 by FCS No. 1 James Madison.
“Everybody says you have a team that lost to an FCS school, they must not be very good or whatever,” Holgorsen said. “Losing to James Madison, I discard that. James Madison could beat about anybody in the country right now. They won the (FCS) national championship last year and haven’t lost in a long time. I’m going to go ahead and tell you James Madison could play with anybody.”