MORGANTOWN, W.Va — West Virginia’s offensive line will be bolstered by a reinforcement this week.
Junior right guard Joe Brown is cleared to return to practice after missing the last two games with a neck injury. Coach Dana Holgorsen is hopeful to get Brown back into the starting lineup to provide stability at the lone question mark remaining for WVU’s offense.
“He got cleared [Monday]. He can practice [Tuesday],” Holgorsen said on his Monday night radio show. “So we’ll see how that looks.”
Holgorsen is raring to get Brown back into the lineup after some inconsistent play from replacements Chase Behrndt, Isaiah Hardy and Jacob Buccigrossi. His goal, if possible, remains to play Hardy in just one more game this season so the senior can return for a redshirt season in 2019.
“Isaiah can be a very good player a year from now,” Holgorsen said. “We’re just running out of time with him. He was our next-best option at guard this weekend.”
The offensive line surrendered a season-high five sacks against Kansas, but Holgorsen said overall it was an average performance from the unit.
“We’ve got two really good tackles,” Holgorsen said. “[Left guard] Josh Sills continues to develop. Two centers that continue to play better. And we need to settle in at one of our guards.”
Holgorsen said there is one area where he does want to see the group improve — run-blocking in the red zone.
“I’ve got some run-blocking issues I’ve got to sort out in the red zone,” Holgorsen said. “We had some disappointing run-game production in the red zone. We have to get some of that straightened out.”
Will Grier or Usain Bolt?
Each West Virginia player wears a GPS tracker during games that monitors several vital statistics. One of the most interesting revelations from the Kansas game, if not the entire season, was Will Grier’s top speed when he chased down Jayhawks defensive back Hasan Defense after a 60-yard interception return.
According to Holgorsen, Grier hit 21.97 miles per hour in pursuit of defense.
“There was a lot of fear in his eyes and his soul when he threw that pick,” Holgorsen said.
Grier was nearly in rarified air. The Mountaineers’ 22 mph club is only inhabited by the likes of Gary Jennings, Marcus Simms and JoVanni Stewart. And for one play on Saturday, Grier had all of them beat.
“He was the fastest person on the field,” Holgorsen said.
Grier was a little surprised by his own speed, which he credited to West Virginia’s strength and conditioning staff.
“I usually only have to run in about 10-yard increments, so I’ve never really hit top speeds,” Grier said. “But I wasn’t going to let him score, so that’s how fast I had to run… hopefully next time I hit that speed, I’ll be running in a touchdown or something. I’ll like that a little more than the situation was.”
Counterfeit punt
Holgorsen remains unconvinced that the fake punt executed by the Jayhawks on Saturday was actually legal.
The play caught just about everybody unawares, including West Virginia and ESPN cameramen filming the game. Kansas lined up nine players on the far side of the field, with the long snapper and punter lined up alone. K.U.’s John Wirtel tossed the ball diagonally, rather than through his legs, to the player who rushed for the first down.
Holgorsen thought there were two problems with the play. First, he felt WVU didn’t have the opportunity to substitute properly. And then there was the snap itself.
“It’s got to be one motion,” said Holgorsen, who maintains Wirtel didn’t snap in one motion. “It doesn’t have to be between your legs. But what you can’t do is pick it up and throw it. It’s clear as day.”
Holgorsen said the officials on the field disagreed with how he saw it, and that he submitted the play to the league office for further explanation.
Dana Holgorsen, Love Doctor
Holgorsen is a fan of how Reese Donahue and the team handled the defensive end’s postgame marriage proposal to Sarah Moore. Donahue made sure Holgorsen was OK with the idea beforehand, and fellow lineman Ezekiel Rose turned it into a team activity by forming the Mountaineers in a circle around the happy couple.
Of course, it wouldn’t have worked so well had the Mountaineers lost. But Holgorsen thought it was clear teammates wanted to make sure Donahue’s plan was executed properly.
“Any extra motivation we can come up with to win, I’m all for,” Holgorsen said. “If it takes a proposal every week, sure.”