MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia showcased more than expected, but was still rather vanilla Saturday as the Mountaineers put a bow on spring football with the Gold-Blue Spring Festival Game at Milan Puskar Stadium.
Blue claimed a 39-30 victory in the matchup, highlighted by a late touchdown from defensive back Maliek Hawkins, who returned a Max Anderson fumble for the score, though he had to stop short of the end zone, which had been overtaken by a stage for the Jake Owen concert to come later.
“It was a nice atmosphere. We had a good crowd,” Mountaineer head coach Rich Rodriguez said. “Our players really enjoyed it. It was pretty competitive. Not sure we executed well at times, but they played pretty hard. Some silly penalties we have to get corrected. But all in all, a pretty good spring. West Virginia won today, so that’s a good thing.”
Equally, if not more important to what was accomplished Saturday in a live scrimmage period, was that the Mountaineers came away from the event relatively injury free with the exception of wide receiver Prince Strachan, a USC transfer who was played for the gold team.
“Prince banged up his shoulder. I don’t think it’s a longterm thing,” Rodriguez said. “Maybe a couple weeks. Nobody else got hurt, which is good.”
Returning quarterback Scotty Fox Jr. saw action, but was prohibited from contact, as was the case for fellow quarterback and Oklahoma transfer Michael Hawkins Jr.
Fox, playing for the blue team, completed 3-of-3 passes on the opening series Saturday, including one to receiver DJ Epps for a touchdown.
Hawkins got his turn behind center for the gold squad on the ensuing series, which was aided by a fourth down offsides penalty and culminated with a shorter field goal.
Max Brown then got his try at quarterback for the next series, which was highlighted by him keeping it on a power run play and welcoming contact with cornerback Rayshawn Reynolds near the sideline, before that possession also ended with a field goal.
True freshman signal-caller Jyron Hughley followed with one of the top highlights from the event — a 60-yard touchdown in which he separated from the defense down the sideline.
“They all can run, can’t they? You also see some nervousness in the throwing,” Rodriguez said of the freshman quarterbacks. “Sometimes you aim it instead of throwing it. You don’t just let it happen natural. Things happen a lot faster at this level than the high school level.”
Fox and Hawkins were unable to lead the offense on scoring drives on their respective second series, and the Mountaineers turned to another true freshman in John Johnson III behind center late in the scrimmage.
Johnson III showcased mobility and led a scoring drive that he helped finish off with a short touchdown pass to tight end Sam Hamilton.
The Mountaineers didn’t display any exotic defensive looks under second-year defensive coordinator Zac Alley, rather opting to focus more on positioning, fundamentals and much of what was harped on throughout the spring.
“I’m not one for showing things if I don’t have to,” Alley said.
“We were real limited defensively,” Rodriguez added. “I made him reduce his play calls down, so we were really generic from a call standpoint. We tackled pretty well. We still have to work on getting off blocks. We didn’t throw the ball down the field as much as I’d have liked to today, but we have some good competition at key spots. A lot of starters have graduated and moved on, so we need to have these guys ready to play come August.”
After Maliek Hawkins’ scoop and score, Michael Hawkins Jr. got another series at quarterback and led a scoring drive that finished off with his touchdown pass to wideout Robert Oliver.
“He’s taking a leap every day,” Rodriguez said of Hawkins. “He’s a smart guy. It’s important to him. Throughout 14 practices, he took a big step.”
Brown also led a later scoring drive that included a longer completion to receiver Keon Hutchins and a TD pass to wideout John Neider.
“It’s too early to really tell, but I think the mental makeup of the team is getting to where it needs to be,” Rodriguez said. “Last year was a step, but the first year is the hardest year to develop your culture.”
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Offensive lineman Nick Krahe, tight end Ryan Ward and defensive back Geimere Latimer II were named Iron Mountaineer Award winners prior to the scrimmage.
The awards are presented to WVU’s most outstanding performers in the offseason strength and conditioning program.
Former Parkersburg South standout Cyrus Trough is the recipient of the Tommy Nickolich Award. That honor recognizes a walk-on team member to have distinguished himself through his attitude and work ethic.
Traugh, a receiver, is in his second season with the Mountaineers after transferring from Youngstown State.
“There is no better person to name the award after than Tommy Nickolich,” said Rodriguez, who was teammates with Nickolich at WVU. “Cyrus earned it.”