After a long and miserable offseason, the Mountaineers finally kicked off their 2020 football season yesterday. In front of an empty Milan Puskar Stadium, West Virginia was able to rout the Eastern Kentucky Colonels 56-10. While there was certainly a lot of good to take away, there were some areas that Mountaineer Nation should be concerned about moving forward.
Here are our takeaways from WVU’s season opening thrashing of EKU:
- Jarret Doege seems legit:
The Bowling Green transfer lit up the Colonels yesterday to the tune of 228 passing yards and three touchdown passes, and he only played in the first half. He looked poised, and appeared to have total and complete control of Neal Brown’s offense in his second season. His passes had good zip and tremendous accuracy, and he seems ready to take the Big 12 by storm. We will be talking about Doege being one of the best quarterbacks in the conference by mid-season. - Special teams could be a problem: Not only did the Mountaineers give up a 100-yard kickoff return that was ultimately called back, but Evan Staley would miss a 25-yard field goal late in the 3rd quarter. Special teams has been a point of emphasis for Neal Brown since his days at Troy, with many of his units being among the best in the nation. If WVU wishes to be a surprise threat in the Big 12 this season, they will have to fix these issues immediately. Expect Brown to address this in practice prior to the Oklahoma State matchup on September 26th.
- Garrett Greene is better than Austin Kendall: Yes, it was only garbage time against a lesser opponent, but quarterback Garret Greene looked solid in his collegiate debut. He ran the ball well, and appeared to have deadly accuracy on his passes. In his limited time on the field, he was even more impressive than redshirt senior Austin Kendall. Though he may be third on the depth chart right now, expect Greene to leapfrog Kendall for the backup position by season’s end.
- Leddie Brown and Alec Sinkfield have arrived: Over the last three years, coaches have praised both Leddie Brown and Alec Sinkfield for their work in practice. However, it just couldn’t seem to completely translate to the field – that was until yesterday. Both backs ran for 123 yards and two touchdowns, while Brown added a receiving touchdown. Though their performance may have been helped by a horrendous EKU defense, they have both appeared to have finally arrived. If they can continue this trend, WVU could easily have one of the best rushing attacks in the Big 12 Conference.
