MORGANTOWN – As the opening kickoff approached, it was hard to determine which coach was feeling more heat – WVU’s Bill Stewart or Auburn’s Tommy Tuberville?
Alumni and fans from both schools had been unable to locate their once, highly-touted, nationally-ranked football teams so deemed in pre-season polls.
A couple months back, Thursday evening’s late October encounter was projected among the nation’s most intriguing non-conference matchups of the season.
That, of course, was before the Mountaineers were no-shows at East Carolina. Soon after, they managed an overtime loss to a highly inferior Colorado club.
Auburn, at least, did its part early, running off three straight wins, including a 3-2 snoozefest verdict at Mississippi State.
But the Tigers proceeded to drop three of their next four with a home field setback to underdog Arkansas particularly grating.
Thus, something had to shake out on a cool, crisp Motown night. Five minutes into the second quarter, Stewart was observed briefly flashing that deer-in-headlights look on the sideline as WVU fell behind 17-3.
Thirty-one unanswered points later, though, the pride of New Martinsville was caught up in a fist-pumping, post-game rage during a ceremonial return to the lockerroom amidst strains of John Denver’s legendary classic, “Country Roads.”
“That was probably the most complete game we’ve played since (beating Oklahoma) in the Fiesta Bowl,” offered quarterback Pat White. “And it’s something we definitely needed.”
Methodical and mostly unimpressive wins over Marshall, Rutgers and Syracuse had preceded this victory which could accurately be labeled a gem by most accounts.
White threw a pair of early picks which Auburn turned into points. And twice, WVU special teams were asleep at the wheel permitting long-distance kick returns.
Otherwise, this finally resembled a Mountaineer outfit previously expected to be in the national title hunt.
Though no longer part of that equation, WVU still controls its destiny in terms of winning another Big East title. Most likely, easier said than done.
Three of their last five games are away from the friendly confines, including potentially challenging battles at UConn, Louisville and Pittsburgh. Cincinnati and South Florida will be contested here.
Give Stewart and offensive coordinator Jeff Mullen kudos for devising an effective game plan to counter Auburn. “We knew we were going to have to spread them out and throw the football a little more,” Stewart advised.
White responded in part producing a 174-yard, three-touchdown aerial output.
Sophomore Noel Devine, meanwhile, gave the Tigers all-night fits, somehow finding running room where it appeared none existed. He finished with a career-high 207-yard performance.
“Everyone doubted us (before playing Oklahoma) and we took that same approach this week in practice,” suggested sophomore running back Jock Sanders. “(This) is the kind of team we know we can be. We just have to keep playing (to this level) the rest of the way.”
Stewart acknowledged many Gold and Blue backers had become restless, telling reporters, “Let them boo me all they want. I’ve got a lot of grit, more than most people think.”
Though Thursday’s decision was unquestionably of the feel-good, couch-burning variety, Coach ‘Stew’ obviously realizes the jury has rested only temporarily.
NOTEBOOK
WEIRTON’S Zac Cooper logged two tackles in his role as backup defensive end. The Mountaineers were sparked by sophomore middle linebacker Anthony Leonard who recorded a game-leading 16 stops, including four solos….
WHITE has now thrown two TD passes in 16 career games, including 13 of his last 22. As a runner, the senior was well contained. White netted just eight yards off 11 carries. He suffered two sacks totaling 22 yards….
WITH Pat McAfee’s extra point on WVU’s first touchdown, he became the all-time leader in Big East career extra points made with 191…
AUBURN dropped to 69-9 under Tuberville when leading at the half. The Tigers had mounted halftime leads in each of their eight games to date this season. Thursday’s loss leaves the Bengals 4-4 with regular season games remaining against Ole Miss, Tennessee (Martin), Georgia and Alabama…
TUBERVILLE called West Virginia, “the fastest (and best) team we’ve played this season.” Auburn had earlier faced the likes of SEC foes LSU and Tennessee.
“West Virginia had us on our heels with their running game,” Tuberville added. “We couldn’t stop the run with a four-man front…”