By Bill Nestor
This past Saturday afternoon, the sun was beating down on Mountaineer Field. It was 80 degrees and everyone at Milan Puskar Stadium was hot, especially late in the fourth quarter. With 5:39 left in the final frame, no one felt the heat quite like West Virginia head Coach Neal brown. His team was looking down the barrel at a double-digit deficit to Kansas in the Big 12 Conference opener.
The Mountaineers were on the verge of dipping two games below .500 while putting themselves behind the eight ball in conference play at the same time. It was an eerily similar scenario from the game prior when WVU held a double-digit lead over Pitt and the Panthers managed to orchestrate an improbable comeback. Brown said after the Jayhawk matchup that it was a long day and would have been longer if his squad had not picked up the come from behind win.
The two difference makers were the quarterback and the crowd. Make no mistake about it, this team goes as Garrett Greene dows and he carries the weight of the offense on his right arm – and legs. Brown has said multiple times this team is better when Greene runs and he is 100 percent correct.
A case in point was Saturday when Greene himself provided offensive balance by rushing for 87 yards on 17 carries and throwing for a season best 295 yards. His success running the football kept defenders at home and opened up passing lanes that allowed Greene to make key connections down the stretch. With 3:27 left in the fourth, Greene found Kole Taylor for six and then two to trim the deficit to three points. Greene then hooked up with Rodney Gallagher III for a 15 yard touchdown followed by a Michale Hayes II extra point to finish off the miraculous comeback.
The 52,428 in attendance brought a big boost, especially at the end of the affair that drew praise from Brown in the postgame interview. Having the backing of your fan base is pivotal, especially during a comeback bid. Just ask the Panthers. There is a huge difference between a two and two record and a one and three mark and the home crowd propelled WVU to the better record.
Next up is Oklahoma State and the first conference road test for the Mountaineers. Stillwater is a tough place to play and it possesses a similar home field advantage as Mountaineer Field. They had 52,202 in the building for the showdown with Utah last week. The temperature was a tad warmer than Morgantown, however, with it hitting 100 degrees in Cowboy territory.
West Virginia would like to turn up the heat on Oklahoma State while enacting a little revenge after suffering a 48 to 34 setback to the Cowboys in 2023. Fortunately for WVU, a much needed break will take place prior to this matchup. A week off gives Brown an opportunity to do some extra game prep an his players have time to rest up.
Last year, West Virginia garnered more than its fair share of good breaks and they took advantage of them. They were fortunate to get a win over Kansas. Now they can regroup and refocus with a conference title still there for the taking.
That will do it for now. Until next week . . . take care and God bless!