The West Virginia Mountaineers picked up a second consecutive win to start the season with an impressive 52 to 7 victory over the University of Tennessee at Martin this past Saturday in Morgantown. It’s the first time since 2018 that WVU has jumped out to a 2-0 beginning.
Sure, the doubters will say that the Mountaineers have not been tested and they are correct. Coastal Carolina and UT Martin aren’t world-beaters, but they were exactly what the team needed to face early on to put the pieces together. Rich Rodriguez added 88 new pieces to be exact and he needed some time to get his house in order before the big boys come knocking.
What a difference a week makes, especially for this team that looked much more polished. Michael Hawkins Jr. was more balanced and explosive this Saturday at Milan Puskar Stadium.
Hawkins was more efficient, going five of seven for 155 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He only needed to play half of the third quarter before taking the rest of the day off. His ability to stretch the Skyhawk defense aided the running game. In the opener, West Virginia garnered 281 yards on the ground, but 72 came on one carry. In their second outing, the Mountaineers finished with 316 yards.
Defensively, WVU bent but didn’t break and played an opportunistic ballgame. The stoppers swarmed to the ball all afternoon as eight different players had four tackles or more. With nine tackles for a loss, the Mountaineers did an excellent job putting UT Martin behind the chains and then keeping future plays in front of them.
Fans looking for a test will get their wish this coming Saturday when WVU locks up with Virginia in Charlotte. The battle with the Cavaliers is the first tilt away from Morgantown and the first prime time game of the campaign. Virginia slides into the Top 25 and has a pair of impressive wins. The opener was a 34 to 8 victory over North Carolina State and last weekend they pounded Norfolk 59 to 3.
This is a golden opportunity for Rich Rod to elevate the confidence of his players with a win. A 3-0 start would give them the juice they need to tackle Oklahoma State. The Cowboys are fresh off their upset of No. 6 Oregon.
Robert C. Byrd is off to an impressive 3 and 0 start after a 42 to 14 win over previously undefeated Keyser. A 21 point second quarter was the difference as it helped the Flying Eagles to a 28 to nothing halftime lead.
The impressive part of this start is the teams that it has come against. The last time RCB defeated Keyser and Fairmont Senior in the same year, it was in 2014 under legend Bruce Carey. Since then, the Flying Eagles have been a combined 3-18 against the Golden Tornadoes and the Polar Bears combined until this year.
A pair of seniors are leading the way. Quarterback Isaiah Heflin and receiver Junior Smith are taking care of business. Heflin has thrown for 190 yards or more and rushed for 100 or more yards in the last two games. Smith is the first receiver in school history to start a season with three consecutive games with 100-plus receiving yards.
The Flying Eagles are on a collision course with Bridgeport. They go into Indian Territory two Fridays from now.
That will do it for now! Until next week . . . take care and God Bless!!!
