From the WVU Site: Upon Further Review

[Jim Johnson]

A good read.  Some nice things from Coach Rodriguez...

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Upon Further Review

By Christopher Marshall for MSNsportsNET.com

September 23, 2007

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez saw some things his coaches can clean up this week after watching the tape of his team’s 48-7 victory Saturday against East Carolina. Immediately after the game he called it one of the best performances of the last few years but after watching the film, like any good coach, Rodriguez detected some additional room for improvement.

 

  Mortty Ivy is tied for the team lead with four sacks heading into Friday's game at South Florida.

  All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks

“I don’t know that I would go that far like I did yesterday. I thought we played hard but fundamentally we weren’t good at times on both offense and defense,†Rodriguez said. “After watching the film we think we can certainly play better.â€Â

They may need to play better this Friday when the Mountaineers visit Raymond James Stadium to take on No. 18 USF at 8 p.m. The Bulls are expected to break their home attendance record for this contest, a fact that is not lost on Rodriguez.

“It is starting to be like this anywhere we go. It will be loud,†Rodriguez said. “We will use our music in practice this week and we will also do some things where we yell behind the quarterback to make it hard for him to verbalize.â€Â

The Mountaineer mentor is fully aware that South Florida has sprung a few upsets on teams at home and he believes a key to the game will be his team’s focus early.

“It will be a great atmosphere. Our players like the night games and they like the national TV games and who wouldn’t? I think they (South Florida) have been in some pretty big games at home,†Rodriguez said. “I remember a couple years ago they beat Louisville at home. When you are a road team going into that environment you’ve got to tune out everything except for the 11 guys on the field that you are competing against.â€Â

Rodriguez talked about his admiration for the South Florida program and the job Jim Leavitt has done steadily bringing the program along from its birth 12 years ago.

“They have done a tremendous job. I think once you get up to full scholarships and are in an area where you can recruit quality players you can get that program up and going pretty quick,†Rodriguez said.

Leavitt has gotten it going by recruiting speed and athleticism across the board. Rodriguez noted that the Bulls might be the fastest squad his team faces this year.

“They have great speed. They are right there in Florida which is a state with tremendous athletes. I think I read somewhere that all but 10 of their players are from the state of Florida,†Rodriguez said. “They are going to be one of the faster teams in the country each and every year. We’ve got some fast guys too but they have it all over the place. Our guys will have a challenge to get a hat on a hat and then on defense they have a lot of guys that can run so it’s going to be a big challenge playing at their place.â€Â

South Florida used that speed to stymie Patrick White and Steve Slaton last season, pulling off a 24-19 upset in Morgantown. The Bulls also held Slaton in check in 2005 and Rodriguez says the reasons for that defensive success are simple.

“They get a lot of guys around the ball and they have some good-sized guys too. They are physical and fast and your pursuit is going to be better the faster your team is,†Rodriguez said. “They have recruited speed and they have good schemes as well. Their coaches do an outstanding job.â€Â

Rodriguez explained that last year the Bulls simply played better than his team.

“They had a nice plan and they executed well and didn’t give up any big plays. They created a turnover for a touchdown,†Rodriguez said. “They had good players playing in a good scheme with a lot of emotion. That’s a pretty good combination. They out-executed us and won the game.â€Â

Rodriguez believes that trying to slow the South Florida offense down begins and ends with sophomore quarterback Matt Grothe. He provides a unique dual-threat challenge coupled with a gritty competitiveness that has given opposing defense headaches throughout his career.

“We have to get pressure on him but we also have to make sure he doesn’t get loose on us. We will have to be disciplined,†Rodriguez said. “We can’t just sit back and let him pick us apart but when we pressure him we have to try to keep him in check because he is a dangerous runner.â€Â

Rodriguez noted that the transition of new coaches Rod Smith and Greg Frey, two USF imports, has been successful for coaches and players alike.

“We’re happy to have them in the Mountaineer family because they are good people and I know the coaches enjoy having them around. They have been a great fit for our players and our guys have responded to them,†Rodriguez said. “I know they enjoyed their South Florida experience and I think they are enjoying their experience as part of the Mountaineer program as well.â€Â

While most people around the country were surprised to see Syracuse’s 38-35 upset of Louisville and the ease of Connecticut’s 34-14 win at Pitt, Rodriguez simply looks at is as a sign of an ever-improving league.

“I think what you are seeing each week is the strength of the BIG EAST conference,†Rodriguez said. “I’ve been saying it for a couple years and I think all of our programs will continue to improve.â€Â

When responding to a Tampa reporter that asked about Rodriguez and Leavitt staying at their respective programs when other opportunities that many perceived as better jobs came up, Rodriguez talked of building his program to an elite status that can be mentioned in the same breath as any in the country.

“There are always some jobs that are extremely attractive because of their tradition and resources but there are other jobs that are quickly becoming like that,†Rodriguez said. “We are in a pretty good situation right now but it’s going to be even better here in the future and that is one reason why we’re excited about staying here at West Virginia.â€Â

Link

[bulls96go]

what if Michigan calls?

[Matt]

it will be a good game but who cares what this guy says?

[cal]

-8.5 means theyre favored by 8.5, not USF.