Week one did not go the Mountaineers’ way and after the loss there was not much WVU felt they could hang their hat on. But that is the beautiful thing about football, there is always next week. And for the Mountaineers, the next week serves an opponent with the opportunity for the team to right the ship and get the season back on track.
Here are the keys for both teams to have a successful week two matchup.
Keys for UAlbany
There have not been many FCS teams to beat Power Conference teams in the history of the sport. While some have come close, it’s not often for a team like UAlbany to upset a team like WVU.
When you look back at the history of big time upsets, the lesser team always keeps the game close the entire time. It will be very important for the Great Danes to keep pace with WVU early. If the Mountaineers are able to get an early lead, it will be hard with a undersized and less talented roster to mount a comeback.
Now saying the key to an upset is to keep the game close is like saying the key to winning a game is to score more than the opponent. So how can UAlbany keep the game close? Chaos. The Great Danes need to create as much chaos as they possibly can.
The sloppier the game, the more likely it is for the Great Danes to create some key turnovers and explosive plays that can create big time momentum swings and keep the Morgantown crowd out of it. If they want any chance to take down WVU, they will need to keep their mistakes to an absolute minimum and take advantage of every single Mountaineer mishap.
Keys for WVU
This week is quite simple for the Mountaineers, be themselves. The team is much more talented, larger, faster, and deeper than the Great Danes are going to be able to throw out onto the field. If the Mountaineers are able to play their game, they should be able to easily come out with a victory.
So what needs to be cleaned up exactly? For WVU they cannot have another week of self inflicted issues on the field. All off season the fans heard about the promise and talent of this particular football team and that team did not go anywhere, they just have to show it.
The Mountaineers’ identity is going to have to be another year with an unstoppable rushing attack. Getting Jahiem White and CJ Donaldson going will be pivotal for the team moving forward. It will also be essential for the coaching staff to create plays for Garrett Greene to take easy shots down the field and get his confidence back to where fans saw it at the end of last season.
Defensively, the team needs to enforce their will and create lots of pressure for UAlbany to handle, something the team did not do against Penn State. Dialing up some blitzes and forcing the Great Danes into a lot of third and longs early in the game will help WVU get out to a big lead and be able to play freely.
This should be a game for WVU to get their confidence back, and find a potential star or two that could have a breakout year like Hudson Clement did against Duquesne last season. WVU should bounce back this week in a very big way.
