3 Reasons Why It's Not Time to Panic (Yet)

The Mountaineers had a rough start to the season by falling 30-24 against the Maryland Terrapins. West Virginia turned the ball over four times which played a major factor in the result of the game. As ugly as the season opener was, it's not time for WVU fans to panic, well, at least not yet. How so?

The QB situation could be fixed

Jarret Doege really struggled against Maryland and has a lot of folks, including myself, wondering if he has really improved since the end of the 2020 season. He made several questionable decisions, put the ball in danger, and lacked explosive plays. It appears the offense has hit its ceiling with Doege under center (or in the gun if you will) and I'm not sure he can lead West Virginia to a winning record.

Redshirt freshman Garrett Greene will almost certainly see the field some this week against Long Island and could provide a boost with his legs. Of course, it's Long Island and success should be expected but over the next two weeks, Greene needs to make a push in practice for the starting job. His athleticism would expand the offense and keep defenses honest. With Doege back there, opposing teams will tee off on Leddie Brown knowing that Doege won't pull the ball and keep it on zone reads.

Doege will get the start this week and who knows? Maybe that was the worst game we will see from Doege all season and he shows how much of an improved quarterback he is. If not, he'll be looking over his shoulder with Greene waiting for his number to be called.

Big improvements in week two

Again, I know who the opponent is but typically a team's biggest improvement comes from week one to week two. The coaching staff now has a much better understanding of what they do well/don't do well, who can play what roles, what play calls to make, and so on. Going into that first game, there are so many uncertainties because you're lining up against yourself every day. It didn't help that Maryland had three new coordinators which made it extremely difficult to prepare for.

Aside from the coaching staff, the players will also make adjustments as well. They now have game film to go back and watch, ask questions, and they also know what they need to fine-tune.

Tackling, communication, + timing should improve

The first game jitters are now out of the way. The young bucks got their feet wet and now get to come home for two games in what is a more comfortable environment for them.

Early in the game, WVU's defense really struggled to get the Terps off the field. Some of that was just Maryland executing their assignments but on the other hand, WVU displayed poor tacking and eye discipline. The long touchdown to Dontay Demus was a perfect example of that as redshirt freshman Daryl Porter Jr. got caught looking in the backfield. The coverage from the safeties appeared to be a bit off on that play as well which didn't help the matter. Neal Brown said that communication was an issue early in camp and it showed last Saturday. The more these guys play together, the more comfortable they will be, at least one would think.

Tackling is typically a problem for every team in the country during the first game or two of the season. Guys are thinking more than they are playing which leads to bad angles, poor technique, and so on. Improvement will be made week by week and if not, guys will be losing their jobs as starters.

Offensively, the big guys up front had a rough day. Leddie Brown only had 73 yards on the ground and should have had a lot more. Jarret Doege was sacked three times and was under duress a little too much. However, when Doege did have enough time to throw, he still couldn't connect with his receivers downfield with the exception of the one 34-yard completion to Sam James. Timing and chemistry are two huge proponents of having a successful offense. It wasn't there for WVU in week one but we should see a much better product over the next couple of weeks.

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