MAILBAG: Week 1 Hot Takes, Draft Losses, Lorient Eligibility, Scheduling + More

Good Monday morning, Mountaineer fans! It's time to crack open this week's West Virginia On SI mailbag.

From @WVwings:

Q: WVU has a parking garage on Willowdale Drive and one being built on Van Voorhis. Does WVU football utilize these on football Saturdays? And what about the former M hotel in Star City? How does WVU plan to utilize the property?

A: The one on Van Voorhis sounds like the green garage/lot. Not sure about Willowdale or the hotel. I usually on get to one or two a year, and I'm always parking in the same spot, so I'm probably not the best one to ask about that.

From @baNarDeaux4real:

Q: With monumental improvements at every single position this year - with the most improved being the most important (o-line)/ and a very manageable schedule - why can’t this team win 10 games?

A: Anything is possible. I think the reason it's unlikely is that the defense isn't where it needs to be, and the schedule only looks manageable for the first half of the year, and if they don't take care of business early, it could get ugly when they run into TCU, Texas Tech, Houston, and Utah. Serious concerns about the defense.

From @WVUJeffSpicoli:

Q: What are your hottest takes for Game 1 against Coastal? Example: Fox gets more snaps than Hawkins, we run for at least 225 yards, etc.

A: Ooh, good question. I'll go with your one suggestion, but up the ante a bit. I'll call for 300 yards rushing as a team. Cam Cook, Amari Latimer, and Martavious Boswell should be able to scoot against this defense. Another one would be we see Max Brown before Scotty Fox. Hawkins will play until the game gets out of control (assuming it does), but Brown will be used in short-yardage situations to run the ball.

From @wvufan2023:

Q: How do you feel about our chances of getting Lorient back to fill the final roster spot for basketball?

A: If he takes it to court, then it's pretty likely he'll return. If he waits for the NCAA to reverse its decision to allow last year's seniors to have a year, well, that's just not going to happen. I don't think it's a coincidence that WVU has exactly one roster spot open and still has a need at power forward.

From @goJohnnyA:

Q: WVU baseball. Had maybe hoped 1 of the 3 pitchers would stick around. All 3 gone. Now incoming commits are gone. This can’t be great for 2027, especially after losing Barjam to the portal.

A: It seems worse than it really is. Barjam is only gone because he had no true path to the lineup, which says a lot about the work the staff did in the transfer portal/JUCO ranks. Yehl was never returning, and Montesa is a tough one to lose, but they added enough starting pitching, knowing it was a strong possibility he would be drafted early and leave. The same goes with Owen Henne. They recruited others, keeping that possibility in mind. Kyle Casteel could end up at WVU, still.

From @MrEd315:

Q: What’s your thoughts on WVU football renewing its rivalry against Syracuse?

A: It would be nice to see back on the schedule, but as long as West Virginia is in the Big 12 and they only have three non-conference games to work with, it will be Pitt. Personally, I love the Big 12, but it would be cool to see West Virginia eventually end up in a league where they can face their regional rivals on a yearly basis.

To participate in next week's mailbag, send me a DM on X (@Callihan_) reply to my tweet asking for submissions on Saturday, or place your question in the comments section under my post on Facebook.

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