Stock Up, Stock Down: Only 12 Pass Attempts Needed For 52 Points? Not Bad

A closer look at how certain players and phases of the game look in the Mountaineers' route of UT Martin.

West Virginia University receiver DJ Epps | Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

The West Virginia Mountaineers walloped the UT Martin Skyhawks 52-7 on Saturday afternoon. The team moved to 2-0 for the first time since the 2018 season. West Virginia put up 525 yards of total offense, while the defense did not allow a single point.

Let’s take a look at this week's stock report after the Mountaineers' first 2-0 start since 2018.

Stock Up:

Aston Woods

It was a career day for the junior linebacker, who recorded a sack in the first half and caught his first interception since high school. Woods described his emotions after getting the interception.

“You work all year for that feeling; it’s awesome.”

When asked about what he saw on the play that led to his first interception, he hilariously admitted he doesn’t exactly remember everything about the play.

“I'll be honest, I don't remember what we were in; I kind of blacked out after the interception.”

It was a huge day for the junior linebacker, who will look to continue to make a big impact as the team moves into a huge game against the Virginia Cavaliers.

DJ Epps

Speaking of explosives, have a day, DJ Epps. The receiver posted 112 yards and a touchdown on just two receptions. Epps posted 83 yards after the catch on those two receptions and also added 18 yards to his total on a rushing attempt.

After the game, Epps said that the play he scored his 53-yard touchdown on was a play that the offense had practiced all week long. He added that they were told what coverage to look out for pregame. The receiver room will need to step up as the Mountaineers move into a naked matchup before they start Big 12 play. If Epps can take a step up, that would be massive for the Mountaineers' offense.

Offensive Consistency

After jumping out to a 24-0 halftime lead against Coastal Carolina last week, the West Virginia offense largely stalled out in the second half. Today, the starting offense only played for about two and a half quarters, but showed an overall consistent body of work.

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Mike Hawkins Jr. had four total touchdowns in his limited playing time. Hawkins Jr. showed his big-play ability through the air and on the ground, highlighted by a 71-yard rushing touchdown and a 53-yard passing touchdown. WVU reached the end zone in each quarter. It’s hard to complain about a 525-yard offensive performance.

Stock Down:

Giving Up Chunk Plays on Defense

It was more of the same problems we saw last week against Coastal Carolina just a week ago in terms of giving up chunk plays. Although the Mountaineers defense did not surrender any points in the contest, it’s hard to feel super confident in the unit moving forward. Within the first 5 minutes of the game, the Mountaineers defense allowed five plays of 10+ yards. When asked about his defense after the game, head coach Rich Rodguez kept it simple.

“I just didn’t think we played that well.”

Coach Rodriguez was not too kind to the defense, citing the chunk plays given up despite not allowing a single point.

“I think we have to play better defensively going forward.”

Balanced approach

The Mountaineers had three quarterbacks attempt a pass on Saturday, but only dropped back to pass 12 times as a team. It was never going to be in the Mountaineers' identity to throw the ball more than they needed to, especially in their first few games against lesser opponents.

When the Mountaineers do pass, Hawkins Jr. has proven he can take the top off of the defense. It will be interesting to see just how much the Mountaineers stick to their guns in terms of running the ball in their next games as the quality of competition increases.