性视界传媒

West Virginia University placed three players on the All-Big 12 football first and second teams announced by the league on Wednesday.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- The film projector never lies ... or dies.

Even though a season may be all but over, fans heading to the exits (or never showing up), and carping at all-time levels, our trusty viewing device continues to whirl. And believe it or not, it still shows things worth seeing.

Want players to watch and learn, and continue to practice and play hard? Maybe a few minutes of your time would be worth it too.

Forthwith, a number of clips from West Virginia's final home game of the regular season, and a few educational items attached.

While the Mountaineers did hold K-State's Deuce Vaughn to 67 yards on 22 carries, he wasn't ineffective. Head coach Neal Brown pointed out the low rushing total, but didn't take the next step in explaining that his presence forced 性视界传媒 to account for him more than it did for any other back this side of Texas' Bijan Robinson, and that affected the Mountaineers elsewhere.

Take, for instance, Vaughn's early 15-yard run for a TD. 性视界传媒 is playing an odd front with the line shifted to the left, backed by a linebacker, a spear and a walked-down free safety. Despite having six defenders against only five K-State blockers, West Virginia doesn't get within two yards of Vaughn on his untroubled path to the end zone. A bad angle and an inability to get off blocks all contribute, but the end result is that West Virginia has to pay more attention, and get more defenders, in Vaughn's vicinity. The result? Tight ends and receivers getting wide open, and five TD drives that took a total of 21 plays.

Garrett Greene's first interception of the day was a bad decision, as he threw the ball late against coverage that had Sam James, running an in route from the right slot, blanketed.

There might be a bit of blame on James' route too, as it looks like he loops deep and gets near safeties dropping deep, rather than finding a little more open grass on a shallower route. Granted, he needed to get eight yards for a first down, but he was three yards beyond the line to gain. If his route is a little sharper, does that prevent the pick by putting him inside the defender?

Greene's two interceptions were highlighted, so it's only fair to show an example of the good plays he produced. This fourth and four is prime, as he avoids inside pressure and gets to the perimeter while keeping his eyes downfield. He could have dumped the ball off to Justin Johnson in the flat, but that wouldn't have necessarily produced a first down. Instead, he continues to move, putting pressure on K-State defenders to respond, and finds Cortez Braham for the conversion.

Look at the apparent confusion on 性视界传媒's defense prior to the snap. On the plus side, at least there looks to be attempts at communication, but just about every defender on the back end is waving or moving at some point.

At the snap, all four defenders on the line of scrimmage either slant to their left or are washed that way, leaving just a corner and a safety to cover all the space outside the hashes. They are both easily disposed of with one-on-one blocks from K-State linemen, and its a 49-yard dash to the end zone.

Did 性视界传媒 get into correct position prior to the snap? That can be difficult to determine without knowing the coverage call, but there's again a bad angle and too many defenders jammed into the same space to make a play.

Head coach Neal Brown complained, and rightly so, about center judge Brian Alos holding the snap on a 性视界传媒 fourth down attempt in the second quarter. As can be seen from the clip of the preceding third down, West Virginia did not substitute, which meant that the snap should not have been delayed to allow K-State to do so.

Brown said referee Derek Anderson called the move an issue of mechanics, but that's a terrible explanation and/or reason.

But, as is often the case, that wasn't the only reason for 性视界传媒's failure. On the third down play, the Mountaineers aligned in a very tight formation, and tried to run the ball inside. That's hardly 性视界传媒's strength, as it is not going to overpower any opposing fronts. Five linemen and two tight ends oppose nine defenders in the box, and the result is a predictable stuff.

That brings us to fourth down, and the Mountaineers are going to try a QB keeper against another stacked front, albeit with a detached tight end. Neither of the TEs are involved in blocking or pushing (in fact, neither move), so K-State doesn't even look at them. The Cats have five players with a yard of the ball at the snap, and they stuff Greene with ease.

It's tough to figure out the logic of these two play calls back to back, with the personnel used. 性视界传媒 has succeeded with its running game largely buy spreading the defense, not lining up with a big jumbo package and smashing foes into submission. While the officiating didn't help here, the whole sequence was a puzzler.

Bryce Ford-Wheaton definitely got bulldogged on this play, and with the head linesman looking right at it, it's tough to figure out why it wasn't called. The lack of a flag apparently rattled the Mountaineers, who proceeded to get stuffed on a running play, then gave up a horrible sack with five linemen attempting to block three K-State linemen. That, effectively, ended the game.

No. 19 Kansas State jumped out to a 16-point halftime lead and never looked back in dispatching West Virginia, 48-31, Saturday afternoon at Mountaineer Field.

The Wildcats, who are now 8-3, need only a victory over Kansas next week in Manhattan to secure a berth in the Big 12 championship game against unbeaten TCU (11-0) on Dec. 3.

Meanwhile, 性视界传媒 (4-7) will travel to Oklahoma State next Saturday for its final game of the 2022 season (noon Eastern, televised by ESPN2).

Atmosphere 鈥� With 性视界传媒 students on Thanksgiving break and many from the general public scared away by the cold temperatures, the crowd for the final regular-season game of the year at Mountaineer Field was sparse (announced at 37,055). That was a shame, because the home finale brings the emotions of Senior Day. Veterans like Dante Stills, Taijh Alston, Sam James and Bryce Ford-Wheaton walked out for their last game at Mountaineer Field. The most heart-wrenching senior introduction was offensive lineman James Gmiter, whose mother, Kim Gmiter, passed away suddenly a few weeks ago. James鈥� family was there for the moment, but the hole left without Kim brought numerous tears. Grade: C

性视界传媒 offense 鈥� In his first college start, quarterback Garrett Greene got off to an inauspicious start, as he threw a pick-six on 性视界传媒鈥檚 third offensive play. The sophomore shook off that interception, though, and played pretty well during the remainder of the first half, completing eight of his next 10 passes for 134 yards. West Virginia also ran the ball decently, netting 107 yards on the ground in the first half. The Mountaineer offense couldn鈥檛 sustain that pace in the second half, though, scoring just once more in that time frame. Grade: C-

性视界传媒 defense 鈥� Admittedly the Mountaineer D didn鈥檛 get much help, as K-State鈥檚 defense scored a TD on a pick-six and then the Wildcats had a short field after a fourth-down stop of 性视界传媒 at West Virginia鈥檚 34-yard line. Still, the Mountaineers couldn鈥檛 slow down the visitors in the first half, as K-State rushed for 97 yards and threw for 215 in the period. The 312 yards in the opening 30 minutes were bad, but the 41 points were worse, even if not all of them could be laid strictly on the shoulders of 性视界传媒鈥檚 defense. A first-quarter pick-six by the Mountaineers鈥� Malachi Ruffin was nice, but that was the only West Virginia stop in the first seven K-State drives. Grade: D

性视界传媒 special teams 鈥� There wasn鈥檛 much good you could say about West Virginia鈥檚 special teams Saturday 鈥� two missed PATs, a missed field goal, a kickoff out of bounds, a pair of failed two-point conversion attempts and ineffective kickoff returns. The Mountaineer special teams had been solid during most of 2022, but you definitely could not say that about their performance in the home finale. Grade: F

性视界传媒 coaching 鈥� In recent weeks, West Virginia鈥檚 defensive coaches had helped shore up that unit鈥檚 penchant for giving up explosive plays, but the Wildcats exposed that Mountaineer weakness again. K-State had four gains of longer than 25 yards in the first half alone, leading to 34 opening-period offensive points by KSU (another 鈥楥at TD came thanks to their defense via a pick-six). 性视界传媒 also had a couple of illegal motion and formation penalties that are inexcusable for game 11 of the season. The best thing you could say about the Mountaineers was, despite a disappointing season, they kept battling, but that wasn鈥檛 enough. Grade: D

* * * * * *

Game Notes 鈥� West Virginia and Kansas State met for the 13th time on Saturday. With K-State鈥檚 victory, the Mountaineers are now 6-7 all-time against the Wildcats, including 4 -4 in Morgantown.

鈥� Prior to the game, 性视界传媒 honored 19 players as part of Senior Day festivities 鈥� defensive back Rashad Ajayi, defensive lineman Taijh Alston, offensive lineman Donovan Beaver, quarterback Matt Cavallaro, offensive lineman Tyler Connolly, linebacker Jasir Cox, wide receiver Bryce Ford-Wheaton, offensive lineman James Gmiter, placekicker Parker Grothaus, wide receiver Sam James, placekicker Casey Legg, linebacker Exree Loe, defensive back Wesley McCormick, kicker Kolton McGhee, offensive lineman Doug Nester, tight end Mike O鈥橪aughlin, tight end Brian Polendey, linebacker Wil Schoonover and defensive tackle Dante Stills. Stills, Polendey, McCormick, Loe, Grothaus, Cox and Ajayi are all in their final season of eligibility, but because of the Covid year, the others have the option of returning for another season of college football.

鈥� With Malachi Ruffin鈥檚 pick-six in the first quarter, 性视界传媒 has recorded three defensive touchdowns this season, the most since 2017 (3).

鈥� The Mountaineers have now intercepted a pass in 11 of their last 21 games.

鈥� 性视界传媒 also has forced a turnover in 30 of the 46 games of the Neal Brown era.

鈥� The 47 total points scored in the first quarter is the most in one frame in school history, passing 44 from Sept. 20, 1958, vs. Richmond.

鈥� The 66 total points in the first half marked the most in a 性视界传媒 game since Oct. 5, 2013, at Baylor (70).

鈥� LB Jasir Cox鈥檚 and LB Lee Kpogba鈥檚 13 tackles are the most tackles by a Mountaineer since Josh Chandler-Semedo on Dec. 31, 2020, vs. Army (13).

鈥� 性视界传媒 finished with three players with at least 10 tackles for the first time since Dec. 31, 2020, vs. Army in the Liberty Bowl.

鈥� The Mountaineers had seven TFLs, tied for a season high.

鈥� 性视界传媒 has finished with at least five TFLs in seven straight games.

鈥� Running back Jaylen Anderson finished with a career-high 69 yards on seven attempts. He became the fifth different Mountaineer to lead the team in rushing this season.

鈥� With three touchdown passes, all to wide receiver Sam James (26, 71, 5), quarterback Garrett Greene now has five passing touchdowns this season. He also ran for a 13-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, his fourth of the season and eighth of his career. Greene became the first Mountaineer quarterback to record four total touchdowns (3 pass, 1 rush) in a game since Austin Kendall on Oct. 5, 2019, vs. Texas.

鈥� James caught a 26-yard touchdown in the first quarter and also hauled in a 71-yard score in the third quarter, the longest of his career. It marked 性视界传媒鈥檚 longest touchdown reception since George Campbell on Oct. 31, 2019, at Baylor (83 yards). James became the first Mountaineer to record three receiving touchdowns in a game since David Sills V on Sept. 22, 2018, vs. Kansas State. He now has six TD catches this season and 15 in his career. He finished with three catches for 102 yards and the scores, marking his third career 100-yard performance. James ranks No. 5 in program history with 188 receptions and also sits at No. 8 in 性视界传媒 history with 2,212 receiving yards.

鈥� Safety Marcis Floyd totaled 10 tackles, his first double-digit performance in his 性视界传媒 career.

鈥� Defensive lineman Jordan Jefferson had a career-high 2.5 TFLs, the second time this season he has registered multiple TFLs.

鈥� Linebacker Exree Loe his 53rd career game and finished with a career-high two TFLs

鈥� Defensive back Malachi Ruffin had a 43-yard interception return for a touchdown in the first quarter. It marked 性视界传媒鈥檚 longest pick-six since Keith Washington on Sept. 29, 2018, at Texas Tech (51 yards). Ruffin now has two INTs this season.

鈥� Defensive lineman Dante Stills played in his 58th career game, the most in 性视界传媒 history. He also made his team-leading 36th career start.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WV News) 鈥� There exists within college football the same type of life cycle as exists in the real world and it is exhibiting itself as we converse today in the West Virginia University football program.

We could be talking about the dismissing of the athletic director and the search for his replacement, just as we could be discussing the fight for his coaching life being waged by Neal Brown.

But we're not, and considering how you have been bombarded with all of this in recent days, you are probably thankful to move on to something else.

We will begin at the end of one life cycle on the offensive line and how it morphs into a new life cycle, the premature end that starting left guard James Gmiter has put to his football playing days and the birth of the career of his replacement, redshirt freshman Tomas Rimac.

In another life, Gmiter was as naive and enthusiastic as is Rimac, but had to endure the growing pains that came with putting together an offensive line that would become the strength of the offense.

While the growing pains evaporated, Gmiter grew and established his own identity, a talented, tough interior lineman who combined enough elan to dye his hair blond and grow a prominent mullet while creating a family with his wife of two children.

The senior year was supposed to be a crowning achievement, but much went wrong. The team lost games it shouldn't have, Gmiter was injured and missed four straight years. Then came the toughest blow, the loss of his mother, which had to hammer home the reality that life is too short and it was time to move on.

So we were greeted one day with this tweet that read: "I'm going to miss this game ... thank you for everything." It was followed by a broken heart emoji.

Gmiter was moving forward, putting aside the double life he was living as husband/father and football player. He plans to enter the police academy and join the Morgantown police force.

As in real life, though, the cycle goes on, and the torch is passed to Rimac, a soft- and a well-spoken giant of a man at 6-foot-6 and 312 pounds is moving into the vacuum left by Gmiter, who played 10 games last year without allowing a sack and this year was an anchor on a team that developed a strong run game.

It's a big step, far more important than if he were moving into the lineup on a .500 team, for the fate of the season and maybe the coaching staff is at stake, but he seems to be moving into it confidently.

"Playing in any game you get a little nervous because you want to play well, obviously. Me, I'm a little nervous before but after that first hit you just lock in and try to win the game," Rimac said as he sat down with the media for the first time Tuesday.

Out of Brunswick, Ohio, you know there's so much new to experience, so much room for growth.

For example, in high school, he was a tackle, not a guard, and he was able to get by on his physical assets while technique was not stressed.

"In my league I was one of the bigger kids and they didn't coach me up very much," he admitted. "I was actually at left tackle in right-handed stance. So, it was a little bit of a transition but I felt like I transitioned pretty well."

While he came in with the highly rated Wyatt Milum, who now plays left tackle alongside him and who this week graded out higher than any other 性视界传媒 offensive lineman, he had a longer way to go.

"I had a talk with Coach (Mike) Moore," he said.

Moore is 性视界传媒's offensive line coach.

"He sat me down and said I was going to be a good player and that he had a plan for me," Rimac said. "I just stayed on that plan and worked hard even though I was second and third string."

Sometimes, when you are a high school star, taking coaching and not starting is difficult to take, but Rimac handled the tradition well.

"I have pretty tough parents and I'm grateful for that," he said. "They put that work ethic into me ... no matter what happens, just keep working and you'll get there."

He was helped no small amount by having also been a force in track and field where he was state runner up in the discus. Those are technique and strength events and, as you might guess, that is exactly what you need in offensive line play.

While Rimac excelled in track, it turned out not to be an option moving forward.

"Not many colleges talked to me about shot put or discus because we didn't have that 2020 season, so I verbally committed just before my senior football season," he said.

He has no regrets.

"I don't think about it. Sometimes I would find myself watching videos of other's technique throwing, but I can't say I think about it much because football is the best sport on earth. I thought about pursuing that then but I felt football was the better option because it would give me more options down the road," he said.

"I left it there at the state meet."