Twilight Zone

Submitted by Route66 on

So I had some time on my hands and did some research.  Like creepy internet stuff. (nothing to get me sent to Jackson though)  I went back to RR's first year at WV(2001) and looked up some newspaper articles. It is down right scary how much the two seasons parallel.  I know all of you have compared this before to some extent but after reading the articles and seeing what not only RR said but what others said like players and such is flat out spooky.  I cought myslef thinking I was reading about our season.  The Notre Dame game they played.....teams had to run a lot due to weather conditions.  That is just one similarity.  The best part is....we know that there is light at the end of the tunnel. (go ahead, flame on some of you trolls) 

I just hit up most of the Monday articles as I figured they might have some perspective...but I am sure there are more.

My favorite was this:

Over 63,000 spectators were in attendance for the nationally televised game, but many seats were empty by the start of the second half.
“They can choose to leave when they want. We weren’t playing well, and I can’t say I blame them. We have to play better to keep people in the seats,” said Rodriguez.

Have you heard that this year?????

http://www.da.wvu.edu/archives/old/index.html

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Route66

November 4th, 2008 at 7:06 PM ^

“Our third down defense wasn’t very good. That allowed them to eat up the clock and keep possession of the ball, and that’s what we’re really disappointed in. We knew they were going to run the ball, and we still couldn’t stop them. That’s not good,” said Rodriguez.

 “I thought we needed a spark. We needed to move the ball, and I told Brad [Lewis] we needed a spark. We didn’t get a spark,” said Rodriguez about the quarterback switch.

“You’re not going to beat anybody with six turnovers, definitely not a good Maryland team,” said head coach Rich Rodriguez. “We’ve got to correct that in a hurry because we have some excellent teams coming up.”

“Behind the few veterans we have we have all puppies,” said Rodriguez. “We have freshman, guys that never played and that’s a tough environment for them.”

 

I hope those are enough.  The more I look into it the crazier it is!


 

Joined: 10/15/2008

MGoPoints: 1411

Chrisgocomment

November 4th, 2008 at 6:53 PM ^

Here's an interesting line after the 2001 Rutgers game in which WVU won 80-7!!!  Wow, Rutgers sucked, how things change:

  • Players and staff of the West Virginia football team had been telling anyone who would listen about putting together four quarters of solid football. They insisted they were a good football team but just couldn’t get all phases of the game working at one time. 
Boy, we're still waiting for 4 quarters!  Hopefully those 4 quarters will come against OSU, eh?

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 1287

Chrisgocomment

November 4th, 2008 at 7:05 PM ^

I found another interesting parallel:

Some pussbag fans may say that Michigan is losing it's "punch you in the face" style offense with the tough ground game.  What did they say in 2001?

  • Watching the West Virginia Mountaineers play in Miami on Thursday made it apparent that the days of the bruising, punch-you-in-your-face mentality that Don Nehlen-coached teams used to employ has been replaced by a finesse style of play that relies on more strategy and less brute strength. Strategy can break down; brute strength is constant regardless of the score. The offense has never been flashy, but it has been consistent. A great running back combined with a solid defense equals success. Don Nehlen used this theory for 20 years.

Other Michigan fans may say "Rodriguez isn't playing his players in a system that fits them, he needs to tailor his offense to fit his players".

2001:

  • Players were never labeled as not fitting into the system because anyone and everyone could put in the extra work and be tougher than the guy across from him. Nehlen’s teams played to their strengths and didn’t try to make players do things they weren’t otherwise inclined to do.

Some point to the Penn State game and say that, "hey, this team is not well coach, they played great against the #3 team in the country only to lose in embarrassing fashion".

2001?:

  • For one quarter of football it actually looked as if West Virginia belonged on the field with the No. 1 team in the country. The defense looked as if they or their families had been offended by the Hurricanes, not allowing Clinton Portis to find any running room. Brad Lewis and the offense actually moved the ball the first couple of drives and Avon Cobourne was ripping the Miami defense for 10-yard runs right and left.
    The second half washed away any sweet taste that a competitive first half had left, and West Virginia once more looked like the bottom of the barrel team we had grown accustom to this season. You could hear the Blue and Gold faithful all the way from Florida as they groaned and cursed the second half play of the Mountaineers, yearning for the glory days of the past. It would be absurd to believe that one poor season will cause a mutiny in the Mountain State. 
OK, that's it from me, I swear.  Great find though, very very interesting the similarities.  I only looked at like 5 articles and I found all that.  Very strange indeed.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 1287

Hannibal.

November 6th, 2008 at 8:58 AM ^

That's amazing that WVU scored 80 points in a game that year.  I read the box score from that game, and it's insane.  I wish that we could have one game like that.  Hell, I'd settle for any victory now.

WVU lost to Temple that year and got blown out 45-3 by Miami.  The only thing that gives me optimism about Michigan right now is the fact that WVU was much better in 2002.

Joined: 09/09/2008

MGoPoints: 9051