Five games into the 2008 season, WVU is 3-2, averaging about half as many points as it did last year and has had three straight games with its starting tailback failing to gain 100 yards.
I tossed this question out to some friends today so I'll do the same here: What would be the current record of this WVU team if Rich Rodriguez and his staff stayed at WVU instead of going to Michigan. (Extra credit: What if Steve Slaton and Johnny Dingle had stayed, as well?)
I don't usually do What Ifs? because they're futile and backward-looking. But this one could be instructive.
- B/R Ticket Guide
My answer is: I don't know.
Would Rodriguez, who cared little about defense, gotten a better performance out of this defense with eight (or seven) new starters, many of them freshmen and sophomores?
Would Rodriguez have picked up his offense right where he left it last year or innovated?
If not, would East Carolina and others adopted the Pitt defense—eight or nine in the box—and still managed to beat WVU?
A couple of my buddies think WVU would be an easy 5-0 right now, saying a Rodriguez-coached team would have never been held to one field goal against ECU and would have outscored the Pirates and the Colorado Buffaloes.
What do you think?
What would WVU's record be right now had Rodriguez and his staff stayed? And why do you think that?
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about 1 month ago
Who knows for sure? I think that they could be 4-1 right now without Dingle and Slaton, 5-0 with.
But it is important to remember that they would have still been a stubborn offense that may have fallen prey to PITT and USF yet again. Not saying that still can't happen, but the bottom line is as great as WVU's offense was the last couple of years it needed to change because teams were starting to figure things out way too much. So I think whether the coach was Rodriguez or Stewart those changes would be needed. Rodriguez may have been less willing to make those changes perhaps resulting in better early season success with some disappointment come conference schedule time.
Change causes growing pains. This WVU team is getting better every time they take the field. Mullen is getting better at calling the offensive plays. The last several teams on the Mountaineer's schedule are going to play against a better team than ECU or Colorado did.
from about 1 month ago
As a Michigan fan, I can attribute to Rodriguez and his stubbornness. He is a good coach, but he is a stubborn ol' mule. Like Shawn said, it is better that he left, for both schools involved.
about 1 month ago
Michigan sadly looks really lost right now...I'm not enjoying it at all.
from about 1 month ago
Unfortunately, there are no quick fixes to losing the talent Michigan lost and installing a new system. The future is very bright, though.
about 1 month ago
I think they definitely would have beaten Colorado, but I am not so sure about ECU. I would say probably 4-1 and possibly 5-0.
about 1 month ago
4-1 minimum. The same thing happened to Louisville last year after Petrino left. All the Cardinal fans had to sit and watch a superior team lose to an inferior team due to horrible coaching by Kragthorpe, and now the same is happening to WVU.
about 1 month ago
I think it would have been the same if not worse. Rich calls the same few plays and when you have stars like Slaton who is tearing it up for Houston and i think the loss of owen schmitt is larger than people realize leave its hard to replicate.
from about 1 month ago
Yeah, but those same few plays that Rodriguez ran, are the few that are working for WVU now. All of the new wrinkles are not working. Jeff Mullen is stubborn as well, his system is not working. WVU has plenty of talent, and should be scoring double the points they are currently scoring. I can't figure it out, Mullen can't put points on the board with Pat White and Noel Devine, and it blows my mind that WVU is not relevant in the college football world at this moment.
about 1 month ago
As an avid WVU fan, I have to say that I think Coach Rod would have the team at 5-0. I like Stewart, but he hasn't projected that tough mentality to the players, who obviously responded to it last year (I try to forget about the Pitt game). I despise Michigan, always have, but Rich is one heckuva coach. Had he left on better terms, he would have gone down as one of the best coaches in WVU history. ECU and Colorado could not have beaten us, with or without Slaton - who is absolutely a surprise this season in Houston.
about 1 month ago
by Kevin
Slayton, Owen are gone and that has hurt the offense more than anyone could have expected. The offensive line has had problems, and this is a veteran group. Perhaps this is due to the the new offensive coordinator getting a feel. And I dont think White has had a good start. But the defense is better than I had hoped and improving every game, with a lot of young players out there. The defensive coaching staff is much better than last years. Perhaps 4-1, but I thing Stewart might be 5-0 if he had Slaton and Schmitt. At least our present coach will be focused all season, and wont have one foot in the U-haul come seasons end......
about 1 month ago
The would have $4 million less dollars, that much is for sure.
about 1 month ago
They would've beaten Colorado and ECU. Stewart is trying to make Pat White into something he's not: a passer. Rich Rod knew White wasn't the best quarterback, so he emphasized his strength: speed.
Also, Devine doesn't get nearly the amount of touches he should.
about 1 month ago
I have to admit, i was dead wrong. I was writing articles about this great coaching staff, and how WVU was going to be so much better. Boy, am i eating my words now. I was wrong about Stewart, who clearly is out of his league. He does nothing for the team, all he does is pat people on the backside, and say stupid stuff in front of the camera. I think he is a great assistant coach, but clearly he is not the type of leader WVU need's right now. Hopefully I will be eating these words as well.
about 1 month ago
They would have one more win than they do know. Skip Holtz' East Carolina team would have won regardless of whether Rich Rodriguez was the coach or not.
about 1 month ago
Rich Rodriguez has his days numbered. The guy is just a plain jerk, who doesn't care who he pisses off. Look what he did to Braylon Edwards scholarship fund the second he got there. WVU is better off without him. How about this question. Do you think WVU would have beat Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl if Rich Rodriquez was still in charge there? Bill Stewart is fine, and a good man. The problem with College Football right now, is that everything is so over hyped. Joe Tiller from Purdue is retiring because he says the players don't show up everyday, anymore. I would assume that is what is happening to WVU, because the players aren't showing up every game. How much does this team miss the fullback from last year, names slips my mind right now? He was the heart and soul of that offense and you can tell they don't have the same passion this year.
about 1 month ago
DickRod doesn't keep Slaton healthy just because he's on the sidelines. And lets be honest, it's not like he could win when it counted two years ago either.
about 1 month ago
I think the team is hurting without Rodriguez just for the fact their new coach isnt helping them at all. No clock management against Colorado. They had two timeouts left with over 40 seconds to go. It was painful to watch the team and coaches stand around while the clock was ticking. I love WVU, but what is going on???
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