WVU AD Shane Lyons Offers Thoughts on Neal Brown, State of Program

West Virginia’s home loss to heavy underdog Kansas on Saturday night ignited a storm of criticism and concern directed towards head coach Neal Brown. WVU athletic director Shane Lyons addressed his view of the state of the program under Brown when speaking to John Raby of the Associated Press on Monday.

“I know and deeply care that our fans are frustrated with the start of the football season, but so are our coaches and student-athletes, who have busted their tails getting ready for the year,” said Lyons.

He then continued. “As athletics director, I am as disappointed as the fans, but I see how much our coaches and players care and want to win and make our fans proud. Everyone involved knows that the on-field results have not met expectations and absolutely no one is satisfied. There are 10 games left in the season and the focus is still on getting the results that we all expect.”

West Virginia AD Shane Lyons' statement to The Associated Press on coach Neal Brown: "I know and deeply care that our fans are frustrated with the start of the football season, but so are our coaches and student-athletes, who have busted their tails getting ready for the year. ..

— John Raby (@jrabyap) September 12, 2022

Now nothing here is surprising, and it wasn’t expected Lyons would move on from any head coach so early in a season, but it will remain to be seen if he shifts gears and offers less confidence in the current staff if things are not turned around.

Righting the ship is by no means guaranteed and it is year four for Brown, which comes with increased pressure.