Takeaways: WVU Football Far from Back to Glory, but Season Far from Over

West Virginia’s season opening 34-12 loss to Penn State popped a giant balloon holding the extreme hype leading up to the biggest home opener of the century for the WVU football program.

Before kickoff, there was an excitement buzzing around Morgantown that was reminiscent of glory years of the past. But it didn’t take long after the ball was kicked off for the optimism to turn to frustration and disappointment.

When the Mountaineers squandered away an early turnover – one that if capitalized on could’ve set the tone for a completely different afternoon – with a fumble of their own on the very next play it embodied what would become another Neal Brown-led loss in a big game. However, unlike under prior systems, the sky is far from falling and the season is far from over.

“We played bad football. We played really poorly. And it was on a big stage and I’m aware of that,” said Brown at the start his postgame press conference.

So as WVU now faces more pressure to prove themselves all over again throughout the rest of the season, here are my current takeaways from what ended up being a miserable Saturday in Morgantown, both figuratively and literally thanks to a long weather delay.

Quick thoughts with an expanded takeaways column to come when the dust settles.

– WVU did not play nearly good enough to beat anyone, let alone a quality team like Penn State
– Wide receiver has more depth but drops are still an issue
– Garrett Greene needs to be way better.…

— Mike J. Asti (@MikeAsti11) August 31, 2024

Garrett Greene was biggest disappointment of all

Very few Mountaineers were at their best, or even played well for that matter, but the most disappointing performance was Garrett Greene. Honestly, Greene looked better against Penn State on the road with less experience under his belt last season than he did on Saturday.

Aside from the numbers (15-of-28 for 161 yards / 10 carries for 5 yards), Greene appeared unsure when to take off and use his legs and wasn’t nearly as accurate or poised – both major offseason talking points. It looked as if the stage was too big and the hype got to him.

On how Garrett Greene performed on Fox’s “Big Noon Kickoff” national stage, Brown made it clear that everything else is difficult when your quarterback doesn’t play up to par. “Not good enough. And I love the kid. He’ll play better football,” said Brown while evaluating Greene’s play as the leader of the Mountaineers.

WVU HC Neal Brown on Garrett Greene: “Not good enough. And I love the kid. He’ll play better football.”

— Mike J. Asti (@MikeAsti11) August 31, 2024

Does that mean he’s not a good quarterback? No. Does that mean he still can’t show what his biggest supporters have been screaming for years? Nope. Does that mean he won’t play better? Of course not.

But he did drop the ball on a major opportunity. And when your quarterback is “off” his game, it’s difficult for any team to win.

Speaking of dropping the ball….

While Greene overthrew and misfired on some passes, WVU’s wide receiver room also let him down. A group that was billed as the deepest and most talented overall room West Virginia has had in years, just didn’t step up when their quarterback and team needed them to.

Kole Taylor, Jaden Bray, Justin Robinson and even Preston Fox (his was a tough catch, to be fair) each had at least one critical drop early in the game. These are WVU’s most veteran receivers, either from time within the program or overall college games logged. That’s why Brown expressed being disappointed with his veteran players most of all.

“We are a veteran group and my expectations for this group are extremely high.” Overall, Brown believes his players shouldn’t have felt any anxiety due to their preparation all week and he’s most upset about the lack of execution from such a veteran group. He said he did not see his veteran players not being ready for the game coming.

WVU HC Neal Brown Expresses Disappointment After PSU Loss: ‘We Played Bad Football’

The receivers just didn’t make the plays the offense desperately needed. A position viewed initially as strength is now under pressure to show why moving forward.

What about the defense?

It’s impossible to beat a team like Penn State while struggling so much on offense, but the defense was also far from perfect.

Early on, it felt as if the Mountaineer defense was holding steady and not allowing a big play. But right after the weather delay, that changed. PSU running back Nicholas Singleton broke away and ran into the end zone for a 40-yard touchdown. That was the final nail in the WVU coffin.

There are two major concerns from the defense. First, Aubrey Burks, who is trying a new role this season was often exposed for being out of position. Second, the revamped linebacker group (aside from redshirt freshman Josiah Trotter, who was a beast as expected) appears to still be a weakness as a unit.

Much more can be said, but the Mountaineers now need to move on and wake up. Maybe being humbled will trigger something in them, much the way it did in 2023. A season that started with a 38-15 loss to the Nittany Lions and ended with nine wins in a bowl game.

As Brown put it, WVU just simply played bad football. And if they play like that again, they’ll lose and be embarrassed again, and that’s no matter who they’ll playing.

Next up is a much-needed FCS opponent, granted a pretty good one, in Albany. After that is the rubber match of the recent Backyard Brawl series in Pittsburgh. And then it’s all about the Big 12.

Yes, losing an out of conference game doesn’t matter as much as in the past thanks to a new 12-team College Football Playoff system that awards major conference champions with an automatic bid, and even a high seed to go along with it. But with that said, WVU’s performance against Penn State could be a sign the Mountaineers aren’t ready to lift any trophy. Several other preseason ranked opponents await West Virginia, too.

For a related story, what caused the issues for the WVU offense with the poor snaps?