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

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – WVU head coach Neal Brown wasn’t about to make any excuses for his team after their 34-12 season opening loss to Penn State.

“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.

WVU HC Neal Brown: “We played bad football. We played really poorly. And it was on a big stage and I’m aware of that.”

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

Brown then went even further to say linebacker Josiah Trotter and safety Anthony Wilson were the only players who played well enough to him. He did add Wyatt Milum played well when in, too.

And even though he couched everything with the fact he stills needs to watch the full game film, Brown stressed his disappointment 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.

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.

Despite admitting his team didn’t play well enough to beat anyone, let alone one of the best teams in the country, Brown did express criticism in the replay system. A confused Brown asked why the replay system exists if it’s not implemented when it’s needed and mistakes are still made during the reviews.

“We shouldn’t have mistakes on replay.”

In closing, Brown said he still believes in his team and knows they can reach their potential.

Up next for the Neal Brown-led Mountaineers is a date with Albany back at Milan Puskar Stadium to get ready for a return to Pittsburgh for another edition of the Backyard Brawl.