West Virginia Football: Mountaineers knock out college football’s Cinderella
By Phil Poling
WVU’s inconsistency on offense a major problem
Will Grier and the Mountaineers continue putting up spectacular numbers on offense, but there are still far too many inconsistencies for head coach Dana Holgorsen to be satisfied.
After having their way with the Cyclones in the first half – scoring 20 points – the Mountaineers were shut out in the second and didn’t get much of anything going.
Their opening possession of the second half followed Iowa State’s touchdown, but the ‘Eers turned it over on downs after failing to convert on 4th down. They’d punt the ball on their next two series before Grier threw an interception in the endzone to end their third possession.
Grier eclipsed 300 yards for the eighth time in 2017, and running back Justin Crawford finally broke loose for a 100-yard performance again, his sixth of the season. Crawford started the season ripping off five consecutive games of 100 rush yards or more, but fell off the past couple weeks and didn’t produce up to his usual standards.
The offensive numbers look pretty, but only 20 points? West Virginia averages 42.8 points per game, good enough for seventh in the nation. For the Cyclones to hold them to less than half of that? That’s the sign of a great football team.