Sports - Response to Wayne (read his coment first)

There we go Wayne! Way to liven it up a little in my return to the blogosphere. It was highly emotional and completely supportive of the current regime as is typical of your comments over the years with some good points and some not so fantastic. I certainly appreciate the different viewpoint, just perhaps tone down the language next time for the kids, alright unkie Wayne?

You went a little further with the comment that Stew doesn't have the guts for a quarterback controversy than I intended. If you read the rest of the comment, I talked about how public sentiment would be on Brown's side and even if I were coach and wanted to start Smith I'd blame it on Brown's injury. I did not intend to imply that Stew has less courage to make tough decisions than the average second year coach trying to establish himself at a school that is accustomed to success. It would take a unique coach to go with Smith over Brown at this point unless it is one that is well established and has no worries about the fan base turning against him. So, while I don't think Stew has the guts for a quarterback controversy, that is what I would expect from a coach in his situation and, for me, it really doesn't diminish him in any way. I have issues with Stew in a few areas, but I think he's a great guy and I'm not particularly bothered by his guts at this point.

My point about White's injury was not to suggest that Smith will be as good as White. It was merely to point out that it took an injury to another player to get what you called "WV's greatest QB" on the field full time. It appears Smith can do nothing to earn the starting job. The only way he can get it is if Brown gets hurt. That's the similarity. Side note: Major Harris vs. Pat White would be an interesting discussion for Greatest WV QB. I'd have to think about it before answering as opposed to the emotional response of Wayne who still lingers in love with the recently departed Pat White. At the very least I don't think it's fair to dismiss Harris and award it to White without thought.

I agree that Brown will be drafted in the NFL. NFL scouts covet size and strength and physical tools and Brown has all of that. To repeat your question Wayne, what does that have to do with who would be the better leader of this college football team? Nothing. The NFL is much different than college. They go on potential not performance, just look at Jamarcus Russell. He was the #1 player picked with all the physical tools you could want. However, if you can't read defenses and make accurate throws, you cannot succeed in the NFL. The teams will still take a chance that a player with the tools will develop those other skills. Russell has yet to do that and I doubt Brown will either. The comment reminds me of earlier in the decade at the University of Texas. The Longhorns had a quarterback who was a proven leader and winner, Major Applewhite. They also had a quarterback with all the physical tools that could light up defenses with inferior talent, Chris Simms. Simms went on to the NFL while Applewhite had no shot. Texas desperately wanted to hand the job to Simms despite the fact that he did not play well in big games against good teams. They did so in 2001. He threw 4 picks against the Sooners in a 14-3 loss early in the season. Then, late in the season when it looked like Texas could jump back into the national championship picture, he threw 3 against Colorado as the Texas got down big early. Enter Applewhite who led a valiant comeback that came up two points short. The Longhorns let Applewhite start the bowl game and he threw for 473 yards and 4 TD's in their win over Washington. All this is a nice story. The point is that a player can be a great college quarterback and never get a shot in the NFL or a player can be a disappointment in college (Simms had a nice career at Texas, but just couldn't get it done in the big games) and still be an NFL quarterback. The interest by NFL scouts in Brown doesn't mean anything when it comes time to line up on Saturdays.

As for Brown vs. Smith, I said I wasn't sure who gives WV the best chance to win. I wouldn't start Smith unless I thought he gave WV a better chance at success. I agree a 5th year senior would normally get the nod over a true freshman. However, there are few fifth year seniors that are as careless with the ball as Brown and few freshmen as capable as Smith. Still, I would acknowledge it's a tough decision and I'm fine with Brown starting. However, in all your ranting you failed to address Brown's turnover problems, like a politician sticking to his stump speech when asked a question that hits a little too close to home. There is no arguing that Brown is not a turnover machine. He holds the ball like Wayne holds a bottle of Bailey's after his 5th White Russian, sloppy (he's fumbled a couple of times with nobody around him). He sometimes feels like there should be equal opportunity between the offense and defense between who should have a chance to catch a ball. Those things make it Smith a little more intriguing.

As for Stew, I'll give him a chance. I'm certainly hoping he has great success and succeeds long term. I think the manner in which the WV athletic department hired him has hurt his public relations effort from the start. To say that he is not a candidate for the job the day of the bowl game and to hire him the next day is poor. It showed that it was an emotional hire, something big Wayne would do. That has made the choice questionable in the minds of many fans. If WV had said this was Stew's trial run and had hired him after the impressive bowl win, it may have been better for Stew. However, the athletic department put him in a bad spot. I still question if he can take the team back to the top 10 and consistently hang in the top 25, but I do think he should be given time until his recruits, including Smith, take over the team. His recruiting has been good, but then again, so has Zook's at Illinois, but that guy can't coach. My biggest disappointment with him is the area he coaches, special teams. The coverage team has been terrible all year. It's a little bit embarrassing since it's Stew's unit.

Overall, Brown and Stew are 6-1, which is not too shabby. Of course, they have one win against a team with a pulse as Ryan put it (the narrow escape against UConn) and the loss was against a poor Auburn team where Brown literally handed the game to them. 2-3 down the stretch is the most likely result as they start to play some good teams. However, if they can put it together and not turn the ball over, who knows, maybe it will be a magical season and a BCS bid in the end. For anyone who is predicting that, that is some "I told you so" that I would love to hear.