West Virginia Marcis Ford (24) goes to sack Texas Tech quarterback Tyler Shough (12) during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, in Morgantown, W.Va. (AP Photo/Chris Jackson)
MORGANTOWN — “This one was personal,” Neal Brown said moments after a fourth-down pass by Texas Tech fell incomplete in the end zone early Saturday evening, assuring his West Virginia football team a 20-13 victory over Texas Tech.
He wasn’t talking about personal for him because his future has been in doubt all year, even though his first three-game winning streak in four-plus years as a WVU coach will do nothing but better his chances to move forward with the team.
He wasn’t talking, either, about a 3-1 start on the year and 1-0 start in the Big 12, a conference in which his team was picked to finish 14th.
No, his mind was going back last year, to the thorough 48-10 pounding the Red Raiders had laid on his team in Lubbock.
“We played our worst game we’ve played in five years down there. It was embarrassing the way we played there.”
For almost a full year that had haunted Brown and haunted his team and his team was well aware of his feelings. Even after beating Pitt, they heard about Texas Tech..
“Our guys heard about it all week,” Brown said. “They heard it from me and while they were being patted on the back by others after last week, saying you beat Pitt.”
No more.
This one was worth it. It wasn’t very pretty, but that is becoming the modus operandi of this Mountaineer team.
It was built on a defense that just seems to grow with each game after a couple of seasons of earning no respect, and on a backup quarterback named Nicco Marchiol, who was thrust into his first collegiate start due to an ankle injury to Garrett Greene and who once again found a way to gut out a victory.
Three times he’s had extended playing time and WVU has won all three, Oklahoma State last year and Pitt and Texas Tech this year.
Immediately after the game he gave forth with an honest assessment of his play.
“A lot was going through my mind. To come out and not start too hot, not have the best performance I’ve ever put out here ..,. those two things could deteriorate your performance for the rest of the night or elevate your performance and I think I chose the right things,” Marchiol said. “I listened to the right people. I trusted my guy.”
He had some shaky moments. There were two interceptions, one on a pass that bounced off Devin Carter’s shoulder pads.
But when they needed it, he was there. True, he passed for just 78 yards, his second week of less than 80 yards passed.
Then came the fourth quarter, WVU having not yet scored in the second half and its lead down to 13-10. The game was on the line and he took it upon himself to carry the team.
He ran for 17 yards, threw for 15, threw a deep pass that drew an interference call and then capped it with a 9-yard pass to tight end Kole Taylor for much needed breathing room.
“I told him before we went out there we were going to cut this thing loose. We were going to throw it,” Brown recalled after the game. “He ran the ball well in that drive. And there was a double pass play that worked.”
It was a high pressure play for what is basically a rookie quarterback and he responded.
“You call them ‘must haves’. Those are non-negotiable. We could have been much better on third down and fourth and shorts. I could have thrown the ball much better. But the bottom line is those critical plays; the ones that determine wins and losses, we’ve gotten very good at them. We’re very comfortable in those situations.”
WVU was outgained 321-256.
WVU was just 3 of 17 on third down.
But when it had to be there it was there. The Mountaineers may not have handled third down well, but they led in time of possession 34:50 to 25:10,
At the end it came down to preserving the victory as Texas Tech drove to the WVU 11, fourth down, 19 seconds left. They had to throw it and did, but defensive lineman Sean Martin got a mitt on the pass and it flew into the air and into the end zone.
It was anyone’s ball but turned out to be no one’s ball, falling harmlessly to earth, allowing WVU to take possession and kneel out the clock.
Not to be overlooked was another strong defensive performance, giving up just one touchdown after holding Pitt to no touchdowns.
No one is maligning the defense these days.
