--Second full day practicing with the entire team. They operated that day Friday, Saturday and Monday and Tuesday leading into the first day of class. Practicing together and have an initial meeting on zoom. They had a team meeting for the first time since March 12 yesterday and in the afternoon, they are still in split squads to watch the video from practice. They keep players separate.
--Last 150 plus COVID-19 tests have been negative which means the process is working for now.
--First scrimmage and first full tackling day today. Exree Loe had a pick that ended the two-minute drill. He has impressed and gotten his weight up where he needs to be. Akheem Mesidor will be in the defensive line rotation when the Mountaineers kick off Sept. 12. Taurus Simmons best football will be down the road, but he had a sack today and did well. Naim Muhammad and Dylan Tonkery also played well. Leddie Brown was patient today and finished runs. Bryce Wheaton has had good days except for one and he has talent, size and speed but just needed to put it together. He almost went for 100-yards. Reese Smith had his best day today and had five catches.
--Brown said he doesn’t know if the team has developed a personality, but they are relatively inexperienced. They are a coach driven team than a player driven team. He hopes the team is going to play with a chip on its shoulder and has something to prove. He hopes his team is hungry and is playing with an edge, but they haven’t had enough time to develop as a team.
--We’ve had one positive and he get lost in all the updates. One positive since they started fall camp, and it only affected two people. The positive guys had a negative since so that’s the first time that’s happened. He isn’t sure how that goes. He hopes his players are leaders and he understand they are held to a higher standard.
--Brown said Wheaton has handled the pandemic well. He has got the skills and talent; not sure the confidence was always there. Made some nice plays and he’s gotten confident. He has made plays and that is giving him some confidence. He knew he was going to be a good player, but most people that perform well in practice that carries over into the game.
--West Virginia ran the ball better today. The middle of the offensive line is getting better and has been more consistent and they should be. James Gmiter, Chase Behrndt and Mike Brown as well as Briason Mays played last year and they should continue to get better. At tackle John Hughes, Junior Uzebu, Parker Moorer and Brandon Yates are getting better.
--Brown is fired up about Garrett Greene, he likes the way he plays and carries himself. He’s a guy you take the future bet on at some point. It’s probably not his time right now but he can be. Quarterback is a two-man race right now to start the opener, but Greene has a bright future.
--A lot of credit needs to go to Shane Lyons. Brown said that he’s in favor of freezing eligibility and a lot of the questions from his team were all about that subject. Players don’t have to worry about the eligibility piece and can focus on their health so they can play with a free mind. There are some scholarship things that needed to be figured out, but that’s something down the road. It makes more guys available on special teams because they don’t have to worry about hitting that four-game quota. It will help with redshirt decisions and on special teams.
--Evaluations really started yesterday for the offensive line and defensive line. There will be some young guys, transfers or junior college guys in that two-deep on the lines.
--Brown thinks its impossible to enact a uniform policy when it comes to fans in the stands. He is disappointed more for the fans than the players. They look forward to it and have one of the best fanbases in the nation, but he understands the decision. He is hopeful they can get fans for the second game against Baylor. Whether they play at home or on the road, they must get ready to play.
--Tight ends have improved their route running and have had more catches in fall camp this year than they did a year ago. They must be able to run the ball with the tight end in the game because it allows for more play action. They must continue to grow and show development.
--It wasn’t a curveball with the decision, but he must wait and see what the roster rulings are going to look like, the total scholarship numbers and everything before they make decisions on recruiting. He doesn’t have a plan right now because of what the rules are going to be.
--Last 150 plus COVID-19 tests have been negative which means the process is working for now.
--First scrimmage and first full tackling day today. Exree Loe had a pick that ended the two-minute drill. He has impressed and gotten his weight up where he needs to be. Akheem Mesidor will be in the defensive line rotation when the Mountaineers kick off Sept. 12. Taurus Simmons best football will be down the road, but he had a sack today and did well. Naim Muhammad and Dylan Tonkery also played well. Leddie Brown was patient today and finished runs. Bryce Wheaton has had good days except for one and he has talent, size and speed but just needed to put it together. He almost went for 100-yards. Reese Smith had his best day today and had five catches.
--Brown said he doesn’t know if the team has developed a personality, but they are relatively inexperienced. They are a coach driven team than a player driven team. He hopes the team is going to play with a chip on its shoulder and has something to prove. He hopes his team is hungry and is playing with an edge, but they haven’t had enough time to develop as a team.
--We’ve had one positive and he get lost in all the updates. One positive since they started fall camp, and it only affected two people. The positive guys had a negative since so that’s the first time that’s happened. He isn’t sure how that goes. He hopes his players are leaders and he understand they are held to a higher standard.
--Brown said Wheaton has handled the pandemic well. He has got the skills and talent; not sure the confidence was always there. Made some nice plays and he’s gotten confident. He has made plays and that is giving him some confidence. He knew he was going to be a good player, but most people that perform well in practice that carries over into the game.
--West Virginia ran the ball better today. The middle of the offensive line is getting better and has been more consistent and they should be. James Gmiter, Chase Behrndt and Mike Brown as well as Briason Mays played last year and they should continue to get better. At tackle John Hughes, Junior Uzebu, Parker Moorer and Brandon Yates are getting better.
--Brown is fired up about Garrett Greene, he likes the way he plays and carries himself. He’s a guy you take the future bet on at some point. It’s probably not his time right now but he can be. Quarterback is a two-man race right now to start the opener, but Greene has a bright future.
--A lot of credit needs to go to Shane Lyons. Brown said that he’s in favor of freezing eligibility and a lot of the questions from his team were all about that subject. Players don’t have to worry about the eligibility piece and can focus on their health so they can play with a free mind. There are some scholarship things that needed to be figured out, but that’s something down the road. It makes more guys available on special teams because they don’t have to worry about hitting that four-game quota. It will help with redshirt decisions and on special teams.
--Evaluations really started yesterday for the offensive line and defensive line. There will be some young guys, transfers or junior college guys in that two-deep on the lines.
--Brown thinks its impossible to enact a uniform policy when it comes to fans in the stands. He is disappointed more for the fans than the players. They look forward to it and have one of the best fanbases in the nation, but he understands the decision. He is hopeful they can get fans for the second game against Baylor. Whether they play at home or on the road, they must get ready to play.
--Tight ends have improved their route running and have had more catches in fall camp this year than they did a year ago. They must be able to run the ball with the tight end in the game because it allows for more play action. They must continue to grow and show development.
--It wasn’t a curveball with the decision, but he must wait and see what the roster rulings are going to look like, the total scholarship numbers and everything before they make decisions on recruiting. He doesn’t have a plan right now because of what the rules are going to be.