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1998 Outlook

Taken from

MSN Sports

Mountaineer Football The Buzz Is Building For 1998 The buzz around the state has been unmistakable-- it's been 10 years since the undefeated Fiesta Bowl team, five years since the 11-0 Mountaineers played in the Sugar Bowl, and West Virginia fans rapidly realize that it's about time for another great season to roll around.

Coach Don Nehlen, beginning his 19th season at WVU, may not openly be quite so fervent or certain, but even he admits that the 1998 Mountaineers are a terrifically talented football team.

The West Virginia offense returns nine starters with experience, headlined by All-America tailback Amos Zereoue. Back, too, are the 1997 and 1996 BIG EAST leading receivers in Shawn Foreman and David Saunders, along with Pat Greene, Khori Ivy and Carlos Osegueda (also starters last season)-- plenty of prime targets for junior quarterback Marc Bulger, who passed for more than 2,400 yards last season.

Four starters, three of whom have previously earned all-conference honors, return along the offensive line, a unit whose veterans hold 19 varsity letters and 12 WVU strength records.

Also returning are seven defensive starters, led by All-America rush linebacker Gary Stills and John Thornton at nose guard. Several other defensive starters have shifted positions, putting a quicker, swarming unit with plenty of experience on the field. And then there's kicker Jay Taylor, a semifinalist for the national Lou Groza Award as a sophomore last season.

"I look over our roster and I see a lot of quality, capable football players," Nehlen says, "a lot of veteran guys who keeping working to maximize their potential. That makes me think we have a chance."

Of course, WVU will need all that talent and more, Nehlen will quickly remind you, to navigate a schedule that opens with the Ohio State Buckeyes on Saturday night, September 5, at Mountaineer Field. "We have some real challenges ahead, and they only begin with the Buckeyes, who I'm sure will be ranked one, two or three in every preseason poll. Every team in our league is improved and the BIG EAST was more challenging than outsiders realized last year, so we will have our hands full all the way through."

That's why, Nehlen says, the work began in January for the fall campaign. "We got great effort in our winter conditioning program. That's an area in which our players really take great pride and it shows. And we had a productive -- although many called it `boring' -- spring. We didn't have many battles at the so-called `glamour' positions, so maybe no one noticed, but we got a lot of work done, especially in building some much-needed depth among our younger guys. I like that, but it's not enough. Our guys will have to increase their effort over the summer and in preseason camp for us to compete against that schedule.

"First and foremost, we've got to get back to playing West Virginia defense --we can't get everybody hurt like we did last season and expect to play the kind of defense that makes us successful," the head coach says of the carnage that claimed nine different defensive starters for at least one game last season. "Defense wins championships, and for us to have any kind of season, we have to do a better job. That's why we spent so much time in the spring developing a unit that has turned out to be quicker and more athletic. I feel good about our progress there.

"Our priorities in the spring were ones we took seriously: re-establishing that edge on defense, finding a punter, building depth on offense and working with our backup quarterbacks and continuing the strides we made on special teams last season. We made some position changes this spring involving guys who we know are good football players, giving them a chance to get on the field, and 90% of those moves were decent or better. And we spent a lot of time this spring on tackling better," Nehlen emphasizes. "We need to emphasize the little things that will make us a better football team to take advantage of the experience and talent that we have."

Nehlen, with 39 lettermen returning from the 1997 squad that posted another winning season and earned a Carquest Bowl bid, senses plenty of possibilities.
Those possibilities may seem unlimited on offense, where the Mountaineers are full of weapons. Perhaps the most potent is the amazing Amos Zereoue, who enters his junior year just 24 yards short of the school rushing record after back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. The ECAC player of the year, who finished 10th in last year's Heisman Trophy balloting, Zereoue shattered WVU's single-season rushing mark in the season's ninthgame, finishing as the nation's third-leading rusher with 1,589 yards and 18 scores.

"It's hard to put a premium on what Amos means to this offense, because he's just so dangerous with the football. He has great vision, he has great shiftability and he's a powerful man," Nehlen says. "He's got a world of talent and he continues to work at his game. We think this season will be an exceptional one for Amos."
At the tailback position, the Mountaineers are not one-and-done with the return to school of Alvin Swoope, who rushed for 297 yards and three scores as a freshman in 1996, and the promising debut this spring of youngsters Josh McMillen and Kelly Lennox.

The fullback duties will be handled by junior Anthony Green, a sometime-starter as a freshman who has gained 187 yards over the past two seasons. "Anthony Green is a big back who will have to play some fullback, some tailback and some tight end at times this year, depending on what we are doing with our offense," Nehlen says, "but he is a guy with the skills and the experience to handle it. We really liked what he showed us this spring."

Handing those running backs the ball will be Marc Bulger, who displayed impressive development last season as a sophomore; the second-year starter is now battle-tested and enters this campaign displaying tremendous confidence and leadership, in contrast to a year ago.

"What I like about Marc Bulger after the spring is that he's a healthy 200+ pounds, which is 20 pounds heavier than last year at this time," Nehlen says. "He's bigger, he's stronger and he's more fluid, plus, he really knows what he's doing out there. You watch the films of our spring work and his leadership and grasp of our offensive package is impressive. And I have no doubt that he will continue to grow over the summer.

"The thing we've always liked about Marc is that he has the best release of maybe any quarterback I've ever coached -- a quick release that is extremely natural to him. Now, he's throwing to four proven guys that he's comfortable with, and you can add Anthony Becht into that mix as well. It gives a quarterback a lot of options and Marc has the ability to make the most of them."

Bulger's confidence comes from the finest receiving corps in school history, featuring first-team all-BIG EAST flanker Shawn Foreman, who set a WVU record with 77 catches for 928 yards last season as a junior. Returning after a year of rehabilitation from knee surgery is David Saunders, who previously held the WVU record when he caught 76 passes for 1,043 yards in 1996.

"Foreman is a power receiver, a strong, 210-pound guy who can run through defensive backs and make the difficult catch," says Nehlen. "And Saunders, at full speed, is a prototype split end, with great moves and athletic ability. I hope he makes it back because he is a darned good receiver -- he's a player."
Other potential players in the passing game are proven juniors Khori Ivy, Pat Greene and Carlos Osegueda and freshmen Chamari Willis and Varian Terry, both of whom improved daily during spring drills."It's the deepest position on our team, one of the deepest of any position since I've been here," Nehlen admits, tremendous quality and quantity."

Quality and quantity are also abundant along the offensive line, where a veteran unit "continues to improve. In Solomon Page, Bryan Pukenas and Eric de Groh, we have three all-conference players who have continued to improve, along with Randy Dunnigan and Steve Ford with terrific experience at guard.
The only guy we lost up front was Sam Austin at right tackle and we think Brock Holland, who will step in there, can very, very good. Anthony Becht shared time with Chad Wable at tight end the past two years, and he is an excellent receiver; we need to find a way to get him the ball more. Our line can be a special one," Nehlen predicts.

"And when you talk about our offensive potential, you can't forget about our kicker Jay Taylor," Nehlen points out. "He really gained confidence last season and gave our special teams an extra boost. He was extremely consistent this spring and has emerged in my mind as one of the better kickers in America. Plus he will handle our kickoffs and maybe our punting as well.

"We went through a period where our kicking game hurt us tremendously, but that has turned around," Nehlen says. "I really like our schemes on special teams, and our guys on those units have returned some of the pride to that phase of play. I'm looking for us to show even more improvement there this fall.
The kicking game has returned as one of the bright spots of our team, and Jay is a huge factor in that."
On defense, the Mountaineers must rebound from the rash of injuries that caused 1997's late-season swoon. "The key to our defense? We must find away to keep Thornton, Stills, Landolt, Forbes and Brady healthy -- those guys in the trenches are excellent players and they can really dominate if we give them the chance."

Returning up front are fourth-year all-BIG EAST performer John Thornton (51 tackles, 5 TFL, 3 sacks), who will again dominate at nose guard, tackle Kevin Landolt (a two-season regular at tackle and end), and rush linebacker Gary Stills, who recorded 67 tackles, nine TFL and a dozen sacks and earned first team all-BIG EAST honors in 1997 despite missing time for three major injuries (sprained knee, broken thumb and fractured kneecap). Ryan Brady, who filled in admirably for Stills at times last season, has moved to defensive end, while tackle Charlton Forbes can play several spots along the front; both were extremely productive this spring.

"Ryan Brady made a smooth transition to defensive end this spring, so we were really pleased with that change," Nehlen says. "We moved several guys into the linebacker spots --Barrett Green from our starting safety to willie linebacker and Mark Plants from fullback to Mike Backer -- and those were good moves as well. Both those guys are natural linebackers and, after the spring, they already look solid in those assignments. Plus K.C. Schiller, who has been one of our top special teams players the past two seasons, had an excellent spring, so that Willie position has really solidified. And David Carter (who moved from safety to mike backer this spring) needs some seasoning, but he can be a player.

"Our ace in the hole at linebacker is the progress of Damon Cogdell," says Nehlen of the senior who was WVU's leading tackler before fracturing his hip in last season's Syracuse game. "We made plans before the spring, figuring that we would have to go without him, but he has been such a battler in his rehab that it looks like he'll be ready to go by August. I'm not sure where we'll line him up, but wherever it is, we'll have a big-league player. Damon gives us a real bonus."

In the secondary, five players with starting experience return -- Gary Thompkins, Perlo Bastien, Charles Fisher, David Lightcap and Nate Terry, the return specialist who earned all-BIG EAST honors last season with two 100-yard kickoff returns for touchdowns.
Those veterans, however, will be in a different configuration. Bastien, Fisher and Terry will play the corners, while Thompkins has moved from free to strong safety; all are veterans who want to improve onlast year's performance. "We have talented guys in our secondary and we think maybe we've got them where they're a little more effective," Nehlen says, "and we moved Jerry Porter, who may be the best athlete in our program, from receiver to free safety, where he looks decent after just three weeks of spring ball. Plus a couple of young guys in Boo Sensabaugh and Rick Sherrod really showed me something this spring at safety. I think our secondary will be solid.

"We ended up last season with a poor defense, because of those injuries, and that is what caused us at that point to be a poor football team," Nehlen recalls."This year, we have an offense that can score points and we're back to playing Mountaineer defense. Put those together and I think we have a chance."

Mountaineer Fans!

Email: frazerhightower@hotmail.com



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