It’s not just Game Week, it’s RichRod Game Week!
Arizona’s first trip to West Virginia will see it face off against former head coach Rich Rodriguez, who is back with the Mountaineers for a second go-around. Rodriguez coached there from 2001-07 before going to Michigan for three years and then spending 2012-17 with the Wildcats.
The current West Virginia team is on a 2-game skid, losing a 45-42 shootout at Iowa State last weekend after falling at home to Oklahoma State in its Big 12 opener.
To better
understand RichRod’s squad, we reached out to Dillon Clark of SB Nation sister site The Smoking Musket for some insight and a score prediction. Below are his impressive answers to our mediocre questions:
AZ Desert Swarm: West Virginia went 3-0 in nonconference play, including an impressive win over Virginia, but then has lost both conference games. What have been the main contributing factors to the backslide?
Dillon Clark: “There has been a significant increase in competition in Big 12 play compared to our nonconference schedule. The win against Virginia looked good at the time because they were ranked, but after their performance against Florida State last week I don’t think they are going to be anywhere near the top of the ACC again. Our defense hasn’t looked great all year but the wheels have come completely off in the last two games. We have given up over 1,200 yards of total offense in the last two games which equates to about 3/4 of a mile if you were wondering.”
It’s to no one’s surprise in Wildcat Nation that a RichRod-coached team is running the ball well, but this production seems to be at another level. What’s been the key to the rushing success, and how do you think Arizona’s defense will try to neutralize this?
“We spent a ton of money in the portal on a quarterback, running back and several offensive linemen. Michael Hawkins Jr. has exceeded expectations at the quarterback position for us averaging over 100 yards per game on the ground 6.2 yards per carry. Many of his best runs are coming off of pass plays that would have resulted in a sack or throw away for most other QBs so when you turn those negative plays into big positives it really shows up on the stat sheet. One of the biggest surprises to me has been his elusiveness in the red zone and the ability to make people miss. I knew he was fast, I didn’t realize how shifty he is. Cam Cook has also produced at a high level in the RB position. He is such a tough runner. His yards after contact and broken tackles are what really sets him apart. Even though he isn’t what I would call fast, he has consistently popped big runs. He gets stronger as the game goes on and the majority of his yardage has come in the second half of games.”
Quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. is tied for the FBS lead with 11 rushing touchdowns, but how is he as a passer? Would you trust him if he had to be one-dimensional in this way?
“I think it’s fair to call Michael Hawkins Jr. a streaky passer. The last three games he has started out looking a bit shaky in the pass game with off target throws. In two of the three he eventually settled in and made plays with his arm. The completion percentage against Iowa State was a bit lower than you like, but he did have a couple drops and throw aways in there. I have confidence in him as a passer, my bigger question is can our receivers get open consistently in a situation where we have to throw the ball, and can we establish an intermediate passing game? It feels like our passing game at times this year has been all or nothing. The drive-extending, possession-style passing game has not been sharp. I don’t blame that on Michael Hawkins as much as I do on play calling and scheme. I have a hard time seeing anyone making him purely one dimensional as a passer this year. Teams may shut down our traditional running game, but we have seen teams put multiple spies on him in the past few weeks and he is still escaping the pocket for chunk yardage.”
The Mountaineers’ defensive numbers are not good, ranking last in the Big 12 in almost every category. Is this a talent issue, a problem with the scheme, or both?
“In order to be as bad as we have been, it has to be all of the above right? Our tackling is bad. Missed assignments on nearly every possession.We can’t get pressure on the quarterback. When we are in the right place we end up with a pass interference penalty. It’s rough all around. There has been a lot of talk on if Zac Alley’s reputation as a sort of ‘mad scientist’ on defense could be part of the problem. It’s really hard to argue against that when you see us consistently confused on pre-snap alignments. The biggest concern is that we are struggling in every aspect. Scoring defense, rushing defense, pass defense, total yardage, it doesn’t matter which stat you look at, we are at or near the bottom. The only hope is that potentially our two best defenders just became eligible last week. Jacorey Thomas and Jason Chambers should help plug some holes in what has been a leaky secondary. There is only one way for us to go from here.”
How has the second coming of RichRod been so far in your estimation? Have there been any classic moments in terms of his antics?
“After the Virginia win in Week 3 the vibes around the WVU fan base were as high as I’ve seen them in a very long time. That game brought back a lot of great memories from Rich Rod’s first tenure here and it felt like the sky was the limit. The last two weeks have put a damper on the mood though the fact that the offense has been producing at a high level still does take some of the blame off of him. The Rich Rod offense is back and it’s humming, but how did he not see this coming with the defense? There was definitely a group of the fanbase that didn’t want him back, and those voices are getting louder with each loss. I think he has shown enough so far that the majority of the fan base still believes he can get this right. We love that he holds players accountable in the moment, and it gives us hope that he can turn this thing around.”
Prediction time. Does Arizona beat its former coach and get a big conference road win or do the Mountaineers hold serve at home? Give us a score prediction.
“We have the worst defense in the Big 12. You have one of the best offenses. We are coming off of two straight brutal conference losses. You are coming off of a dominant win against a previously undefeated Cincinnati team. In other words, we have you right where we want you. 45-31 Mountaineers get back on track at home.”
