This was a great team victory for the Cowboys. Before the season, this game shaped up as one of the most difficult of the season for this team, and as game week approached not much changed in that regard. This was a major hurdle cleared.
Looking back at the things mentioned earlier as things to watch:
1) The Cowboy defensive ends did a good job throughout the game, making Howard uncomfortable in the pocket for much of the first half. Additionally, Jimmy Bean and Emmanuel Ogbah did a great job of not getting too far upfield, so that they were in position to contain the QB run/scramble situations. The defense faced 98 offensive snaps for the Mountaineers, and fatigue was a definite factor in the second half when West Virginia went tempo.
2) The defense did a very good job overcoming the loss of Ryan Simmons. Other than a couple of missed gap alignments when West Virginia went to their fast tempo, Chad Whitener played very well. The first touchdown was on the defensive coaching staff for the late substitution, and a timeout should have been taken as West Virginia did not substitute.
3) Wendel Smallwood was a problem for the defense as expected, and he went right at the Cowboy outside backers. He gained 147 yards on 19 carries (29 came on the last play of the first half, basically conceded yardage). He has an explosive first step and is elusive with enough power to finish runs. The linebackers did a good job of keeping him from being productive in the passing game, and he was not open often. The really good news was that other than the one big play over the top, the down-field play action game was ineffective.
4) The Cowboy WRs had a subpar day, and that was a concern heading into this match-up. First, there was not a lot of separation from defenders in man coverage. The Cowboys had a few jump ball receptions where the receivers showed off their ability to attack the football, but there simply were not big windows for Rudolph to hit. Eventually, the Mountaineers settled into dropping eight guys in coverage, and the Cowboy receivers still had a hard time finding open spaced to settle into, and there were several times when they found space when they did not make the catch. Several balls were dropped that should have been caught (Washington, Seales, Jarwin, Sheperd, Glidden). Brandon Sheperd covered up the tight end on the illegal man downfield penalty. Marcel Ateman rounded off his route against Worley on the interception.
5) Skyler Howard was confused and uncomfortable early, and really only got into rhythm on the fast tempo drives. His best throw of the night was the fourth down conversion where Peterson got dinged. Glenn Spencer's group did a great job of taking away many of his first options in the passing game. He finished the night 18 of 35 for 188 yards and a QBR of 25.6!
The bye week is now here, and this gives the staff the opportunity to give the players some time off. Rob Glass will get some extra time with them to build them back up, so they are ready for the stretch run of the season. Having Kansas after the bye week should allow the staff to limit game reps that week again to help keep guys fresh. This was the most physical stretch on the schedule in terms of how the teams play.
Looking back at the things mentioned earlier as things to watch:
1) The Cowboy defensive ends did a good job throughout the game, making Howard uncomfortable in the pocket for much of the first half. Additionally, Jimmy Bean and Emmanuel Ogbah did a great job of not getting too far upfield, so that they were in position to contain the QB run/scramble situations. The defense faced 98 offensive snaps for the Mountaineers, and fatigue was a definite factor in the second half when West Virginia went tempo.
2) The defense did a very good job overcoming the loss of Ryan Simmons. Other than a couple of missed gap alignments when West Virginia went to their fast tempo, Chad Whitener played very well. The first touchdown was on the defensive coaching staff for the late substitution, and a timeout should have been taken as West Virginia did not substitute.
3) Wendel Smallwood was a problem for the defense as expected, and he went right at the Cowboy outside backers. He gained 147 yards on 19 carries (29 came on the last play of the first half, basically conceded yardage). He has an explosive first step and is elusive with enough power to finish runs. The linebackers did a good job of keeping him from being productive in the passing game, and he was not open often. The really good news was that other than the one big play over the top, the down-field play action game was ineffective.
4) The Cowboy WRs had a subpar day, and that was a concern heading into this match-up. First, there was not a lot of separation from defenders in man coverage. The Cowboys had a few jump ball receptions where the receivers showed off their ability to attack the football, but there simply were not big windows for Rudolph to hit. Eventually, the Mountaineers settled into dropping eight guys in coverage, and the Cowboy receivers still had a hard time finding open spaced to settle into, and there were several times when they found space when they did not make the catch. Several balls were dropped that should have been caught (Washington, Seales, Jarwin, Sheperd, Glidden). Brandon Sheperd covered up the tight end on the illegal man downfield penalty. Marcel Ateman rounded off his route against Worley on the interception.
5) Skyler Howard was confused and uncomfortable early, and really only got into rhythm on the fast tempo drives. His best throw of the night was the fourth down conversion where Peterson got dinged. Glenn Spencer's group did a great job of taking away many of his first options in the passing game. He finished the night 18 of 35 for 188 yards and a QBR of 25.6!
The bye week is now here, and this gives the staff the opportunity to give the players some time off. Rob Glass will get some extra time with them to build them back up, so they are ready for the stretch run of the season. Having Kansas after the bye week should allow the staff to limit game reps that week again to help keep guys fresh. This was the most physical stretch on the schedule in terms of how the teams play.
